Legendary actors Helen Mirren (Oscar winner, “The Queen”) and Ian McKellen (two-time Oscar nominee, “Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring,” “Gods and Monsters”) star together on screen for the first time in New Line Cinema’s suspenseful drama “The Good Liar” about the secrets people keep and the lies they live.
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In the film, consummate con man Roy Courtnay (McKellen) has set his sights on his latest mark: the recently widowed Betty McLeish (Mirren), worth millions. And Roy means to take it all.
From their very first meeting, Roy begins plying Betty with his tried and true manipulations, and Betty, who seems quite taken with him, is soon going along for the ride. But this time, what should have been a simple swindle escalates into a cat-and-mouse game with the ultimate stakes—revealing more insidious deceptions that will take them both through a minefield of danger, intrigue and betrayal.
“The Good Liar” was directed by Bill Condon, the Oscar-winning screenwriter of “Gods and Monsters,” from a screenplay by Jeffrey Hatcher (“Mr. Holmes”), based on the widely acclaimed novel by Nicholas Searle. The main cast also includes Russell Tovey (“The History Boys,” “Quantico”) and Jim Carter (“Downton Abbey”).
“‘The Good Liar” is an intriguing look at the dark side of human nature but often with a glimmer of macabre humor,” says director and producer Bill Condon of this gripping tale where so little is what it seems to be. “It’s a thriller with a Hitchcockian feel, weaving in elements of mystery, crime and a human drama. And at its heart are two beautifully complex characters played by two of the greatest actors of all time, at the top of their form, who can keep you guessing like a classic whodunnit till the very end. It’s all wickedly fun.”
Beyond that, and because he knows that people likely expect to have the rug pulled out from under them in a story like this, Condon adds, “What excites me most is how audiences will be able to piece together this intricate puzzle with all its twists and turns. It’s not just the twists themselves that might surprise you but the motives and the sheer depth of where they come from and why.”
“In a sense, the story reveals the fascinating pathology of a career con man,” notes Condon. But although the Nicholas Searle novel on which the film is based focuses more on Roy’s trajectory, Condon instinctively saw it as a cinematic two-hander between Betty and Roy—or Helen and Ian—where, he adds, “the female character and her point of view have equal weight. It really begins and ends with this relationship that develops between the two of them.”
In a story about secrets and lies, Condon concludes, “the best part of watching a movie like this is that you never know what’s going to happen—or why. And that’s the fun of it.”
In Philippine cinemas on November 27, “The Good Liar” is distributed in the Philippines by Warner Bros. Pictures, a WarnerMedia Company. Use the hashtag #GoodLiarMovie
