Lawyers, Guns and Money: An occasional series on movies, TV and other stories about lawyers and the law — Liar Liar (1997, Dir. Tom Shadyac)

Liar Liar, the 1997 Jim Carrey comedy about a dishonest man whose son makes a birthday wish condemning his dad to tell the truth for 24 hours, could have been about a doctor. Or a sanitation worker. Or a restaurateur. But what fun would any of that be? No, Carrey’s Fletcher Reede had to be a lawyer, because in the public imagination lawyers lie — constantly, for a living, without shame. The truth is relative or even irrelevant when it comes to winning a case. And so, Fletcher is an attorney who delights in getting “not guilty” verdicts for guilty, or at least unscrupulous, clients.It’s a great setup for Carrey, who, when Liar Liar was made, was still the king of movie comedy. Fletcher contorts his face and body as he struggles mightily against the unnatural act of telling the truth. He’s not just incapable of lying; he’s compelled to inflict brutal honesty on all comers, even (especially?) when it goes against all of his personal interests. Early in his crisis his secretary hands him the phone, explaining that the client on the other end has robbed (another) ATM machine. Fletcher yells into the receiver: “Stop breaking the law, asshole!” Pretty sound…