Line #133 Main/EyesNeverLie


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9	->''"Then one day Strangefolk arrived in the town.\
10	They came in camouflage, hidden behind dark glasses, but no one noticed them: they only saw shadows.\
11	You see, without the Truth of the Eyes, the Happyfolk were blind."''
12	-->-- '''Music/{{Gorillaz}}''', "Fire Coming Out of The Monkey's Head"
13
14	If you think they're lying, watch their eyes. In fiction, characters watching the eyes of a speaker can (metaphorically) look into the soul of the speaker, which will give insight into what they're thinking. At the very least, it can betray some level of emotion, and usually allow you to see through deception.
15
16	The expectation is that the character will be unable to make eye contact, or maintain it for long, if they're lying — and works often do run with this. The significant silence after the demand where the character can't look the target in the eye and the silence stretches out... cue the target storming out of the room or scene cut.
17
18	When it is subverted by the liar being confident enough to look 'em in the eyes, it'll often make the person being lied to even more upset.
19
20	TruthInTelevision: when people see something that they really like/want, their pupils dilate. For example, a family member, loved one, potential mate, precious jewels, etc. [[http://school-for-champions.com/communication/reading_eyes.htm Involuntary eye movements]] can give a clue about a person's mood or what they may be thinking. Hence the cultural custom of asking people to look into your eyes when you think that they may be lying, and why keeping eye contact is considered in many cultures to be a sign of politeness and honesty. However, be aware that ''too much'' eye contact can also be a sign of lying, usually by overcompensating for the urge to look away.
21
22	EyeContactAsProof invokes this trope by asking someone to look them in the eyes as a means of proving they're telling the truth. This trope also explains why people wishing to be mysterious or subversive often hid their eyes with a CoatHatMask or ConspicuousTrenchcoat getup, EyeObscuringHat, or SinisterShades.
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24	Please note, this trope is NOT when a character's eyes give away that they are an imposter or a shapeshifter. That's EyeDentityGiveaway.
25
26	Compare TraitorShot where the true nature of a character is revealed by a close-up on their face and eyes. Also compare WingdingEyes, when the eyes take a cartoon shape.
27
28	----
29	!!Examples
30	[[foldercontrol]]
31
32	[[folder:Anime And Manga]]
33	* ''Anime/BlackLagoon''. Yakuza enforcer Ginji Matsuzaki comments that Revy's eyes are those of a rabid dog. Revy scoffs... but recognises that she and Ginji are the same.
34	%% * In ''Anime/CodeGeass'', this is how Suzaku catches Lelouch in the lie [[spoiler:when the latter implicates that he did purposefully geass his half-sister Euphie into massacring the Japanese]].
35	* ''Anime/DeathParade'' uses a wealth of EyeTropes, and this is no exception. Episode 9’s OneShotCharacter is a weary detective who says he can understand someone’s nature just by looking into their eyes. This is how he deduces that [[TheStoic Decim]] isn’t lying about his situation, and that the other guest he’s with is a murderer.
36	* Asahi's biggest tell in ''Manga/MyMonsterSecret'', and the reason he can't tell a decent lie.
37	* Most people in ''Manga/OnePiece'' who eat a SMILE Fruit become {{Perpetual Smiler}}s who laugh compulsively, regardless of how they actual feel, but their eyes can still emote properly and even cry. In particular, Toko makes many [[WildTake shocked expressions]] where only the upper half of her face show she is upset.
38	* Played for laughs in ''Anime/RageOfBahamutGenesis'' by Favaro. When he tries to convince Amira that he is telling the truth, he always says "Are these the eyes of a liar?" while keeping a serious face. Then this strategy always fails as his mouth suddenly forms to a wide grin without him knowing, resulting in him getting slapped or punched in the face. In one episode, he delivers his aforementioned question to Amira in order to convince her again that he is not lying. However, he covers his face with two fishes, and with two "fish eyes" perfectly aligned with his own.
39	[[/folder]]
40
41	[[folder:Comic Books]]
42	* ''ComicBook/SupermanSecretOrigin'': Lois is able tell someone's true integrity by looking into their eyes. It's what tells her that Luthor is not the philanthropist he makes himself out to be, that Superman can, in fact, be trusted, and even that there's more to Clark Kent than he's letting on.
43	[[/folder]]
44
45	[[folder:Fan Works]]
46	* ''Fanfic/CodePrime:'' This is how Lelouch was able to determine that Bumblebee was not a [[TransformingMecha specialized Knightmare Frame]], but a MechanicalLifeform by observing how his eyes moved and shifted during his fight with the Lancelot.
47	* In ''Fanfic/PokemonResetBloodlines'', [[KnightOfCerebus Belladonna]] was able to see through [[VoluntaryShapeshifting Hilda when she tried to pass off as Aurora]] just by looking her into the eyes, even though Hilda's disguise was physically perfect. She calls it "a love thing".
48	[[/folder]]
49
50	[[folder:Film -- Animation]]
51	* Invoked in ''WesternAnimation/ArloTheAlligatorBoy'' during the "Something's Missing" number, when Arlo asks Ansel to look into his eyes and truly recognize him as his son. It doubles as FamilyEyeResemblance, as both Arlo and Ansel share an oval eye shape instead of the traditional SphereEyes, making the trope come to a more logical example.
52	-->'''Arlo:''' Won't you look in my eyes? In the moment we're together?
53	* The Beast’s eyes in ''WesternAnimation/BeautyAndTheBeast'' were the only body part unaffected by the curse. According to animator Creator/GlenKeane, this was to remind the audience there was a young man trapped inside the body of that monster. They also make Belle realize the transformed prince is the same man she fell in love with.
54	-->'''Belle''': It ''is'' you!
55	* In ''WesternAnimation/RobinHood1973'', Maid Marian realizes one of the archery contestants is her love in disguise after a brief HeldGaze.
56	[[/folder]]
57
58	[[folder:Film -- Live Action]]
59	* ''Film/AtomicBlonde''. French spy Delphine tells British spy Lorraine that she can tell in her eyes when she's telling the truth. Lorraine responds that [[TheTell she'll need to fix that before it gets her killed]].
60	* ''Film/BladeRunner'': Replicants don't have human-normal eye reactions to emotion provoking situations. Rather than helping them lie, the lack of reaction is a vulnerability, marking them as a [[WhatMeasureIsANonHuman replicant]].
61	* In ''Film/TheIsland2005'', after the duo escape from the cloning organ facility they once believed to be their sanctuary and home, while watching TV the heroine is somehow able to tell two identical (both played by Ewan [=McGregor=]) characters apart using her ability to tell when one is lying.
62	* ''Film/JudgeDredd'' (1995). Dredd has been arrested for murder with all the evidence against him. His mentor Chief Justice Fargo goes to see him to ask if he did it. The only thing Dredd does is ask (repeatedly) if Fargo believes the accusation. In the end Fargo says, "I just wanted to see it in your eyes."
63	* ''Film/TheNegotiator'' -- Danny Roman (Creator/SamuelLJackson) delivers a lecture on facial cues, specifically touching on the tendency of the eyes to look toward the upper left when accessing memory and to the upper right when accessing imagination and making something up. He's rather disconcerted shortly afterward, however, when he tries to use eye cues on an InternalAffairs cop who he believes can clear him, and can see that the guy honestly believes that Roman is guilty of what he's being accused of.
64	* ''Film/QueenOfOuterSpace''. When asked if she believes the men from Earth [[IComeInPeace Come In Peace]], Motiya says their eyes indicate they're telling the truth. Given that the man in question was [[EatingTheEyeCandy eyeing her hungrily]], they no doubt were.
65	* Noah from ''Film/ASafePlace1971'' is a believer in this trope. She tells Fred that his eyes shine with love, that her father's eyes were flat and dead, and that her brother's eyes went on and off like a Christmas tree. She worries that she is incapable of love, because when she looks in the mirror, her eyes are like her father's.
66	* ''Film/SASRiseOfTheBlackSwan''. Members of the Lewis family, who are high-functioning psychopaths, quickly identify [[SociopathicHero Tom Buckingham]] as akin to themselves when they get a good look at his eyes.
67	* In ''Film/VForVendetta'', main character Evie can distinguish propaganda cover stories from actual news because the news anchor "Blinks when she knows a story's false".
68	* ''Film/War2007'': FBI agent John Crawford is obsessed with catching Rogue, an assassin known for changing his face with MagicPlasticSurgery, because he killed his partner Lone. When he encounters Rogue in his new face three years later, he claims to recognize him as "the eyes are the one thing the surgeons can't change." [[spoiler:The TwistEnding reveals that Rogue is actually his partner Lone, who did a KillAndReplace on the real Rogue. When Crawford refuses to believe this, Lone does an IronicEcho of Crawford's earlier comment.]]
69	[[/folder]]
70
71	[[folder:Literature]]
72	* ''Literature/AlphaAndOmega:'' Multiple characters believe the [[spoiler:Islamic Madhi]] is the real deal and not an imposter due to the simultaneously powerful, confused and uneasy look in his eyes, which reminds them of [[spoiler:Chaim, the newfound Jewish Messiah.]]
73	* In the first ''Literature/ArtemisFowl'', Root shows two arguing psychiatrists footage of Artemis claiming he can escape the LEP time-stop field, which is supposedly impossible. They put aside their differences and ask to be shown the footage again, zoomed in on Artemis's eyes. They conclude that either he's telling the truth or he's absolutely convinced he is.
74	* Averted in ''Literature/TheDayOfTheJackal'' with the title character. The OAS terrorist leader who hires the Jackal to kill the President of France notes the Jackal's IcyGrayEyes and is bothered by how he can't read the man from his eyes like he can with other people.
75	* ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'':
76	** ''Literature/{{Night Watch\|Discworld}}'' plays with the trope: it's noted that unwavering eye contact [[RevealingCoverup can make a confident liar stick out]].
77	** In a broader sense, it's often noted that nothing, not even gods in mortal guise, can hide their eyes, which are often very obviously not human, such as being pools of bright green or black pits with stars inside.
78	* ''Literature/TheGoldenHamsterSaga'': When Professor Fleischkopf first looks at Freddy, his gaze is so cold and sinister that Freddy involuntarily snarls. Sure enough, Fleischkopf turns out to be an EvilutionaryBiologist who dissects live hamsters' brains.
79	* ''Literature/HarryPotter'':
80	** In ''Literature/HarryPotterAndThePrisonerOfAzkaban'': Harry doesn't believe Sirius Black about his parents' murder until Black, in tears, looks Harry in the eyes and tells him the exact details.
81	** Throughout the series, Legilimancy is a type of magic that enable a wizard to read another person's thoughts and intentions, and thus detect if they are lying. This magic almost always needs eye contact to be effective, and the easiest way to resist it is by breaking eye contact. This actually works against Harry at first in an earlier book when he is determined to keep looking into Snape's eyes to try to seem honest. Once he learns about Legilimency, however, he avoids eye contact.
82	* ''Literature/KingArthurAndHisKnightsOfTheRoundTable'': Ragnell's eyes show her suffering; when Gawain sees this, he is able to momentarily overcome his revulsion to kiss her.
83	* ''Literature/MurderOnTheOrientExpress'': Poirot sensed that Ratchett was bad news from the look in his eyes, and when the man tries to hire him as a bodyguard, Poirot rejects the offer on the grounds that he doesn't like his face. [[spoiler:His assessment turns out to have been correct after Ratchett is found dead and Poirot finds out who he really is.]]
84	* A DiscussedTrope in ''Requiem for an Assassin''. Literature/JohnRain insists on a personal meeting with the man holding his friend hostage, saying he wants to look in his eyes and see if he's telling the truth about YouSaidYouWouldLetThemGo. His actual reason is to gather intelligence on his opponent, as well as assessing him personally.
85	-->“Are you satisfied?” Hilger asked, as though reading my thoughts. [snip] “With having looked in my eyes. Trusting me to let Dox go when this is done.”
86	-->“No. I don’t trust you to do that. But I learned something else from your eyes.”\
87	“Yeah? What’s that?”\
88	From his tone, I knew he was concerned that I might have picked up some piece of information he didn’t want me to have. Why else would I have insisted on a meeting? Trusting someone because of what you see in his eyes is a load of shit, although the [[TakeThat latest bozo in the White House]] claimed to have managed a view of Vladimir Putin’s soul that way. And it was clear after what happened in Góc Saigon that I wasn’t going to kill him. What else could I have been after, if not information?\
89	I took a deep breath, then let it go. “I learned I don’t have a choice.”
90	* [[TheOldGods Ryn]], the main character of Literature/TheOneWhoEatsMonsters, looks like a cute sixteen-year-old girl. But she's the oldest and most dangerous monster in the world, and her eyes are black with irises made of blue flame. Any human who sees them instantly knows that she is incredibly dangerous. Her eyes can't lie, because she's hunted humans as long as there have ''been'' humans, and it is ''instinctual'' for us to fear them.
91	[[/folder]]
92
93	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
94	* Gibbs, the main character of ''NCIS'', was actually introduced back on that series' predecessor show ''Series/{{JAG}}'' while investigating lead character Harmon Rabb, and even back then, was pretty much an infallible human lie detector. If you lie while Gibbs is looking you in the eye, he'll know.
95	-->'''Harm:''' How long you been doing this, Gunny?
96	-->'''Gibbs:''' Seventeen years.
97	-->'''Harm:''' And can you tell if someone's lying to you by looking in their eyes?
98	-->'''Gibbs:''' Yes I can.
99	-->'''Harm:''' Then why don't you just ask me, Gunny? Why don't you just ''ask'' me?
100	-->'''Gibbs:''' ''pause'' Would you kill for your brother?
101	-->'''Harm:''' ''makes OhCrap face''
102	* ''Series/LieToMe'': Dr. Cal Lightman and the rest of the Lightman Group use microexpressions (a minute form of facial movements) and body language to determine whether or not someone is telling the truth. [[DrJerk Cal]], [[TeamMom Gillian]], and [[HandsomeLech Loker]] studied for years to learn it. [[NaiveNewcomer Torres]] is a "natural", one of something like 5% of the population who has the ability to spot deception.
103	* In ''Series/StargateSG1'', Bra'tac demonstrated on several occasions the ability to almost perfectly tell if someone was lying by looking deep into their eyes. Even when the person in question has convinced their closest friends and lie detectors, Bra'tac is not fooled.
104	* In the episode [[Recap/SupernaturalS02E19FolsomPrisonBlues "Folsom Prison Blues" (S02, Ep19)]] of ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'', Dean asks his lawyer to look in his eyes and decide if he is guilty.
105	* ''Series/DeepSpaceNine''. In "Sons of Mogh", Worf worries that he's lost his touch when he fails to register the MeaningfulLook another Klingon gives him, showing his intent to kill Worf.
106	* ''Series/{{Arrow}}''
107	** In "Trust But Verify", Oliver Queen has [[DressingAsTheEnemy disguised himself]] as one of the [[FacelessGoons balaclava-wearing mercenaries]] on Lian-Yu. Their commander recognizes him despite the balaclava, and he implies that as Oliver is still a marooned billionaire playboy (rather than the hardened killer he'll become in later years) his eyes gave him away among all the other hardened killers.
108	** In "Streets of Fire", Malcolm Merlyn reunites with his daughter Thea, who's not happy to find her supervillain father is NotQuiteDead.
109	--->'''Thea:''' I'll shoot you. I will!
110	--->'''Malcolm:''' I can see it in your eyes. My eyes. They're just like mine. [[NotSoDifferentRemark Both of them filled with pain and anger, because those we loved were ripped from us.]]
111	** In "The Climb", Oliver Queen discovers his sister Thea has been lying to him about not being in contact with Malcolm Merlyn, but he insists on this trope when Thea falls under suspicion of having killed Sara Lance. It's presented as Oliver refusing to accept reality and no-one else in Team Arrow buys it. [[spoiler:Ironically it turns out Thea was brainwashed by Malcolm to kill Sara and have no memory of it, so Thea really does think she's telling the truth.]]
112	* ''Series/{{Grimm}}'' has a unique variation of this. Wesen across the series have a form of involuntary emotional transformation that is invisible to humans but visible to Grimms. Many times, only a Wesen's eyes change and they don't even realize it themselves, giving themselves away even though they didn't fully change.
113	[[/folder]]
114
115	[[folder: Music]]
116	* {{Music/Eagles}} "Lyin' Eyes:
117	--> I thought by now you'd realize\
118	There ain't no way to hide your lyin eyes
119	* {{Music/Saro}}'s "Dan Tes Yeux" only has one line of lyric, which translates to, "What you thinking, I read it in your eyes."
120	--> ''"Ce que tu penses, je le lis dans tes yeux"''
121	[[/folder]]
122
123	[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
124	* Subverted in ''TabletopGame/LegendOfTheFiveRings'' -- one of the Scorpion samurai mentions that lying with their eyes is one of the first things the youth learn in his clan.
125	[[/folder]]
126
127	[[folder:Video Games]]
128	* ''Franchise/FireEmblem''
129	** In ''VideoGame/FireEmblemTheBlazingBlade,'' Wallace declares Lyn trustworthy and joins her cause after getting one good look of her eyes.
130	--->'''Wallace:''' I've been a knight for 30 years, and there is one thing I learned. A person with eyes as bright and true as yours is no deceiver.
131	** In ''VideoGame/FireEmblemThreeHouses'', the 3D models for characters are surprisingly expressive. When confronted on inconsistencies in her story, [[spoiler: Flayn]] in particular will look to the side, refusing to make eye contact.
132	* ''VideoGame/GuiltyGearStrive'': In Bridget's Arcade Mode, Goldlewis expresses doubt about Bridget's hesitant insistence on [[DudeLooksLikeALady being called a boy]], noting that "it ain't what your eyes are saying." to her. He's completely accurate, as Bridget comes out as a trans girl with full confidence later on, and both Goldlewis and Ky express support.
133	* The tie-in comic for the [[HalloweenEpisode "Junkenstein's Revenge"]] mode of ''VideoGame/{{Overwatch}}'' implies this in a flashback to the titular organization's GloryDays - although Cassidy makes it appear as though he's [[NervesOfSteel unfazed by the story of Junkenstein]] that Reinhardt has told the group, Reinhardt himself accuses him of hiding "behind a tough guy act" while claiming that "I can see the fear in your eyes." Complicating matters is the fact that [[ObliviousGuiltSlinging Reinhardt had called him by his fake name "McCree" earlier]] - it's left ambiguous whether Cassidy was panicking over Reinhardt's story actually being scary, or whether he worried that Reinhardt would find out his true name and out him as a liar to the rest of the room.
134	* In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'', Zant was passed over as king of the Twili in favor of another. This spurred him into staging a coup and usurping the throne. After he's defeated by Link, Midna tells him the reason no one would name Zant king was because they saw his {{Lust}} for power in his eyes. The Twili had been banished into the Twilight Realm because their ancestor's king had a similar power lust and drove his people to invade the Sacred Realm, and the Twili [[TaughtByExperience would not let history repeat]].
135	[[/folder]]
136
137	[[folder:Visual Novels]]
138	* In ''VisualNovel/ApolloJusticeAceAttorney'', Apollo uses his bracelet to see through Machi's eyeglasses during a trial to determine that he's lying.
139	* In ''VisualNovel/TheGreatAceAttorney'', Ryunosuke's eyes tend to give away any thought he has on his mind for good or bad. It happens often enough that other characters such as Susato comments on it. This is why [[spoiler: Lord van Zieks]] fixates and trusts Ryunosuke almost immediately, despite their own misgivings, because [[spoiler: his eyes remind Lord van Zieks of his beloved deceased brother's eyes ... as well as the man who had killed him.]]
140	[[/folder]]
141
142	[[folder:Web Comics]]
143	* In ''Webcomic/TheOrderOfTheStick'' this becomes a plot point. [[spoiler:Blind Pete, who is missing his eyes, is able to betray Haley because she relies upon this to sense motivations]].
144	* ''Webcomic/{{Unsounded}}'': When people look Duane in the eye, his AppearanceIsInTheEyeOfTheBeholder disguise falters and they see the undead body underneath. {{Justified\|Trope}} because he's a painfully honest man who feels guilty about the lie; later, ConsummateLiar Sette gives him some tips on maintaining the façade.
145	[[/folder]]
146
147	[[folder:Web Original]]
148	* While the Nanny in ''Literature/TheNewNarnia'' takes on various forms, the one consistency between forms (aside from all of them being female) is that her eyes remain the same; one blue, the other brown.
149	[[/folder]]
150
151	[[folder:Western Animation]]
152	* ''WesternAnimation/AdventureTime'': At the beginning of the "Stakes" arc, Finn and Jake are questioning Marceline after hearing about a nearby vampire attack. Marceline tells Finn to look her in the eyes when she says it wasn't her. However, a recent dream has Marceline doubting herself, which Finn picks up on
153	-->'''Marceline:''' Look into my eyes, man. I didn't do it.
154	-->'''Finn:''' ''(after prolonged eye contact)'' To be honest, it looks like you're not sure if you did it.
155	* ''WesternAnimation/CodeNameKidsNextDoor:'' In Operation: P.O.O.L. when Numbah One and Numbah Four meet Eizzil and Negative Numbah Three respectively, they both look into their eyes, and immediately recognize that they’re not Lizzie or Positive Numbah Three respectively. It’s especially noticeable for Numbah Four, as they all thought that he was the "[[DumbMuscle dumb one]]".
156	* Subverted in ''WesternAnimation/TheEmperorsNewGroove''. Pacha refuses to make a deal with Kuzco unless he looks him in the eye and means it. He fails to notice that Kuzco is playing him for a sucker until he's hanging above a chasm.
157	* ''WesternAnimation/TheLoudHouse'': "Snow News Day" deals with Lincoln and the Action News Team getting a story on an abominable snowman attacking Royal Woods. Said "snowman" turns out to be Liam's sheep Roxanne, whom he was able to recognize because her baby blue eyes were the only feature that remained the same when her fleece overgrew.
158	-->'''Liam:''' I recognize those baby blues anywhere!
159	* Subverted in ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons''.
160	--> '''Homer''': Look me in the eye boy, and tell me you didn't do it.
161	--> '''Bart''': I didn't do it.
162	--> '''Homer''': Why you little...! (''throttling Bart)'' How dare you look me in the eye and lie like that!
163	[[/folder]]
164
165	[[folder:Real Life]]
166	* While not foolproof by any means, eye movements and how someone looks at you can often be an indicator if they are lying to you or not. However, skillful liars can control this to an extent. It should be noted that many people, knowing the stereotype of liars being unable to maintain eye contact, will do the opposite, and actually make more eye contact when they're lying. The best way to spot when someone's lying is to be alert for a ''change'' in behaviour, rather than any specific action on its own.
167	* Inverted for autistic and many other neurodivergent people, who often have trouble getting people to trust them precisely because of difficulty maintaining eye contact, amongst other problems with body language (and, especially with older people on the spectrum, are often trained to maintain eye contact, no matter how uncomfortable it makes them).
168	* Judges in 12th Century China are said to have worn glasses with smoky quartz lenses during trials. This was to hide their expressions during questioning.
169	[[/folder]]

Context Main / EyesNeverLie