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In a world where lying does not exist, failing script editor Mark Bellison suddenly develops the ability to bend the truth. Spinning tall tales to get out of trouble and take advantage of others, his unique ability proves invaluable as the painfully truthful townspeople believe every porky pie he utters.

The Invention of Lying
2009 ‧ Comedy/Romance ‧
Transcript
00:00Today's story happens in a world very much like ours, but with one big difference.
00:04No one lies here. People always say exactly what they feel and think.
00:08Whatever comes to their mind is spoken out loud. Lies simply don't exist in this world.
00:12In this world, we meet Mark Bellison, a screenwriter who works in the film industry.
00:17One evening, he decides to visit Anna's house to ask her out on a date.
00:20As soon as Anna sees him, she says exactly what she thinks.
00:23I'm not interested in you at all. You're an average-looking guy,
00:27but I will go on a date with you because I promised your friend.
00:30She asks Mark to wait while she gets ready.
00:32Mark tells her that he doesn't have much money and might take her to a cheap restaurant,
00:35as he could even lose his job soon.
00:38Anna replies honestly, I don't care about these things.
00:41They go to a restaurant, and the waiter following the truth of this world tells Mark,
00:44the girl with you is very beautiful. You don't deserve her.
00:48Actually, no one can lie here, even if they want to.
00:51Mark and Anna begin talking, and Anna enjoys the conversation.
00:54But just then, her mother calls her. She speaks the truth bluntly.
00:58I won't let you marry Mark. He is overweight and doesn't have any money.
01:02I don't want my children to be overweight and struggle financially.
01:05After the date, Mark takes Anna home and returns to his own apartment,
01:09feeling a mix of emotions.
01:10The next day, Mark goes to his office as usual.
01:12His boss tells him the truth about his work.
01:14The script you wrote about the 14th century, which was made into a film, has flopped.
01:19We'll have to let you go.
01:21Mark is disheartened and starts packing to leave.
01:23At that moment, he receives an email from Anna. She writes honestly,
01:27I really enjoyed being with you last night, but I can't marry you because I have no future with you.
01:32Mark's secretary sees the email and laughs at him, showing it to everyone in the office.
01:36One of his attractive colleagues also mocks him.
01:39Mark feels deeply sad and frustrated.
01:41After work, he visits his mother, who lives in an old-age home.
01:45He shares all his troubles with her.
01:46She comforts him gently, saying,
01:48Don't worry. I think everything will be fine.
01:51Returning home, Mark finds another problem.
01:53His landlord comes to collect rent.
01:55Mark tells him,
01:56I only have $300 in the bank.
01:58I can't pay the full rent.
01:59The landlord, being truthful, replies,
02:01Your rent is $800.
02:03You have to vacate the house.
02:05With no other choice, Mark must leave his apartment.
02:07The next morning, Mark went to the bank to withdraw the little money he had.
02:10When he reached the counter, the cashier looked at him and said,
02:13The system is down right now.
02:15I can't check your account or tell you how much money you have.
02:18As Mark stood there, something stirred in his mind.
02:21For the first time, a strange thought came to him.
02:24He said out loud,
02:25I have $800 in my account.
02:27For the people around him, this was impossible.
02:29In their world, no one ever lies.
02:31Everything anyone said was the truth.
02:33But somehow, Mark had just said something that wasn't true.
02:36In a way, Mark had lied.
02:38For the first time in his life, and maybe the first time ever, in this world.
02:42The cashier tried to verify the account when the system came back online.
02:45She saw only $300 in Mark's account, but assumed it was a system error.
02:50Trusting what Mark said, she handed him $800.
02:53Mark was shocked and thrilled at the same time.
02:55He didn't fully understand what he had done.
02:57By speaking something untrue, he had invented lying.
03:00It was something dangerous and new, but it worked in his favor.
03:03Feeling triumphant, Mark returned home and gave the full $800 to his landlord,
03:08finally clearing his debt.
03:09For the first time in weeks, he felt relief.
03:11Later, he went to meet the same friend who had set him up on a date with Anna.
03:15He sat at the bar with his friend and the bartender, and he said,
03:18I can now say things that have never happened in this world.
03:21His friends looked confused.
03:23In their world, no one had ever heard of a lie.
03:25The word itself didn't exist.
03:27To show them, Mark said something shocking.
03:29I'm a black man.
03:30Do you believe me?
03:31His friends hesitated, unsure what he meant.
03:34Do you believe me?
03:35Mark asked again, smiling.
03:37Their confusion only grew.
03:38Curious, he asked his friend,
03:39If you could do anything right now, what would you do?
03:42His friend answered honestly,
03:44I'd like to be intimate with someone.
03:45Mark grinned and said,
03:47I'll show you.
03:47Just then, a beautiful girl walked past outside.
03:50Mark called to her and said something terrifyingly unusual for this world.
03:54If you don't come with me, the world will end.
03:57The girl froze, scared.
03:58She agreed to go with him, terrified of the imagined consequence.
04:02Mark led her to a nearby motel.
04:04Once inside, the girl looked impatient and said,
04:06Hurry up!
04:07Mark calmly replied,
04:08Don't worry.
04:09We don't need to do anything now.
04:11Everything is fine.
04:12Then he faked a phone call to NASA,
04:14pretending to report the danger.
04:16The threat is over.
04:17The world is safe.
04:18The girl believing him relaxed and happily left.
04:21Mark returned to the bar, still testing his new power.
04:23He asked his friend again,
04:25Tell me, what do you want to do?
04:26His friend said,
04:27I want to be rich.
04:28I want to make money.
04:29Mark smiled and said,
04:31Follow me to the casino.
04:32They got into a car with his friend a little drunk.
04:34As they drove, a police car appeared and started chasing them.
04:37The officer pulled them over and said,
04:39Drinking and driving is not allowed.
04:41You'll be fined.
04:42Mark turned to the officer and said confidently,
04:44My friend hasn't been drinking.
04:46The policeman believed him without question.
04:48In this world, no one had ever lied before.
04:50The officer could not even imagine that someone could lie.
04:53And so Mark's simple untruth was taken as the absolute truth.
04:57After leaving the bank,
04:58Mark and his friend head straight to a casino.
05:00They take chips and sit down to play roulette.
05:02Mark bets all his money on number 28.
05:05But when the wheel spins,
05:06the number 35 comes up instead.
05:08He has lost everything.
05:09But Mark doesn't panic.
05:11Using his new power,
05:12he quickly distracts everyone.
05:13Saying,
05:14Look over there.
05:15While the others glance away,
05:16Mark moves all his chips onto number 35.
05:19When the ball stops,
05:20the dealer is shocked.
05:21Just moments ago,
05:22there were no chips on number 35.
05:24But now a stack of chips sits there.
05:26Mark calmly says,
05:27I placed my money on 35 before the wheel stopped.
05:30In this world,
05:31no one doubts him.
05:31No one even thinks a person could lie.
05:34Everyone believes Mark,
05:35and he wins a huge amount of money.
05:37Encouraged,
05:38Mark goes to another game in the casino.
05:39He tells the manager,
05:41We won the jackpot on that machine,
05:42but it didn't give us any money.
05:44The manager apologizes
05:45and immediately hands them the full jackpot payout.
05:48By lying again and again,
05:50Mark becomes very rich.
05:51That night,
05:52Mark returns to his building.
05:53Outside,
05:54a young man named Frank,
05:55who is always sad and hopeless,
05:57stops him.
05:57Frank says,
05:58Nothing exciting ever happens in my life.
06:00I'm so fed up,
06:02I just want to end it all.
06:03Mark looks at him with kindness and says,
06:05Don't do anything like that.
06:06I care about you.
06:07From now on,
06:08I'll be your best friend.
06:09Frank's face lights up with joy.
06:11He asks,
06:12Will you go out with me tonight?
06:13Mark smiles and says,
06:15Yes,
06:15I will definitely go out with you.
06:16Frank is overjoyed.
06:18In that moment,
06:19Mark realizes something important.
06:20His power to lie doesn't only bring him money,
06:22it can also help people.
06:24From then on,
06:25he starts using his ability,
06:26not just for himself,
06:27but also to make others happy.
06:29Now wealthy,
06:30Mark calls Anna one night.
06:31He tells her,
06:32I've changed now.
06:32I'd like to go on a date with you again.
06:34Anna thinks for a moment and says,
06:36Okay,
06:36we'll go tomorrow.
06:37Later that evening,
06:38Mark is watching TV
06:39when he sees one of his old colleagues being praised.
06:42This colleague,
06:43a handsome screenwriter from his company,
06:45was the same man who mocked Mark when he lost his job.
06:48As Mark watches him being celebrated,
06:50an idea strikes.
06:51He grabs some paper and starts writing a story.
06:53Then he deliberately spills coffee on it
06:56to make the pages look old and worn.
06:57The next day,
06:58he goes back to his old office and meets his boss.
07:01Mark tells him,
07:02After I left the job,
07:03I went to the desert.
07:04There I found some ancient papers from the 14th century.
07:07They contained incredible information.
07:09Based on them,
07:10I wrote a story.
07:11His boss,
07:12curious,
07:13gathers all the staff to listen.
07:14Mark begins his tale.
07:16In the 14th century,
07:17a spaceship from Mars came to Earth.
07:19The aliens destroyed the dinosaurs
07:21and changed the world forever.
07:22After that,
07:23the human population began to grow.
07:25These papers also say
07:26that the aliens erased everyone's memories of this event.
07:29People gasp.
07:30All the films in their world
07:32are based only on true stories
07:33because fiction itself is a kind of lie.
07:36This is the first time
07:37they are hearing something completely new,
07:39something beyond their imagination.
07:41Someone asked Mark,
07:42If this really happened,
07:43why don't we know about it?
07:45Mark answers,
07:46Because the aliens erased everyone's memory.
07:48But it is also written in these papers
07:50that after 700 years,
07:51a great writer named Mark would appear.
07:54He would find the papers
07:55and reveal the truth to the world.
07:56Everyone is stunned.
07:58For the first time in history,
07:59they are hearing a story
08:00that feels bigger than anything they've ever known.
08:03They cheer and applaud.
08:04Mark's boss is thrilled.
08:06He says,
08:06We will make our next film on this story first.
08:09One evening,
08:10Mark finally takes Anna out on a date.
08:12He tells her,
08:12I got my job back
08:14and now I have a lot of money.
08:15Anna,
08:16will you marry me?
08:17Anna looks at him seriously and replies,
08:19No, Mark.
08:20If I marry you,
08:21our world will be ruined.
08:22The children will be very fat.
08:24And I don't want that.
08:25Before Mark can respond,
08:26his phone rings.
08:27It's urgent news.
08:28His mother is very ill.
08:30Without a moment to waste,
08:31he and Anna rush to the hospital.
08:32When they arrive,
08:33Mark sees his mother struggling to breathe.
08:35Her eyes are wide with fear,
08:37terrified of dying.
08:38Seeing her like this,
08:39Mark feels a wave of sadness
08:41and tears well up in his eyes.
08:43He wants to comfort her,
08:44to take away the fear.
08:45So for the first time,
08:47he tells a lie for a compassionate reason.
08:49He whispers,
08:50Mother,
08:51after death,
08:52we all go to our favorite place.
08:54There,
08:54we become young again
08:55and happy forever.
08:56Hearing this,
08:57his mother's expression softens.
08:58A smile replaces her fear.
09:00And for the first time in moments,
09:02her eyes show peace.
09:03With that satisfaction in her heart,
09:05she quietly passes away.
09:06The doctor and nurse who are present
09:08are shocked by what Mark said.
09:10The doctor asks cautiously,
09:12Is this true, Mark?
09:13But Mark says nothing
09:14and quietly leaves with Anna.
09:16The next day,
09:16when Mark returns home from his office,
09:18He is greeted by a huge crowd
09:20outside his house.
09:21Reporters surround him,
09:22shouting questions like,
09:24Mark,
09:24what is life like after death?
09:26Mark is speechless.
09:27In reality,
09:28he had just comforted his mother
09:30with a story,
09:30but now the world wants answers.
09:32Inside,
09:33the TV news channels
09:34replay his words.
09:35Seeing this,
09:36Anna comes to his house and says,
09:38Mark,
09:38you have to tell everyone the truth
09:40about what life is like after death.
09:42Determined,
09:43Mark spends the whole night
09:44writing a script.
09:45He organizes his thoughts
09:46and tries to create a story
09:47that people can understand.
09:49The next morning,
09:50he steps outside
09:50and tells the crowd,
09:51There is a man living in the sky
09:53who controls all our lives.
09:55When we die,
09:56he sends us to our favorite place.
09:57But if we commit
09:58more than three wrongdoings,
10:00he will send us to a terrible world
10:02where we will face punishment.
10:03The crowd is full of questions.
10:05One man asks,
10:06My grandfather had a heart attack.
10:07Did the man in the sky cause it?
10:09Mark hesitates.
10:10He has no real answer.
10:11Even so,
10:12the news spreads like wildfire.
10:14Everyone is talking about
10:15the man in the sky
10:16who controls the world.
10:18Meanwhile,
10:18Mark's film about aliens
10:19is finally produced.
10:20People love it
10:21and it becomes a huge success.
10:23Mark becomes extremely wealthy
10:25and buys a grand mansion to live in.
10:27Over time,
10:27Anna and Mark grow closer as friends.
10:29One day,
10:30she asks him honestly,
10:31Mark,
10:31I love you too now,
10:32but with all your wealth,
10:34will our children be beautiful?
10:35Mark shakes his head gently.
10:37No,
10:37Anna,
10:38money cannot change our genes.
10:39Hearing this,
10:40Anna feels sad.
10:41She realizes that some things
10:43cannot be bought or changed.
10:44She decides to stop
10:45the relationship here,
10:47though they remain
10:47very good friends.
10:48One day,
10:49Anna tells Mark quietly,
10:50I'm going on a date tonight
10:51with that same writer,
10:52the one who used to be your colleague
10:54and who insulted you.
10:55Maybe I'll even marry him.
10:57Hearing this,
10:57Mark feels a heavy pain
10:58in his chest.
10:59He doesn't show it,
11:00but inside,
11:01he feels deeply hurt
11:02and helpless.
11:03That evening,
11:04Anna goes out with the writer.
11:05During the date,
11:06Anna's mother calls her,
11:07but before she can answer properly,
11:09the man snatches the phone from her
11:11and speaks rudely to her mother.
11:12He doesn't like that Anna's mother called
11:14during their date.
11:15The man also controls what Anna can order.
11:17He says she must not eat certain foods
11:19because he doesn't want her to become fat
11:21and he doesn't want their future children
11:23to be fat either.
11:24Anna feels small and uncomfortable,
11:26but she says nothing.
11:27A short while later,
11:28Anna and the writer get engaged,
11:29though she is unhappy about it.
11:31In this world,
11:32people choose partners,
11:33mostly for their looks,
11:34so that their children will also be good looking.
11:36Anna doesn't like the man,
11:37but she feels trapped.
11:39One day,
11:39Anna is at home
11:40watching a funny interview of Mark on TV.
11:42She smiles and laughs as he talks.
11:44For a moment,
11:45she seems happy,
11:46but then her mother walks in,
11:48turns off the TV and says,
11:49you need to stay away from Mark.
11:51He is not the right man for you.
11:52Days go by.
11:53Slowly,
11:54the whole world begins to change.
11:56People stop working as hard as they used to.
11:58They believe that after death,
11:59they will go to their favorite place
12:01and get everything they want.
12:02They start thinking,
12:03this world doesn't matter.
12:04The real world begins after death.
12:06Mark notices the changes.
12:08He meets his old neighbor,
12:09Frank,
12:09the same man who once wanted to end his life
12:12because no girl liked him.
12:13Now Frank speaks differently.
12:14He says,
12:15I don't want to meet any girl now.
12:17Everything here is a lie.
12:18After death,
12:19I'll find many girls of my choice in the other world.
12:21So why bother dating now?
12:23Mark listens,
12:24realizing that his words,
12:26his lie about life after death,
12:28have transformed the entire world.
12:30The world that was once full of hard work,
12:32relationships,
12:33and hope is now slowly falling apart.
12:35People no longer want to improve themselves
12:37or build real connections.
12:39They simply wait for death,
12:40believing the next life will give them everything.
12:43One day,
12:43Anna comes to Mark's house with tears in her eyes.
12:45She tells him,
12:46I'm getting married, Mark.
12:47I wanted to invite you.
12:49Mark looks at her and says firmly,
12:51Anna,
12:51you shouldn't marry him.
12:52You belong with me.
12:53Anna shakes her head,
12:55confused and upset.
12:56No,
12:57Mark,
12:57I don't understand.
12:58I,
12:59I love you,
13:00but I have to do this,
13:01she says and leaves crying.
13:03Mark watches her go,
13:04feeling a mix of sadness and hope.
13:06Later,
13:06she sits quietly in a park,
13:08trying to clear her mind.
13:09While sitting there,
13:10she notices a group of children teasing a small boy.
13:12They laugh at him and call him names.
13:15Anna rushes over,
13:16shooing the bullies away.
13:17She kneels beside the child and asks gently,
13:19what's your name?
13:20The boy replies,
13:21my name is Short Fat Brian.
13:23Anna's heart aches.
13:24She realizes the children deliberately named him
13:26after his looks to hurt him.
13:28In that moment,
13:29she sees herself in the boy.
13:30She understands that for months,
13:32she had treated Mark the same way,
13:33mocking him,
13:34belittling him for being overweight,
13:36judging him for his appearance.
13:37The wedding day finally arrives.
13:39Mark's friend comes to him and says urgently,
13:41this is your last chance.
13:43You have to bring Anna back into your life.
13:45Mark takes a deep breath,
13:46shaves carefully and dresses neatly.
13:48He and his friend enter the church
13:50where Anna is about to be married.
13:52The priest asks the crowd,
13:53is there anyone here with better genes than the groom?
13:56Mark stands slowly.
13:57His voice is calm but sincere.
13:59My genes aren't perfect,
14:00but I know that Anna and I will be very happy together.
14:03He turns to leave,
14:04feeling a mix of sadness and hope.
14:06Suddenly, Anna runs after him.
14:08She pleads,
14:09ask the man in the sky who I should be with.
14:11Mark shakes his head.
14:12He could have lied,
14:13used his power,
14:14and convinced her to marry him.
14:16But instead, he says gently,
14:17Anna,
14:18that was just a story I told my mother to calm her down.
14:21There is no man in the sky controlling our lives.
14:24The truth is,
14:25I love you,
14:25and that's all that matters.
14:27Anna freezes.
14:28She is stunned.
14:29In this world,
14:30no one has ever said anything that wasn't true.
14:33She realizes something powerful.
14:34Mark has always been honest with her.
14:36His love is real,
14:37and he never used lies to manipulate her.
14:40With tears in her eyes,
14:41Anna smiles and says,
14:42Then I choose you, Mark.
14:43I want to spend my life with you.
14:45They marry soon after.
14:46Years pass,
14:47and the story shows a happy home
14:49where Mark and Anna have a son.
14:51The boy is just like Mark,
14:52clever and curious.
14:54One more child is about to arrive at their house,
14:56and from the playful gestures
14:57and expressions of their son,
14:59it's clear.
15:00He has already learned the power of speaking a lie,
15:02just like his father.
15:04Mark and Anna look at each other and smile,
15:06proud and content in their family.
15:07The scene ends on a joyful note,
15:09but with a hint that the cycle of truth
15:11and lies will continue in the next generation.
15:14So what did you learn from this story?
15:16Share your thoughts in the comment box.
15:18We hope you enjoyed this heartwarming
15:20and thought-provoking tale.
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