The Lie (1985) Poster

(1985)

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Classier than it sounds
lazarillo26 January 2014
This the story of a middle-aged woman (Stefania Sandrelli) who is trying to regain the attention of her long-time husband (whose apparently unaware he's married to an Italian sex bomb, middle-aged or not). When she finds out he is going with younger women and prostitutes, she concocts a hare-brained scheme to shock him to his senses by setting up an assignation with the couple's own teenage daughter (Amanda Sandrelli)! This definitely seems like a bad idea--apparently, the mother character hasn't seen many Italian films of this era where it wasn't uncommon for mother's boyfriends, stepfathers, and even fathers to wind up sleeping with their girlfriend's daughter, their step-daughter, or even their own daughter! Without spoiling it, this isn't as perverse as it could be (the younger Sandrelli doesn't even have nude scenes), but is an odd vehicle for a real-life mother and daughter to say the least.

Stefania Sandrelli is the obviously more famous of the two actresses. She first drew attention in the early 1960's when SHE was a beautiful teenager in films like "Seduced and Abandoned". In the 1980's she had a lot of roles as sexy middle-age mothers in films like this, "Desideria", and most famously, she played the mother of 17-year-old Penelope Cruz in "Jamon, Jamon" where the two of them should have won some kind of award for literally being the sexiest mother-daughter combo (who could have REALLY been mother and daughter) ever. Amanda Sandrelli can't really compete with Penelope Cruz or even her own middle-age mother here, but she's definitely pretty and not a bad actress. Unfortunately, she came of age just as the once vaunted Italian film industry began its slow implosion, She is good in this and the excellent 80's giallo "La Casa di Buon Ritorno", but she hasn't had anywhere near the career of her mother.

I wouldn't recommend this to your more committed perverts who harbor mother-daughter fantasies (I'm more of an uncommitted pervert). For everyone else though, it is very well acted and a lot more classy than its sleazy plot might suggest. Check it out.
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7/10
Mme. Sandrelli's tits and ass
Cristi_Ciopron20 January 2009
Warning: Spoilers
This movie contains some of the most beautiful images of Stefania's tits and ass when she was young; therefore it's highly recommended to all the fans of Stefania's nudity. L'Attenzione is a '84 flick—when Stefania was 38 and from an epoch when she undressed a lot in her movies. Here and in another '84 movie she looked, naked, younger than in LA CHIAVE. I have no explanation for this anatomic fact.

You know what's great about Sandrelli's career? There's plenty of movies for those who're only about her nudity; and there's plenty also for those who want to see her in non—nude movies …. She's not an one—track babe. She made plenty of flicks that are interesting mainly for her naked body; and she also made plenty of films that are interesting for other things.
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There are much worst...
j_crist18 June 2003
Disagree completely with the comment. This film is based on a novel by Alberto Moravia who was a very famous italian writer whose books has been made into film by various directors including Godard. This can be a bad film for the ones who has seen little and probably interested in action and blockbuster stuff, in that case yes, avoid it like a plague. You'll get bored. But I suggest the vision of this movie to a mature viewer or at least someone who appreciate good cinema.
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