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| STAR RATINGS EXPLAINED |
| Unmissable |
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| Excellent |
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| Good |
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| Poor |
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| Tragic |
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| FILM DETAILS | Certificate
PG | | Cast
Frankie Muniz
Paul Giamatti
Amanda Bynes
Amanda Detmer
Amanda Detmer. | | Directors
Shawn Levy. | | Screenwriters
Dan Schneider. | | Running Time
88 minutes |
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Big Fat Liar
A cute variation on The Boy Who Cried Wolf, with a sprinkling of popular US TV stars.
Plot
Habitual tale-teller Jason has a story he wrote at school stolen by obnoxious Hollywood producer Marty Wolf. When no-one believes him, he and best friend Kaylee journey cross-country to plague the plagiarist into exonerating Jason. Review
A family-friendly success in the U.S., where both Amanda Bynes and Malcolm In The Middle's Frankie Muniz are popular teen TV stars, this film brat variation on The Boy Who Cried Wolf fable is very cute for the Nickelodeon generation, if time grudgingly spent for grown-ups. It's also a cheap alternative for those whose pockets don't stretch to a trip to Universal Studios, since most of the action takes place there, cheerfully incorporating such backlot tour attractions as the Psycho house and the special effects flash-flood.
Giamatti's odious shlock merchant and the precociously adept Muniz are well pitted, as the youngster hides out in the studio props department employing tools of the trade and enlisting the put-upon of the industry (Lee Majors' stunt man, Donald Faison's limo driver) as allies in the Wolf-baiting pranks. And it's all to regain his dad's trust. Awww!
Verdict
Not for sophisticates, but the kid's eye view of Tinseltown sleaze and corruption is breezily knowing, with the tone of a jolly panto.
Reviewed by Angie Errigo
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