Imagine a world where people cannot lie:

An attractive young woman greets her date at the door and tells him this is the only evening they will spend together and she doubts he'll even get a kiss goodnight. She's out of his league and she doesn't want little pug-nosed fat kids.

The staff of an old folks home informs their patients they are the likely to die.

Your co-workers feel free to tell you you're a loser, fat, etc.

Enter Mark Bellison (Ricky Gervais), a scriptwriter for the "Lecture Film Series." His films on the 13th-century black plague were a rousing failure and he's slated for firing. How does he know this? His boss tells him, but he hates to hurt people so he's going to put it off....

Who knows exactly how Mark manages to lie the first time, but the second to ease the mind of his dying mother is a lot easier. Unfortunately, that lie eases a lot of people's minds and they want details.

There are portions of this film that are just brilliantly funny. The first half had me roaring throughout. The second, admittedly, had its moments as well, but the pacing was both slower and less laughable. Still, The Invention of Lying definitely was an entertaining way to spend a quiet Saturday afternoon.

WARNING: Christians who take strong offense at having fun poked at their faith may not appreciate some of the humor in this film.