L.I.E.

< Previous Trailer  |   Add to My Scrapbook  |   Next Trailer >
L.I.E.

78% Liked It
liked it

L.I.E.

Paul Dano, Brian Cox, Billy Kay

A 15-year-old Long Island boy loses everything and everyone he knows, soon becoming involved in a relationship with a much older man.

Id: 10897663

Do you want to see this movie?

My Friends Said...

L.I.E. Recent Reviews

Register or sign-in to see your friends' reviews !

Recent Reviews

L.I.E. Recent Reviews
  • rebvodka042099
    April 28, 2009
    rebvodka042099
    L.I.E. successfully merges hidden desires/homosexual ambiguities with the inner will for a getaway from reality. Paul Dano and Brian Cox are marvelous. A true masterpiece that always manages to sneak up on you when you least expect it.
  • her69eyes
    December 9, 2008
    her69eyes
    "L.I.E." is a rare treat that echoes a film like "Happiness" in that it tries to make us sympathize with characters we have horrendous preconceived notions about. In "Happiness", we were dealing with a pedophile father, and writer/director Todd Solondz asked us to look at him fro...( read more)m an unbiased perspective. In "L.I.E.", we're dealing with a pederast (he's attracted to teenage boys only), and he ends up being the most sympathetic and full character in the film. While neither director forgives the characters for what they do, they are both capable of turning these monsters of society into three-dimensional beings that we almost root for.

    The film opens with Howie Blitzer (Paul Dano) standing on a bridge over the L.I.E., Long Island Expressway, with one foot planted sternly and the other daring to fall. He declares that this road has claimed countless lives, including his mother, and he will not let it consume him. Howie is the typical troubled suburban kid we see in many of these films, and he certainly has his daddy issues. His father, Marty (Bruce Altman), has a new younger woman as a girlfriend and is involved in some sort of shady construction scheme. This scheme will eventually land Marty in prison, although Howie initially misinterprets this as abandonment.

    Howie and his buddies, including Gary (Billy Kay), frequently break into houses and steal any valuable goods they can get their hands on. One day, they break into the house of Big John (Brian Cox), a former marine, and steal two of his pistols. On their way out, Big John snatches the pocket off of Howie's pants and uses it to find the culprit. Eventually, Big John does catch up with Howie, and invites him into his home. It's there that we discover that Big John is a pederast, and Gary is one of his clients. Howie is expected to "work off" the money they had stolen, however it's never clarified whether or not Big John sees Howie as a potential client or not. Howie, who had previously had an unspoken sexual attraction to Gary, earns confidence because of Big John's romantic pursuit to the point where he recites Walt Whitman until all Big John can muster is "Are you trying to seduce me?"

    I hadn't even heard a plot synopsis of the film when I sat down to watch it, so you could imagine my surprise when it turned from a film about troubled teenagers with daddy issues into a film about a young man discovering sexuality with a pederast. However, what director Michael Cuesta does that is absolutely remarkable is that he treats Big John respectfully enough that we don't think of him as a creep. At first, sure, we are disgusted by him as he grabs Howie's knee and introduces him to "his world" - but by the end of the film, he's the character we've grown to most care about. He's a fascinating character in that even though he seems only interested in sex at the beginning, by the end he's evolved into a father figure for his "clients" (which certainly confuses the already in-over-his-head Howie).

    Without an actor like Brian Cox, this material wouldn't have worked. Cox is enormously underrated despite appearing in countless films, and he's at his best here. There's something so gentle and caring about him, he's like a charismatic uncle of sorts. It was interesting to see such a young Paul Dano after his recent work in "Little Miss Sunshine" and "There Will Be Blood", and he certainly got off to a great start from a young age. Billy Kay's supporting performance is also very powerful, and his relationship with Howie was one of the more fascinating film relationships i've seen in quite some time.

    "L.I.E.", however, certainly has it's issues. At times it seems disjointed and directionless, and Howie's real father is too underdeveloped and uninteresting to care about. But the worst offense is a horrendous cop-out ending that is enormously unsatisfying. For a film that had been so carefully plotted previous to that moment, it really leaves a sour taste in your mouth. I don't have the DVD, but i'd be shocked if there wasn't an alternate ending somewhere... needless to say, this was the wrong one.

    This definitely isn't a film for everyone, but those who can overlook the disturbing material should find something to enjoy.
  • mistershinobi
    October 7, 2007
    mistershinobi
    Fearless, that's the right word to describe this film. Everything is in its right place and I was actually speechless at the perfection of the screenplay, so round, complete and flawless, everything happens for a reason and there aren't any loose ends. Paul Dano is wonderful but ...( read more)Billy Kay steals the show in what is the sexiest S.O.B. in film in the last decade, probably more. It was sad that his character disappears so early in the film but the time he is in it he IS IN IT! Outstanding direction for young actors creating extreme characters that go beyond the screen to kick you in the balls.
    But the real motherfucker deal in the whole movie is BY FAR the extraordinary Brian Cox. Not even in his wonderful performances in "X2" or "Adaptation" he has been as haunting and larger-than-life as in this one, his best performance to date. Such an underrated actor deserved this role as a proof of his guts and talent. Big John is as charming and sexy-bastard as he is TERRIFYING! He scares the crap out of you not without making you love him all the way. Big John is one of the top characters of the new century and "L.I.E.", Michael Cuesta and Paul Dano found exactly what they needed: a lane straight to film Heaven!
  • JeT0425
    February 1, 2007
    JeT0425
    This film is amongst some of the most disturbing ever, but also one of the greatest of the year. Terrific writing from Michael and Gerald Cuesta and Stephen M. Ryder. The screenplay is very original and so are the characters. This film resembles in many ways the recent [i]Mysteri...( read more)ous Skin[/i], but a little less graphic. It deals with a coming-of-age story of a young boy who begins to develop into a man with bad influences and many things going wrong in his life.

    Howie (Dano) is a fifteen-year-old kid who has managed to lose everything important in his life in a short week, ends up finding himself in the process. His mother has just died, his father is a building contractor who can barely keep tabs on his young girlfriend, let alone his own son. So without any stable parental figure, Howie must navigate his own life virtually unsupervised. Howie and his friends begin skipping school and robbing houses. Together, he and his best friend Gary (Kay) break into a house belonging to an older man named Big John, a local man who is well respected in the community. When Big John points out Gary for the crime, Howie learns that his pal has been leading a secret, dangerous but also alluring double life. Subsequently, we also discover that Big John has secrets of his own.

    Paul Dano is the breakthrough of the year with such an emotional performance it almost brings me to tears. He is truly wonderful in this film and if it wasn't for him, I probably wouldn't have watched this. I noticed him in the recent [i]Little Miss Sunshine[/i] and thought that I'd check this out. It turned out to be a lot better than expected. Brian Cox is also brilliant in this film. It's a wonder how he hasn't received an Oscar nomination yet. He is one of the most underrated actors of the decade. He is brilliant in all of his minor roles, but here he really does shine. The one scene where he is sitting at the piano and singing that sad, sad song is very touching. The whole cast is impressive.

    Overall, this film might disturb you to some extent with its gay theme and very messed up characters, but when you get past all of that, this film really is touching and very, very good.

    I highly urge you to check out [i]L.I.E.[/i] if you have no problem with a gay theme. If you can handle [i]Brokeback Mountain[/i], then this will be like Sesame Street. This is one of the best films of 2001 and showcases some of the best performances, too. A great film.
  • sainttom93
    January 15, 2007
    sainttom93
    this is the most real portrayal of pedophilia I've ever seen in the movies --
  • SarahTheMovieLover
    December 22, 2009
    SarahTheMovieLover
    Only two things need to be said about this movie. 1. the pedophile-eske story line is completely disturbing to me. however 2. the acting was brilliantly done, considering how much they actually disturbed me. Brian Cox and Paul Dano were completely comitted to their roles and port...( read more)rayed them with a high amount of excellence. If I were rating this movie purly on acting it would be a lot higher. However, I also have to look at the movie as a whole and gage how much I was entertained or interested or moved etc. In that area I wasnt as impressed.

    What did this movie teach me? Never go anywhere with an old man you dont know.
  • mvieaddict
    December 19, 2009
    mvieaddict
    L.I.E. was the short name for the Long Island Expressway. It was quite a disturbing movie of a 15 years old boy Howard who became the prey of the local pedophile.This topic required real honest understanding for being a problem of our society and an uncomfortable matter so I gues...( read more)s that was the reason they rated this movie NC17. The movie portrayed both characters very well, the pedophile role and the emotional needs he filled boy with. It could be very disturbing to watch young boys getting blackmailed into having sex with a 60 year old man. The child actors were great and natural, Brian Cox played the pedophile Big John very well. The script was heartbreaking and the whole movie had a strong intensity to keep you watching till the end.
  • ythelastman89
    November 18, 2009
    ythelastman89
    Amazing. The film covered so much ground and officially went where no coming-of-age story has ever dared to go. Paul Dano was dead on, one of the most believable confused teens i've seen on camera. Brian Cox was almost too good and I'm sure it was an incredibly hard role to play....( read more) The look and direction of it was really good. It was a perfectly depressing backdrop. I guess if you can't handle the subject matter it would be rough, but I really liked that aspect of it. It wasn't afraid to bring up any subject.
  • ahhh1989
    October 27, 2009
    ahhh1989
    This film spoke to me. There was a time in my life when I felt like the Howie character. This film really means more to me than I could ever describe. The only flaw with the film, in my opinion, is the ending. The ending is absolutely terrible. Instead of characters talking and w...( read more)orking out their problems, there's murder instead. However, I've managed to get past the fact that the ending is shitty and still love the film enough to call it one of my favorites.
  • romy861
    September 26, 2009
    romy861
    This was impossible to find as a rental, so I ended up having to buy it from overseas! Glad I did, it was definitely worth a watch. I love this twisted teen crap. LOL.
View All Reviews

Opening This Week

Top Box Office

Upcoming Movies

New on DVD