Follow TV Tropes

Following

Context Headscratchers / LiarLiar

Go To

1* This might be as simple as "He didn't think of it," but after Fletcher feigns being assaulted in the bathroom to force the case into recess, Judge Stevens asks him if he can continue. Couldn't Fletcher have just pretended to pass out from the beating he took, which would probably be enough of an implication that he can't continue (without him actually having to say "I can't continue," which he can't)? The wish is that he can't ''tell'' a lie.
2** Earlier, he couldn't even shake his head no if it was dishonest. Faking a fainting spell would have been out of the question. He ''could'' have easily said "yes, but I would really rather not," but that would have been less funny in the long run.
3** Wouldn't it have been easier to just admit that he did it to himself? The judge would assume some kind of mental breakdown and dismiss him from serving as counsel. Then, the following day, he would be able to talk/lie his way out of the consequences.
4*** Appearing to have a mental breakdown in an important case would hurt his career. His law firm wouldn't trust him with important cases if they thought he was so mentally unstable that he beats himself up for no reason.
5** That kind of thing would force a retrial -- and it would probably ruin his career to have a mental breakdown in the middle of a case that his boss is watching.
6* After Max "un-wished" the wish, Fletcher decided he needed to test it to see if it worked. Why didn't he just tell Max to ask him a series of questions like he had a few minutes prior (about wrestling, sitting close to the TV, and getting your face stuck when making funny faces)? Instead, he goes up to a random woman and gets a slap across the face. Seems like he didn't think that one through, but he's a smart guy. It makes sense to expect better from someone who was intelligent enough to still win the Cole case despite being unable to lie. Yes, yes, what he actually did was funnier, but we're thinking within the universe of the movie, not the movie AS a movie.
7** Because he probably doesn't want to lie to his son and then celebrate about it.
8* Why couldn't Fletcher tell the chick on the elevator with the sweet tits, "Well, you're a beautiful young lady and you seem to be very friendly" when she said everyone in the building has been nice to her? Instead, he says quite possibly the worst thing he could have said ("That's because you have big jugs... I mean, your boobs are huge! I mean... I wanna squeeze 'em!") Saying that she's attractive in a more refined, less crude fashion would not have been a lie.
9** Because that's not what he was thinking. He was thinking that everyone was being nice to her because she has big breasts. It's a truth curse, and he considered that the truth.
10** But the wish is that he can't lie, not that he has to say exactly what's on his mind to a self-destructive degree... right?
11*** I'm guessing that yes, in fact he ''does'' have to blurt out whatever he's thinking, without being able to stop and frame it more tactfully. A lot of Truth Curses seem to have that caveat.
12** It's whatever he says is the truth--he probably ''meant'' to say something more tactful, but what he was thinking was the truth was that she has large breasts. Whatever he has to say on any subject has to be the truth--and Fletcher just can't keep his mouth shut.
13*** A lot of this might be chalked up to one thing: Fletcher is a jerk. Throughout the story, he comes off a crude, disrespectful, and generally an asshole. It was probably his brain's attempts at BrutalHonesty: a few people might help a pretty girl, but every man in the room will drop what he's doing to help a pretty girl with a big rack.
14** Part of the truth wish seems to be blocking out lies of omission.
15** Also, at that point he had no idea the wish curse was in effect. After he becomes aware of it and has to deal with it for the rest of the day, he gradually figures out ways to get around it (like the way he avoids telling the judge he beat himself up), but here he has has no idea his horny thoughts are about to escape his lips, so he has no chance to prepare a nicer way to express it.
16* So, I probably forgot some bits, so please bear with me. Max's wish for his father only to tell the truth is pretty wide, and I couldn't help but wonder a few implications... for example, is Jim Carrey's character forced to tell the truth in a matter in which he doesn't know the answer? What about matters of opinion, is there a "true" opinion he's forced to state? I'm really more asking this because I'm not sure if it was addressed anywhere in the movie...
17** Well, the wish was that he tell the truth; it didn't give him psychic powers. If he didn't know the true answer to something, he couldn't give it, obviously. As for matters of opinion, the movie doesn't directly address it; presumably they'd either be exempt, because they fall outside the 'true/false' dichotomy, or he'd be forced to say whatever he thought was true.\
18\
19That said, there are some truths he said that could be construed as opinion; his impromptu roast of his superiors, and telling the woman in the elevator that people are only helping her because of her gazongas, for instance.
20** IIRC, she didn't even ask him a question. She just made a statement. Since she didn't ask a question, he was under no obligation to acknowledge her statement. So why didn't he just keep his trap shut?
21*** Regardless of whether a question is asked, everything he says still has to be the truth. Since he didn't even know about the wish at the time, he was merely trying to have a normal chit-chat conversation. What he probably meant to say was something like "Yeah, all the people here are great," which to him would be a lie since he almost certainly doesn't think they're all that great, therefore it got replaced with the truth. And of course when he tried repeatedly to lie to cover up what he blurted out, he just ended up making the situation worse.
22*** If you mean his boss, she did ask him a question. "Well, what do you think of him?" She seemed to add that precisely because she knew he had to tell the truth when answering a direct question.
23*** The way I've always seen it is that telling the truth would include his personal opinions because they're his and his only and he can't speak for others.
24** On the opinion question, most likely if he's asked for it, he has to give his ''honest'' opinion; like when the one secretary asks about her outfit, and he goes, "Whatever takes the focus off your face!" Her looks aren't an objective truth; certainly, ''she'' at least thinks she looks good; so he's giving his most honest opinion rather than lying to placate her.
25** It's not that he's forbidden to speak an untruth, it's that he's forbidden to say anything dishonest. He can say anything he wants so long as he honestly believes it.
26*** Evidenced by his comment to the Judge about "holding it" causing cancer and impotence. It's prefaced with "I've heard...".
27*** Or, if asked about something he hasn´t heard about or has no idea about, he would still answer the truth: I don´t know.
28*** Not necessarily, prefacing his comment with "I've heard" just indicates that he's heard it, not that he necessarily beleives it to be true. This would imply that he can indirectly lie by saying that he has heard an untrue statement, for example answering a question by saying 'I heard that blue is red' even when he knows it's not. He's not lying because he may well have heard someone saying that blue is red but at the same time the statement is false as blue is not red.
29*** Except he ''knows'' that blue is not red. He ''doesn't'' know if holding your pee for too long can damage your prostate. However, he has ''heard'' that it can do that, which is why the curse allows him to say "I've heard blahblahblah". He's heard it and doesn't have any reason to believe it's untrue, therefore it's not dishonest to say that he's heard this. See also other lines such as "I can't ask a question if I know the answer is a lie" and "I can't do anything dishonest until 8:15 tonight". He's not required to speak only the objective truth, he's simply forbidden to say or do anything dishonest for the duration of the curse.
30*** Yeah, the simplest answer is that he has to tell the truth as he knows it. If he's asked about something he doesn't know, then the truthful answer is "I don't know", along with however much rambling elaboration he wants to get into. If he's asked for his opinion, then he has to say his real opinion ("that's just something we tell ugly people to make them feel better!").
31*** And as for the woman in the elevator, this troper always interpreted it as Reed opening his mouth to say something flattering and flirtacious but, to his horror, having the curse force him to say what he was really thinking about: primarily, her mammary glands and how, of course no one would be rude to her. Note that this isn't because someone actually wouldn't be rude to her but only because Fletcher himself couldn't imagine it because he could never bring himself to be anything but flattering and flirtacious with an attractive woman.
32* When Carrey's character has to answer his secretaries questions which he doesn't what to, why doesn't he just not answer at all, it was only for him to tell the truth, not answer every question he is asked.
33** You answered your own question. The wish was for him "to tell the truth." I.e., if he knows a truth, he has to tell it.
34*** No. The exact wording of the wish is "I wish that for only one day, Dad ''couldn't tell a lie''" (emphasis mine). This is something the movie forgets as well (though maybe for the RuleOfFunny): not answering is '''not''' ''telling'' a lie.
35** One word (or at least I'm going to type it without spaces) RuleOfFunny
36** Because not answering would have the same effect as answering. The secretary would have very easily concluded that he wasn't answering because he knew she wouldn't like the answer.
37** But then why didn't he just answer with a simple "I don't like it."?
38** I believe he is forced to say whatever pops into his head at that moment so he can't word something to be technically true. You can see this when he clamps his hand over his mouth when he answers his own question of what's wrong with me, hurls a phone away after admitting he was sleeping with his boss when he culd have just said I was with my boss last night, and at one point wraps his head in his jacket and tries to nod and shake his head as an answer but screams the opposite of what he's indicating.
39*** I think a lot of this can be chalked up to Fletcher not understanding exactly what's happening to him at first, and and later the stress of what's going on causes him to have outbursts, which of course have to be the truth.
40** Answer one: The wish didn't just cause him to not be able to lie, even if that's what Max said, but to force him to be constantly truthful, period, meaning that yes, he had to volunteer information. Answer two: Silence could be considered a lie of omission. Witness the elevator fart. No one asks him anything. No one says anything. But it's so ridiculously obvious that they're all ''wondering'' who it was and wanting to know that he absolutely has to turn back and say "It was ''meeeee''!"
41
42* Ok, so the prenuptial agreement doesn't count because the wife was too young to get married when she married her husband, so then the wife doesn't lose out on her husband's money due to violating the agreement. But then, in that case wouldn't the whole marriage not count, if she was too young to get married, and she would therefore lose out on the money?
43** It's HollywoodLaw. the main page explains it in detail.
44
45* I always saw Fletcher and his ex-wife getting back together as incredibly tacked-on and undermining of the whole point of the movie being Fletcher's love for his SON. What is this, Hays code fallout?
46** Actually the point of the movie was more about Fletcher learning to be a better person (or at least less of a lying, scheming jerk). Part of that process is repairing his relationship with his son, but his relationship with his ex-wife was just as much in need of repairing.
47** At least it puts that a year in the future, making it a little more believable.
48** Plus, I think implications exist throughout the movie of lingering feelings between Fletcher and Audrey - her ambivalence to Jerry throughout the film, his jealousy of Jerry, etc. Their divorce seemed to be because he was a jerk who put his job first and was unfaithful to her, neither of which would be true of this Fletcher. Given the requisite time (and it took a whole year) I find this totally believable.
49
50* Fairly minor but as Fletcher is being dragged out of court to be held in comtempt he clearly yells. "I am Jose Canseco! I AM JOSE CANSECO!!!" While absolutely hilarious it would fall under the category of lying. I guess you could write it off as he didn't mean it as a lie, he was just refering to a game of catch he was going to play with Max...but it still bugs me.
51** Fletcher says lots of crazy, whacky things when he goes on one of his Truth rants. Remember when he goes off on that one guy the wife had been cheating on? "You dunked her donut! You gave her dog a Snausage! You stuffed her like a Thanksgiving turkey!" None of that was ''literally'' true (he didn't ''actually'' give her dog a Snausage), but he still said it because the metaphorical meaning was true.
52*** Also, as you said, he was being dragged out at the time. We don't know what he might or might not have said after the door closed on him, so he could very well have yelled out something clarifying like "MY SON WANTS ME TO PRETEND TO BE JOSE CANSECOOOOOOO!!!" after the scene cut.
53** Remember that he first says "I have a date to play ball with my son." In that ball playing, he will be Jose Canseco.
54** Fletcher doesn't intend for anyone to actually believe he's Jose Canseco, so he isn't really lying to them. The statement is technically false, but he isn't being dishonest.
55
56* Max's fifth birthday is a HUGE to-do, with friends, a clown and music. His sixth birthday is... his two parents and a cake.
57** Well, when your birthday doesn't fall on a weekend, you tend to have a little birthday party with just your parents, and then the big bash comes the next Saturday.
58*** So Max's fifth birthday was a Saturday, a 29th February intervened, and his sixth birthday was a Monday. Makes sense.
59** Also, Fletcher's income likely took a big hit after he left his firm, and he may also have been in jail for a while at this point.
60** Could also simply be Max's preference; after finally having his two parents joining him for his birthday, maybe he just wanted it to be the three of them, esp. since he had the big birthday blowout the year before.
61** Or Max's birthday fell on a weekday that year, so he could have had his birthday party on the weekend before/after. On the actual day it was just a small celebration with his parents.
62
63* He DID lie once: When Fletcher's secretary was quitting, and he had just said he could have "gotten him ten", and she continues to pack up her stuff, Fletcher desperately cries out "I didn't understand the question!" There is no application of this statement that could have been true.
64** He was referring to the secretary's question ("Is that justice?" in relation to her friend being sued). She meant "is that justice for my friend?" He answered as if it was "is that justice for the burglar?" (after all, that's the type of client he'd be representing). Thus, misunderstanding.
65*** Basically this. Fletcher is a stereotypical AmbulanceChaser lawyer, thus he views everything through that lens. He ''instinctively'' placed himself in the role of the burglar's attorney because those are the kinds of cases he specializes in (for instance, one of his repeat clients is a serial mugger who apparently likes to rob ATMs). If he had thought about the question a little longer instead of snapping off a quick answer he would have realized the point Greta was trying to make and his answer might have been more thought-out.
66
67* He did lie another time : Before trying to say that "The pen is red", he said "All right, you can beat this". Which wasn't the case.
68** He wasn't lying. He really DID think he could beat it. He's truthful not omnipotent.
69
70* Fletcher cannot ask a question if he knows the answer will be a lie. When he puts Samantha on the stand and questions her about her birth certificate, he had to have known she was going to lie when he asked her about the information, she'd falsified at least three things on the document. How could he ask the questions if he knew the answers would be lies?
71** Because his intent was to reveal the ''truth''. When he was asking her the lies before, the intent was to deceive. At each of her answers about the form, he immediately shoots down her lies.
72*** ^Exactly. People interpret the "rules" of this curse way too literally. The only thing the curse does is prevent Fletcher from doing anything ''dishonest''. Also, he didn't know the answers to his questions about the birth certificate would be lies because they weren't part of the carefully rehearsed routine he originally planned out.
73*** Also, the "weight" lie was because Fletcher didn't directly ask the question. He simply said "Weight, 105? Yeah, in your ''bra.''" It was the judge who officially asked her to state her weight.
74*** Given that the movie is pretty heavy-handed on using the letter of the law to subvert the spirit of the law, maybe the curse gives Fletcher a little wiggling room if he's using minor amounts of deception to ultimately reveal the truth. In essence, it'd be stepping a wee bit out of the letter of the truth in order to reveal the full truth.
75** Watch the scene carefully. She actually answers all his questions truthfully. He points to the marriage license and birth certificate and asks what they say. Then when she admits she lied to make herself older, he asks, "But why would any woman want to do that?" "I lied about my age so I could get married."
76
77* Isn't it odd that Audrey just happened to know the exact time Max blew out the candles? There's nothing showing why she would remember that he blew out the candles at exactly 8:15. And yet she tells Fletcher that Max made his birthday wish at that exact time.
78** Maybe she was checking the time every now and then, waiting for Fletcher to show up, and happened to do so shortly before Max went to the cake?
79** What's the big deal? I can tell you I ate tuna today at 2:23. Sometimes people just look at clocks.
80** Audrey was becoming increasingly frustrated that Fletcher is late, she was most likely watching that clock like a hawk. Maybe she even took note of the exact time that Max blew out his candles so she could bring it up to Fletcher when she confronted him for missing his son's birthday party.
81
82* Right before the "pen soliloquy", Fletcher says, "You can beat this. It's just a matter of [[HeroicWillpower willpower]]." [[LogicBomb Then he puts lie to these words by completely and utterly failing to tell a simple lie about the color of the pen]]. Can somebody please explain this?
83** He was wrong, not knowingly lying. The prohibition is against him saying something he knows is a lie. It's not that he has to tell the absolute truth.
84** The curse is not about the question of is/not (objective truth), but Fletcher's perception of the truth. Like the above troper said, if Fletcher believes something is true, he can say it, even if it's not an objective truth. Compare with the prostate exchange with the judge. While the truth might be otherwise, Fletcher probably honestly believes that there could be some truth to the claim that holding it in for too long can damage the prostate. He can therefore repeat this belief to the judge.
85
86* Why was Fletcher forced to insult his coworkers about their physical imperfections, since none of the questions they asked after Max's wish came true called for that kind of answer ("What's up, Fletcher?" "Your cholesterol, fatty!")?
87** The curse seems to interpret a lie as "any interaction in which Fletcher does not immediately say what's on his mind". For example, the large-breasted woman in the elevator didn't ask him ''any'' questions, not even a phatic one like "how are you?" But he still started talking about her boobs when she said people had been nice to her. So seeing his overweight coworker brought that response to mind, so it had to pop out of his mouth.
88
89* Fletcher might not be having a great day, but surely he hasn't slipped into the Seventh Layer of Hell or did Fletcher just lie?
90** He's not lying, he's using a metaphor to describe his current unpleasant circumstances. It might not be an exact match for those circumstances, but it doesn't mean that he's telling a lie, since he's not trying to convince the people he's talking to that he is actually literally in any layer of Hell, he's just trying to convince them that he's having quite the rotten time of it. Which is entirely true.
91** Furthermore, for all we know in this universe the Seventh Layer of Hell actually ''does'' involve being trapped into telling the truth in every circumstance no matter how difficult, so Fletcher might be inadvertently telling the truth in this case.
92
93* When Fletcher was pulled over by the cop and was asked if he knew why he was pulled over, couldn't he have just said "no". He might have known he had broken many laws, but he doesn't know which one got him stopped. It wouldn't have saved him from a ticket, but it would have been much better than "Depends on how long you were following me", which led to him confessing multiple crimes.
94** It may have been because he was aware he was breaking several traffic rules during his drive ("I'm an inconsiderate prick!"), but didn't know at what point the officer noticed him and pursued him. Therefore, saying "no" wouldn't have been the honest truth, because Fletcher knew that he was doing several things that could have caught the cop's attention.
95
96* How exactly was Fletcher planning to win the case for Samantha Cole? There was documented proof of adultery and a pre-nup agreement he at the time thought was valid. Even with the ability to lie, that seems like an impossible case to win. He couldn't plausibly deny the affair or the existence of the contract.
97** When Fletcher calls Kenneth to the witness stand, he attempts to ask him, multiple times, to clarify that [[BlatantLies his relationship with Samantha is completely platonic and they have never had sex]]. That was most likely the idea from the start, and it's possible that Fletcher didn't realize they had almost totally concrete, audio proof of the affair (and even then, if Samantha hadn't blurted out "You're such a better lover than my husband!" on the tape and possibly the part at the end where he mentions having to clean the pool, Fletcher would have had a chance to convince the judge to dismiss that piece of evidence, on the grounds that the male voice very well could have been her husband).
98** Don't forget that he was plowing the opposition's attorney the night before to get her to wash the case for him. Had he not told her she sucks in bed, she likely wouldn't have fought so hard.
99*** Um no that wasn't the opposition's attorney, that was a different attorney in his own firm.
100
101* Why does Fletcher keep voluntarily giving away information that makes his situations worse even when he isn't asked for it? Like when Miranda asks if the sex was good. He didn't have to say "I've had better". He could have just said yes and that would be true. When Gretta tells him the story about her friend that got sued by a burglar, he didn't have to say "I would have gotten him ten" because she didn't ask what he would have gotten him. He could have just answered no to the question of was it justice and left it at that. It seems like his "condition" goes way beyond the limits of what his son actually wished for. It's not just that he can't tell a lie, he has to give away all the information on everything he's talking about, even when it wouldn't be lying not to do so.
102** Because he was going to lie. He's going to say ''something''. So the curse cuts in and changes the "You were amazing" lie to a truthful "I've had better," and changes a lie, "I think you're right that's unjust," to a more truthful, "I'd have gotten him ten."
103*** But why would he have to provide details for simple "yes or no" questions? When asked if the sex was good, all he had to say was yes. That would not be a lie. Just because he's "had better" doesn't mean the answer to that question wasn't a yes. She wasn't asking for a comparison of other times he had sex, just a response about their time on its own. Same with Gretta's question about justice. All he had to say was no and leave it at that. That wouldn't by lying, since a yes or no is all she asked for. She didn't ask what would happen if the burglar was his client. Gretta's case is especially odd because by that point in the movie, he knows he has this condition of truth telling. So you would think he would put all his effort into providing the shortest answer possible to every question to avoid slipping up.
104*** Because he's not thinking in terms of yes or no answers. He's saying the "truthful" answer that comes to his mind. He doesn't appear to have control over the length of his answers, given how often he seems to be trying to physically stop himself from speaking. He just spits out the truth that he's thinking of.
105** Fletcher DOES seem to have some small level of control, when he's actually thinking about his answers - referring to a "madman" being responsible for his assault rather than just saying he did it himself. The problem is, Fletcher is a fast talker. He's blurting out lies left and right without a second thought, and so they're just being converted directly into whatever he was actually thinking.
106*** That's his biggest issue. Fletcher has a severe habit of dropping lies left and right whether he's answering a question or just greeting someone at the office, to the point that it seems to practically be a reflex for him. Once Max's wish takes effect, though, he's suddenly stricken with a severe case of "DamnYouMuscleMemory" Instead of making "polite greetings" to an overweight coworker asking if he's lost weight, that comment on weight turns into mocking the guy's obesity. Commenting on how nice the staff have been to a new employee turns into "They like you because you have amazing tits." He probably ''wanted'' to tell Miranda that sex with her was better than he's ever had before so he could get on her good side (probably a lie he's used a lot, given his history of cheating on Audrey), but the curse turns that automatic response into "I've had better."
107
108* How long before this movie was made was it written? It doesn't seem like a movie that should have languished in development heel for ages, but some of the references to athletes. Jose Canseco in 1997 had a few years left, but he was past his prime. Likewise the wrestlers they mentioned, Randy Savage and Rick Rude. Rude had actually been retired since 93 or 94
109** It doesn't necessarily have anything to do with a gap between scripting and shooting. Movies tend to be written by older people who tend to linger on things that were popular when they were younger. Max isn't referencing Rick Rude because the script was written in the early 90s, he's referencing Rick Rude because the writer that put that line in only remembered a couple names from when he was into wrestling when he was younger and didn't bother to double check the active roster because it just doesn't matter.
110
111* How can Judge Stevens hold Fletcher in contempt of court if court's already been adjourned?
112** The session may have been adjourned, but they are all still in the courtroom itself.
113
114* When Fletcher is trying to write the pen is red, he pins his arm to the table and says "write it or I'll break it off." How can he say that? He's not really going to break his arm off, so that's a clear lie.
115** Not necessarily. Consider that he never says ''what'' he'll break off. It's possible he doesn't even have the "it" identified in his own mind.
116** In that moment of rage he probably DID mean it. It wasn't a lie so much as the sort of thing someone would change their mind about after even a few seconds to think about pain and consequences.
117* Why does Max's wish have so many technicalities? When he made the wish, Max specifically says "I wish for just one day, my dad can't tell a lie", yet Fletcher is unable to ask questions to his witnesses if he knows they'll give a false answer, and he blurts out insensitive remarks about his co-workers shortcomings. I feel like even if these issues carry the same principle, the problem is Max didn't specifically wish for them to happen, and honestly I feel like he's too young to fully understand the concept of honesty, so can anyone explain this to me?
118** So with the court, the problem is that Fletcher is having them lie so that he himself can create a bigger lie. Their lies ARE his lies and so he's being compelled to stop it. As for blurting out to his coworkers, as mentioned above, he's so used to reflexively spouting bullshit he's just throwing out what he's really thinking left and right.
119** My immediate knee-jerk response is "[[RuleOfFunny It's just a movie]]," but one possible in-universe explanation is that the rules work according to Fletcher's perceptions rather than his kid's; if he ''thinks'' he's about to be dishonest, then he's unable to do it. That seems to fit what we see in the movie, like when he's forced to tell the people in the elevator he's the one who farted (nobody asked him, he just feels he'd be misleading them by not saying anything). In those moments when he appears to bend the rules (as when he tells the judge he was beaten by "a madman" but doesn't clarify that it was himself), it's probably because he ''isn't'' intending to mislead anyone, even if that's the effect. I think this also helps explain why some of his forced "honesty" involves being forced to divulge what are simply personal opinions--"I'm a bad father"; "That's just something ugly people say"; or his insulting statements about his coworkers. This differs from a movie like ''Film/TheInventionOfLying'', where it's implied that the characters' inability to lie means their being bound to some extent by objective reality, not just personal perception of the truth.
120
121* Several scenes suggest that Fletcher can't lie by omission. If that is true, how was he able to get away with not admitting he beat himself up. While he gets around explicitly naming himself by giving a physical description (that matches his own) and saying he was beaten by a madman and a desperate fool (which accurately describes how he feels about himself), but by using those ExactWords, he's trying to make the others think an unknown assailant beat him up, which they believe. Wouldn't that count as a lie of omission?

Top