The Good Lie
A moving refugee drama follows Sudanese siblings and friends from wartime displacement to the difficult, hopeful work of building lives in America.
Overview
A poignant journey of resilience and hope as young refugees navigate a new life in America.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Graphic
- harrowing
- sincere
- warm
- reflective evening
- humanitarian cinema night
What critics said
Critics broadly found the film compelling, well acted, and deeply moving despite sacrificing some real-life nuance for conventional Hollywood treatment.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The Sudanese youths move from a massacred village through a Kenyan refugee camp into divided American resettlement, with identity and belonging driving their adjustment.
The film depicts massacre, dangerous migration, and emotional trauma while shaping the material into a compassionate, audience-friendly Hollywood drama.
The characters' American resettlement is continually shaped by the remembered and emotionally persistent consequences of their flight from Sudan.
The children's arduous trek across the Sudanese plains and their passage toward safety form a defining geographic and emotional movement.
Films like The Good Lie, and why
The Visitor
shared themes of displacement, cultural adjustment, trauma, and compassionate human connection in a grounded drama
In This World
shared refugee experience, cross-cultural friendship, warm tone, and emphasis on rebuilding a life in an unfamiliar country
Hotel Rwanda
shared historical trauma, migration, ensemble bonds, and emotionally direct humanistic storytelling
Life Is Beautiful
shared coming-of-age under political violence, forced migration, resilience, and bittersweet historical drama
Movie Details
- Director
- Philippe Falardeau
- Release Date
- 2014-09-10
- Runtime
- 110 min
- Rating
- 7.5 / 10 (625)
Cast
- Reese Witherspoon
- Corey Stoll
- Arnold Oceng
- Ger Duany
- Thad Luckinbill
- Afemo Omilami
- Sarah Baker
- Joshua Mikel
- Mike Pniewski
- Lindsey Garrett
Where to watch in United States
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is The Good Lie about?
- A moving refugee drama follows Sudanese siblings and friends from wartime displacement to the difficult, hopeful work of building lives in America.
- What is The Good Lie like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Good Lie as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is The Good Lie violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in The Good Lie as graphic.
- What did critics think of The Good Lie?
- Critics broadly found the film compelling, well acted, and deeply moving despite sacrificing some real-life nuance for conventional Hollywood treatment.
- Which films are like The Good Lie?
- Films with a similar feel include The Visitor, In This World, Hotel Rwanda, and Life Is Beautiful.
- How long is The Good Lie?
- The Good Lie runs 110 minutes.
- Where can I watch The Good Lie?
- In United States, The Good Lie is available to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home.
