Lie to Me is a procedural crime drama that is quite different from the types that you may be used to. It stars Tim Roth as Dr. Cal Lightman who owns a company called The Lightman Group. Cal and his group accept jobs from people and law enforcement in which he must help them by finding out if someone is lying and then discover what the truth is. He’s sort of like a very direct private investigator that gets people the information they need from confronting their target rather than following them around. Cal has studied body language and facial expressions for around 20 years and is the world’s foremost expert on the subject, which is how he is able to decipher the truth from people.
The show starts with Cal hiring a new apprentice of sorts to assist him in his investigations. Her name is Ria Torres (Monica Raymund) and she is referred to as a natural. A natural is someone who can recognize the sort of tells that The Lightman Group looks for without any formal training or knowledge of exactly what it is they are seeing, just what it might mean. Since Torres is new Cal along with Dr. Gillian Foster (Kelli Williams) and Eli Loker (Brendan Hines), who are his partner and employee respectively, must teach her all of the nuances of the job. This is how the viewer comes to understand what they do and how they do it. It’s quite fascinating to see all of the ways in which your body instinctively reacts giving away your true feelings about what you hear or say. All of the stuff that they teach you in the show is real science that was studied and proven by Dr. Paul Ekman. It’s also cool to see Cal’s deception detecting be used to handle all sorts of different situations from finding out whether a person is innocent or guilty of murder to preventing an assassination attempt. Another thing that I really enjoy about the show is that they spend the time on their characters needed to make them all stand out and be interesting. Cal is probably one of the most intriguing characters on television and that has a lot to do with not only the acting but the way the writers put little mysteries about him in the episodes that get unraveled piece by piece throughout the season. Of course they were careful to leave plenty of things left to be unravelled in latter seasons. They also give subplots throughout the season for each of the other characters so that they can grow and you can get invested in the entire cast rather than just the lead.
The show’s cast is really talented but the clear standout is Tim Roth because he is just incredible in this role. All of the little quirks and mannerisms that make Cal feel unique and intriguing are brilliant on his part. Kelli Williams gives a solid performance as Foster but only towards the end does she get some more dramatic roles that show off the range of her talent. Brendan Hines as Loker gives a subtle performance for most of the season because he isn’t a big focus except for a few episodes close to the end where he gets himself in a couple of interesting predicaments. However his character does have an interesting way of providing comic-relief when he’s around because Loker is always totally honest even if it is inappropriate, insulting or embarrassing for himself he will say whatever comes to mind. Monica Raymund is great as Torres because she brings a lot of passion to the role and does a good job of being a strong character who can challenge Cal but still so new to this world that her stubbornness can prevent her from learning things that she needs to in order to do her job and get along with her colleagues.
Since this is the first season of the show we are obviously introduced to all of the characters and find out what sets them apart and makes them different from other people. There are a few storylines that go throughout the season. The foremost one is Torres’s intro to The Lightman Group and her attempt to understand Cal because he is a very strange and private man despite his very direct approach to other people. Another interesting story is with Loker and it is about his struggle with total honesty and whether it is ok to lie sometimes if it is for the right reasons. Which is one of the main themes of the show: is it ok to lie and if so are you willing to deal with the consequences that come with each lie you tell.
The first season of Lie to Me is quite good, it is a fascinating new take on crime drama and one that I look forward to seeing expand and grow. The cast is really good especially Tim Roth who is amazing and thanks to the writers and directors they all shine. If you’re interested in psychology and science being blended together in a great way or just want an interesting crime drama Lie to Me is worth checking out.
Score: 3/5
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