TV Jots

Ho-Hum

I cannot believe how underwhelmed I am by Fox’s newest crime procedural, the anti-deception drama Lie to Me, starring English film actor Tim Roth and The Practice alumna Kelli Williams.

The series debuted last night in the very auspicious and cushy post-American Idol time slot. Even that distinct advantage wasn’t enough to compensate for the show’s lack of anything resembling charisma or charm, a deficiency noticeable after spending just a few scenes with what currently looks like one of television’s most boring group of characters.

Given the fantastic actor Roth has already repeatedly proven himself to be in memorable movies like Pulp Fiction and Reservoir Dogs, being bored by anything with him in it is a pretty big shock. It never crossed my mind that something that drastic could happen with Lie to Me, which might explain why I’m still holding onto hope that the next episode on January 28 will be (infinitely) better.

Masquerading as an atypically observant individual, Roth plays simultaneously morose and weird deception expert Dr. Cal Lightman, a character based on real-life psychologist Paul Ekman, who also has a knack for interpreting body language and facial expressions to determine the truth behind the lies people tell.

As head of his self-established agency The Lightman Group, the doctor heads a team frequently sought after to assist with uncovering the truth and weeding out liars in tricky situations. The members include talented psychologist Dr. Gillian Foster (Williams); “radically honest” lead researcher Will Loker (Brendan Hines); and uncommonly shrewd natural deception detector Ria Torres (Monica Raymund), the newest recruit.

So far, Hines plays his character like an annoying doofus (for instance, upon meeting attractive Ria for the first time, he immediately informs her he wants to have sex with her, which is incredibly juvenile, not radically honest), Raymund plays hers like an emotionless zombie who does little more than display righteous indignation and announce when people are lying, and Williams plays Dr. Foster like the human equivalent of a bare wall — she makes no impression or impact whatsoever; she’s just there, taking up valuable space.

The dull characters aren’t helped by the two equally dull cases at the center of the pilot episode: a teacher’s murder committed by a married high school principal to cover up his role in getting a student pregnant, and a prominent politician willing to ruin his career over a sex scandal rather than admit the prostitute he gave money to is actually the daughter he and her mother put up for adoption decades ago. This is hardly the kind of unique or imaginative stuff that excites, no matter how many references to sex there are. Discerning viewers need more — much more.

Still, Tim Roth is Tim Roth, which is why I’m giving Lie to Me two or three additional episodes, max, to turn me on. If it can do that before I lose all interest, I promise to lie about my initial reaction when I become a card-carrying fan.