🎥🍣Movie Sushi — Liar Liar

Attorney Fletcher Reede pulls up in the driveway in his convertible Mercedes. His son, Max, yells. Fletcher yells and holds Max aloft. He turns his hand into The Claw and playfully attacks Max. Max yells that his dad’s taking him to see wrestling. Fletcher tells Max’s mom, Audrey, the boy must grow to become a warrior.

Jerry then arrives. Fletcher refers to him as “the boyfriend”. Fletcher says he was hoping that, after having been married to him, Audrey’d have no more strength left. Fletcher says he’ll be there for Max. Audrey fixes Fletcher a look that says “don’t let him down”.

Max proudly tells Fletcher’s secretary, Greta, about his upcoming birthday party. Fletcher discreetly tells Greta he forgot. She produces a fantastic-looking gift for Max — from Fletcher. She’s a saint. He starts talking about boss, Miranda. When Miranda appears right behind him, he compliments her appearance and gives her the small gift he just promised Greta.

Fletcher wishes Max happy birthday. When he pretends to learn Max is only five, he notes: “return the beer keg and cancel the dancing girls”. Max yells when he discovers his dad’s given him baseball stuff. Fletcher says they can play after Max’s party. Later, Jerry says they can rub oil on Max’s glove and wrap a big, rubber band around it. Fletcher jokes to Audrey that he’s losing his son.

Fletcher convinces Samantha Cole she’s the wife of a cold, distant workaholic — starved for affection, driven into the arms of seven other men. All she’s insisting on is what’s rightfully hers, and maybe a fraction more. Fletcher then says this is about all women. Samantha stands up and yells she’s not going to be pushed around — leaving feeling empowered.

Fletcher’s not at Max’s party and Max won’t cut the cake till he arrives. Over the phone, Fletcher tells Max the best he can do is pick him up tomorrow from school. Max birthday wishes that for just one day, his dad can’t tell a lie.

Once the wish is made, Fletcher devastatingly insults Miranda after they’ve had sex. The next morning, he laughs it off. He joins a buxom woman in the lift of his building. He says everybody’s been real nice to her because she has big jugs. She hits him in the face.

Fletcher’s twitchy. His client, Mrs Cole, dubiously watches him prepare. Dana’s the lawyer for Richard Cole, the ex-husband. Unprompted, Fletcher insults the judge’s honour, going on to say he’s a little upset about a bad sexual episode the previous night. He shocks even himself each time.

Fletcher desperately yells that he wants a continuance because, with massive internal conflict, he yells that he can’t lie. Judge asks Dana about a possible settlement. She says her client’s already offered Mrs Cole $2.4m. Fletcher makes it overwhelmingly clear he’s willing to settle. Now without the ability to lie, the empowering story he outlined to Mrs Cole will be impossible to deliver in court. Fletcher makes retching sounds, grabs his briefcase and exits the courtroom — screaming in the corridor.

He tries beating the affliction. He holds out a blue pen, squealing like a pig trying to lie that it’s red. Before long, the best he can manage is “royal blue” and collapses spent on the chair. His secretary walks in and he wraps a towel around his face to try suppressing his honesty.

On the phone, Fletcher tells Audrey about the curse, he missed Max the previous night because he was sleeping with his boss, Miranda. He’s soon repulsed by the phone itself and hurls it across the room, on his back in agony.

He sprints out the office, keeping his fingers in his ears and loudly singing to ward everyone off. He sees Miranda, screams and runs to the stairs. He drives like a maniac and gets pulled over.

He tells the cop: He sped. He followed too closely. He ran a stop sign. He almost hit a Chevy. He sped some more. He failed to yield at a crosswalk. He changed lanes at the intersection. He changed lanes without signalling while running a red light and speeding. Also, the glove box is overflowing with unpaid parking tickets. He shrieks at the cop and pleads for leniency.

Audrey pays the $1,654.11 fine at the impound. She asks if Fletcher knows Max made a birthday wish at 8.15pm the previous night that for just one day, his father couldn’t tell a lie. Fletcher hastily tries to make Max unwish the wish — to no avail.

Fletcher tells Greta about Max’s wish, while Miranda eavesdrops. Greta asks about a historic raise she asked for. Fletcher’s steps ahead. He told her he couldn’t give her a raise himself ‘cos the other secretaries would be jealous. Fletcher’s loudly crumpling paper to drown out her question. Greta discovers the truth and immediately quits and starts to pack her things. He begs Greta not to leave — on his knees in a $900 suit.

Miranda asks Fletcher’s opinion of Mr Allan — head of the partnership committee. Fletcher’s devastated by what’s to come, bringing his hands to his face with horror. He unleashes a lengthy series of tactless comments, afterwards attempting to physically distance himself from the words. Miranda gets Fletcher to tell Mr Allan himself in a meeting. After an excruciating pause, Fletcher repeats the insults. Pausing momentarily, Mr Allan laughs, and everyone laughs. He says he loves a good roast. Fletcher exits the room and faints.

The first witness says he has audio of Mrs Cole and boyfriend, Mr Falk, having sex. Because of the prenuptial agreement, if Mrs Cole commits adultery, she gets nothing. Dana plays the damning recording.

Fletcher objects because it’s devastating to his case, then asks for a bathroom break. He hurdles the gate and sprints out the room. In the bathroom, he attacks himself, slamming his head with a toilet seat and throwing himself against the wall. The judge sees Fletcher covered in blood and moves to recess court ’til the next morning, unless Mr Reede feels he can still proceed. Exhausted and despairing, Fletcher agrees that, actually, he can.

Outside, Mrs Cole introduces Kenneth Falk. When struggling over a dishonest question, Fletcher instead bursts into song. He can’t finish a question if he knows the answer is a lie.

Fletcher calls Kenneth Falk, almost retching at this alone as he takes the stand. When Fletcher asks if his relationship with his client is entirely platonic, Fletcher loudly objects to himself. He tries again, objects to himself and moves to strike. He yells erratically at the witness time after time. Dana says he’s badgering the witness, but it’s his witness. He loudly asks if Falk had sex with Mrs Cole several ways before, ultimately, Falk yells that he did. Fletcher says no further questions. He returns to his chair and, with a thump, lets his head fall directly onto his desk. Dana has no questions.

Samantha says she’s not going to end up a 31 year-old divorcee on welfare because of an honest attorney. Fletcher calls Mrs Cole. He establishes she lied to make herself older on her driver’s licence, so she could get married. She was really just 17 when she was married which makes her a minor. In California, no minor can enter into prenuptial agreements. Mrs Cole is entitled to half the marital assets or $11.395m.

Now, Mrs Cole wants full custody of the kids, too. Mr Cole is broken on the floor with grief. Mr Allan makes Fletcher partner. But, Fletcher snatches back his hand and says he manipulated the system using a technicality. Judge holds Fletcher in contempt. Audrey won’t bail him out of jail, but Greta does. Word spread that he “went all noble” in front of Mr Allan in court.

Fletcher learns that the Boston flight is boarding. He hides on the luggage belt. On board the plane, Audrey asks the stewardess for anything with alcohol in it. Fletcher rolls off the luggage cart and unzips from the bag he’s in. He then steals a set of driveable stairs. He catches up with the taxiing plane and peers in the windows one by one ’til he finds Max. Fletcher accelerates his stairs to the front of the plane to get the pilot to stop — throwing his shoe at the cockpit.

Afterwards, Fletcher happily tells Audrey both his legs are broken, so they can’t take him straight to jail. From now on, Fletcher wants to be always honest with Max. Jerry says they don’t have to go to Boston. Max yells and hugs his dad.

One Year Later

Max’s sixth birthday party. He blows out the candles, darkening the room. He turns on the light and his parents are kissing. Right before Fletcher cuts the cake, he mentions a pain in his arm, summoning the dreaded Claw and terrorising Max and Audrey with it.

Starring Jim Carrey. Maura Tierney. Amanda Donohoe. Rated PG-13. Dir Tom Shadyac. Released in the UK 1997. Runtime 1hr 26mins