Lie With Me
by Clement Virgo
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Canada
Canada
DVD details
Actor: Eric Balfour, Lauren Lee Smith, Mayko Nguyen, Michael Facciolo, Polly ShannonDirector: Clement Virgo
Brand: Image Entertainment
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo; English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
Format: AC-3, Color, Dolby, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.78:1
Running Time: 93 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2006-02-14
Audience Rating: Unrated
Studio: THINKFILM
Product features:
- Condition: New
- Format: DVD
- AC-3; Color; Dolby; Widescreen; NTSC
DVD Reviews of Lie With Me
DVD Review: Clement Virgo's Lie With Me is self-indulgent porn masquerading as an 'art' film
Summary: 2 Stars
I've learnt to spot the danger signs of an impending bad movie. One of them is when the director is also the screenwriter and producer -- in short, there's no one there to put the brakes on when the film starts to get too self-absorbed. Such is the case with this Canadian indie film that seems to have gone straight to video.
Based on Tamara Berger's novel of the same name (published by the appropriately named Gutter Press), we meet Leila (Lauren Lee Smith), a young woman at a party. She's more than a little tipsy, and looks to be on the scrawny side, dressed clearly with the message that she's there to get laid -- oops, I mean have a good time. One man there is pretty bold about eyeing her, and the pair end up in the bathroom, where he helps her to sober up a little with a drink of water. It almost turns into sex, but his girlfriend calls for him outside and he leaves. He, we find out, is named David (Eric Balfour).
She leaves the party, taking with her Shy Guy (Michael Facciolo), and proceeds to have sex with him outside, up against a chain-link fence. Sitting in his car, watching the pair, is none other than David, along with his girlfriend. David and Leila watch each other getting laid, mimicing each others actions, as it were. At this point, I had a pretty good idea of what this film was going to be about, but as I have this thing about finishing the book or film I start, I didn't turn it off right away.
Eventually, Leila and David meet up again, this time in a public playground, and in a daring moment, she exposes herself to him, making her own interest pretty well known. They move onto his apartment for sex, and the sexual compulsion between the two of them gets going. And in fact that's what most of this film is about -- we're either watching Leila and David going at it like deranged rabbits, or she's letting us know her thoughts and experiences in a voice over that supposed to be titillating and erotic, but sounds more like a bad memoir.
The relationship is pretty predictable -- lust, jealousy phase, playing house together phase, she tries to get it past sex, he withdraws and treats her like trash, they break up, and so on and so forth. Yawn. We've seen this before. While I have to say that the sex at least looks real and honest, the rest of the film isn't that interesting. David, in particular, strikes me as the sort of young man that is fashionable these days -- unshaven, grungy and without any visible means of support. He does take care of an elderly, ailing father, so I guess that's something in his favour. But who in their right mind goes about in dirty jeans without underwear? I had a strong urge to go dip him in a vat of lye.
Leila's not much better. She's perpetually rumpled in skimpy clothing that looks to be ready to fall off at anytime. It's a cheap and sleazy look, and if she's looking for true love or respect from men, it's not a way to really inspire it either. Her personal life isn't that much better -- her parents are going through a divorce, her job is a dead-end job, she seems to spend her free time on the couch watching porn, or partying it up with weed and alcohol. She's not someone I would really care to know in reality either.
In short, this is a couple made for each other. Neither one of them are very responsible, and frankly, he treats her like a piece of meat. I suppose this is what makes this a modern, young adult relationship, sex without strings or emotion. And while the sex does get interesting, I've seen far far better in x-rated film, the only thing this lacks is what is known as the money shot in the trade.
Indeed, Virgo tries to make this as arty as possible, with lots of soft lighting, on location shots in Toronto, use of colour and texture, and I guess that works. But there isn't any sort of plot in this except for the so-called romance between the two leads, and their sexual shenanigans. Oh, there's an attempt or two with the illness of one parent, and the impeding divorce, but the central relationship is so tawdry, the viewer is left with the attitude of so what? by the end.
I don't demand syrupy romance, as long as there is some sort of passion there, but these two are so out of touch with themselves, how can they possibly make it work with each beyond the rubbing together of two body parts? That was the other big complaint with this one -- no one hits a climax that fast, and here it's the slam-bam-thankee-ma'am sort of sex. I kept thinking that she must have had insides of old leather to put up with that.
This is not for children of any age, and I would suspect that most adults would find it a bit on the disturbing side. There is quite a bit of sex in this, with male and female frontal nudity, sex in public, public exposure, sex in public, in cars, with lots of foul language and every form of straight sex that can be performed. There's plenty of drug and alcohol abuse as well. But they do try with a bit of condom use -- after all, this is the age of safe sex, I suppose.
No subtitles, some lackluster trailers for other films, and a voice-over commentary from the director. Nothing really special to watch either.
This is certainly a D-list film. Those who prefer their film to have sex and be honest about it might find a few minutes worth watching, but this 100-minute clunker has nothing else going for it. Those who are looking for a love story will be turned off by the callous brutality and attitudes. It's not a likeable film at all, and I urge you to spend your time with something, anything, else.
Not recommended.
Description of Lie With Me
Leila (Lauren Lee Smith) is a sexually voracious young woman who connects with men through sex. One night at a party, she meets David (Eric Balfour). Later, as she has casual sex with a stranger outside, David and his girlfriend mirror her actions in their car. Their eyes lock, beginning a courtship ritual that initiates their own sexual affair. Leila and David get to know each other - which means being intimate - in bed, on the roof, in the park, everywhere. For them and other members of their generation, sex is communication. Just as Leila realizes her attraction to David is different than anything she has ever known, he retreats. Her explosive reaction knows no bounds. Now they must conquer their demons in order to move beyond the purely physical and satisfy the emotional connection they unknowingly crave.Shot in sunny Toronto and set to a dreamy score, Lie With Me looks and sounds like an art film, but the end result isn't quite so lofty. The plot is thin and the dialogue superfluous, but no matter--Canada's Clément Virgo (Love Come Down) just wants to turn you on and he has enlisted two attractive, uninhibited young performers to assist in his aims. Leila (Lauren Lee Smith, The L Word) and David (Eric Balfour, Six Feet Under) meet at a party. He's with his girlfriend, but finds himself drawn to her. The feeling is mutual. She's alone, but quickly finds an unattached hipster with whom to have a tryst. David catches her in the act. Instead of turning away, he watches. They start seeing each other immediately afterwards. "I'm not hooked on danger, [I'm] hooked on sex," Leila claims, but she isn't exactly the most trustworthy narrator. She wants a purely physical relationship, while David wants something more. They return to their old lives, but the obsession refuses to die. Based on the novella by Virgo's partner, Tamara Berger, Lie With Me plays like a low-budget cross between Adrian Lyne's overrated 9 1/2 Weeks and Wayne Wang's underrated The Center of the World. --Kathleen C. Fennessy
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