No lie - an outstanding new crime drama (Lie To Me)

Member Name: Mildew82

Product:	Lie To Me
Date:	09/08/09 (131 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Gripping and clever storylines, interesting characters, Tim Roth

Disadvantages: Makes you over analyse people around you

Lie To Me premiered on the Fox Network in January 2009, and has been broadcast in the UK on Sky One in May 2009. Although the first series has come to end now, I'm sure there will be many repeats available on Sky One, or Sky Two, or Sky Three or any other franchise of Sky that may unexpectedly pop up over night.

Lie To Me follows the cases The Lightman Group (a private contractor company) investigate into determining deception in many different situations, typically from law enforcement agencies and occasionally from wealthy clients using the art of psychology. This psychology ranges from studying the body language of suspects and witnesses, the facial expression of emotions (based upon the real life Facial Action Coding System developed in 1976) and even more interestingly and harder to detect micro-expressions.


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The Team
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Dr. Cal Lightman (Tim Roth) - Unsurprisingly, as the name suggests, the founder of The Lightman Group. A psychologist, his expertise lies with the ability to detect body language and unravelling micro-expressions which are crucial in uncovering lies and hidden truths. Not a natural at reading micro-expressions, Cal devoted years to training himself to master the art. He is divorced and has joint custody of his daughter that pops up sporadically in the show.

Dr. Gillian Foster (Kelli Williams) - Another psychologist, her expertise lies more in the area of understanding the motives behind certain behaviour and the likely actions any suspects may take in certain circumstances which is crucial to diffusing dangerous situations. She has a close relationship with Cal, but makes it clear that the team's ability (and especially Cal's) to read lies should never cross over into their personal lives - something not easy to stick to when suspicions over her husband arise!

Ria Torres (Monica Raymund) - With no formal training, Ria is recruited by Cal in the first episode as through an outstanding record at spotting suspicious behaviour as an airport security officer he recognises her talent as a "natural". This effectively means she can always tell when someone is lying - later revealed to be through abuse at her father's hands as a child and the need to detect drastic mood changes for self preservation. She becomes Cal's protégée and whilst being very talented is still very raw, and often her emotions cloud her judgement.

Eli Loker (Brendan Hines) - They eye candy for the show (sorry not relevant), Eli, unlike Ria, has formal qualifications and like Cal had trained himself in the art of reading people. He is a character that can cause much controversy due to living his life by a "radical honesty" doctrine which means simply that he'll tell the truth in any situation, regardless of how tactless it may be. Due to a serious error in judgement he was demoted from a paid employee down to an intern status.

Ben Reynolds (Mekhi Phifer) - a late addition to the team only joining in the penultimate episode of the first series Ben is the experienced FBI agent to give armed assistance in some of their more dangerous cases - so far we have learnt little about him, but he has shown to have a higher than average ability in reading people and situations that suggest he will fit into the group effortlessly.

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The Cases
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Each episode often incorporates several different cases where the team split apart to investigate each case separately. To keep this show fresh and interesting the cases need to be diverse and original each time, and I think that so far each episode has delivered a new angle which succeeds in making it worth watching every week.

These cases have ranged from abducted children, suspicious deaths, hostage situations, terrorist bombings to fraud. I always feel like in each case we learn a new body language technique or a new micro-expression that is common in every (normal) person which may uncover a lie. My personal favourite episode was a copycat serial killer and how the team had to try to read the original serial killer - a dangerous and intelligent pathological liar - in a race against time to save a kidnapped woman. This was a grizzly and chilling episode which showed the full force of what the show is capable of and how vital the art of lie detecting can be.

I particularly like the fact that real life examples are often used by both the team to compare expressions they may have captured for suspects/witnesses plus (irrelevantly to the storyline of the episode) to signify an approaching advert break by the show's producers. Strange that 95% of these examples seem to be politicians betraying their guilt, shame or defensive body language unconsciously - and very odd that more often than not that politician seems to be Bill Clinton. I didn't know that politicians lied!

I also enjoy the slow character development throughout the show. In each episode the cases take centre stage, and we just get subtle hints into the personal lives of each team member, enough to keep us interested and enough to give each character some proper depth. The focus on each character varies from episode to episode so you feel like no character is more important than any other...with the exception of Cal Lightman himself.

For me, Tim Roth absolutely makes this show work. He portrays the character of Cal Lightman in such a way that he is so compelling and intriguing that you can't help but be captivated by him. His wry sense of humour and ability to become a chameleon to turn any situation to his advantage and get quick results just makes for some seriously entertaining TV.

The rest of the cast are also brilliant in their roles - there isn't a weak link amongst them. I believe that it is the quality of the writing, the exciting and diverse storylines, the gradual character development and excellent acting that has made each episode fascinating and gripping to watch in the first series. The series has been commissioned for a second series so I shall remain ever hopeful that this quality can continue well into the future of the show.

The only downside to this show is the fact that I now find myself trying to observe people to try to pick up on any obvious signs of lying or betrayals of emotions - oh did you just raise your eyebrows? Did you just cross your arms - that's very defensive didn't you know? Was that an unconscious facial twitch? Are you lying to me?

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Episode Listing
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1. Pilot
2. Moral Waiver
3. A Perfect Score
4. Love Always
5. Unchained
6. Do No Harm
7. The Best Policy
8. Depraved Heart
9. Life Is Priceless
10. Better Half
11. Undercover
12. Blinded
13. Sacrifice

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Conclusion
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Lie To Me is effectively another crime show, but with the crime detecting skills revolving around the psychology of body language and human emotion rather than the typical forensic techniques. For me this psychological slant makes this show far more compelling than most other crime shows I have watched. The quality of the writing and acting never wavers in any episode, and the diverse range of storylines and fascinating new techniques or micro-expressions to discover in each episode keeps you hooked with rapt attention.

Lie to Me is definitely not one to be missed!

Summary: Recommended for any crime show fan