Film

Liar Liar

Name: Liar Liar
Genre: Comedy, Fantasy
Released: 1997
Cast: Jim Carrey, Maura Tierney, Justin Cooper, Cary Elwes, Anne Haney

Comedy
Fantasy
Light-hearted

Jim Carrey at his most elastic, playing a lawyer whose lies catch up with him via literal magic: for 24 hours he cannot say anything but the truth. It's a one-joke premise stretched to feature length, but the joke is Carrey's face, voice and whole nervous system rebelling against honesty. Broad, silly, oddly moral, and very 1997.

TMDb rating

3.4

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you like a comedy where one performer's rubber-faced energy does most of the heavy lifting, and a simple premise is pushed until it squeaks.

Skip it if you find broad, physical gags wearing thin fast, or you want your comedy sharp and subtle, since this one leans hard on mugging and sentiment.

What it asks of you: It runs a brisk eighty-six minutes and keeps its foot on the accelerator, so you need to go along with escalating silliness rather than wait for quiet character beats.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

The Mask1994

Carrey again turned inside-out by a supernatural object, this time with even less restraint — it's the id version of the goofy-dad-learns-a-lesson arc Liar Liar eventually settles into.

But The effects are dated and the tone swings harder toward menace than Liar Liar ever does.

Ace Ventura: Pet Detective1994

The purest, most unfiltered dose of mid-90s Carrey physical comedy, before he layered in the sentimentality — great if the rubber-faced chaos is what you actually came for.

But There's no emotional spine at all here; it's gags stacked on gags, which some find exhausting rather than delightful.

Bruce Almighty2003

Carrey again playing a selfish man handed absurd power by forces beyond his control, forced into decency by the plot itself — basically Liar Liar's cosmic cousin.

But It's slicker and more sentimental, with a God-does-a-sitcom premise that can feel more twee than funny.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Liar Liar

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Nothing but the Truth1941

It's the same high-concept truth-telling bet, decades before Carrey — proof the gimmick is older than any of us think.

Bob Hope plays a stockbroker who bets he can tell nothing but the truth for 24 hours — the exact premise of Liar Liar, told with Hope's rapid-fire 1940s patter instead of Carrey's physical comedy.

But The pacing and jokes are very much of their era; some will find it quaint rather than laugh-out-loud funny.

Big1988

The granddaddy of the wish-comes-true-and-upends-your-life genre, with Tom Hanks doing the same trick Carrey does — an adult forced to reckon with consequences via magical logic.

But It's gentler and more wistful than Liar Liar's manic energy; don't expect slapstick.

Freaky Friday2003

Another family comedy where a kid's wish literally rewires an adult's reality, forcing empathy through supernatural inconvenience rather than conversation.

But It's aimed squarely at a younger audience and lacks any of Carrey's manic adult energy.

Groundhog Day1993

A magical rule forces a selfish, glib man to become a better person through repetition rather than lies — same moral engine, vastly sharper script.

But It's a quieter, more philosophical comedy; if you want Carrey-style mania, this isn't it.

Multiplicity1996

Michael Keaton clones himself to cope with an overstuffed life, and the fantasy premise similarly exposes what happens when a man's convenient shortcuts multiply out of control.

But It's slower and stranger, with a sci-fi gimmick that doesn't always land as comedy.

Legally Blonde2001

Courtroom farce with a big heart and a genuinely satisfying underdog-lawyer payoff, if the legal-comedy machinery of Liar Liar's back half was your favorite part.

But Completely different energy — sunny and earnest rather than manic — with no Carrey-style physical comedy.

Elf2003

Will Ferrell channels the same wide-eyed, rubber-limbed, family-friendly chaos Carrey brings, in a fish-out-of-water comedy that's just as quotable.

But It's a Christmas movie through and through, which limits its rewatch season.

The Insider1999

Both ask what happens when a man built on deception is forced into total honesty — one for a birthday wish, one for his conscience and career.

A true story about a man whose entire professional life depends on either lying or telling a truth that will destroy him — the stakes Liar Liar plays for laughs, played here for real.

But It's a long, tense, deadly serious drama with none of the comic release; this is Liar Liar's premise with the jokes surgically removed.

F for Fake1973

Both are fundamentally about charismatic liars whose entire charm is the con — Welles just refuses to ever let you know when he's lying to you too.

Orson Welles' essay-film about art forgers, hoaxers and his own reputation as a bullshitter is a dazzling, playful meditation on lying as performance — a magic trick about magic tricks.

But It's a genuinely experimental documentary with no plot in the conventional sense; it demands patience Liar Liar never asks for.