At first, I thought I was just stepping into another “rich family secrets on a private island” kind of tale, but the atmosphere… it was heavy, almost too pretty for its own good. You know those kinds of settings where the sunshine feels suspicious, like it’s hiding something? That’s how the movie felt from the start.
The gut-punch came in waves. At one point, Cadence is struggling desperately to reconstruct what exactly has occurred, and those around her are handling her as if she were a brittle glass that will just break whenever they utter too much. I had that pang--the one that comes when you feel that the persons you love are lying to you because it is in your best interest? The silence that was there was even more severe than verbal infidelity. It drew me back to my own life experiences when people defended me using half-truths and how such defence ultimately leads to a sense of being under a cage.
What really played with me was the revelation. I shall not here enter into the full spoiler, but as the truth at length snapped open--God, I simply sat there, with my mouth parched to choking, staring at the screen. It was not loud and melodramatic; it was heart-breaking all too human. That twist in which you can see everything that was odd, everything that was creepy quiet was leading somewhere that you never wished to imagine.
What I found surprising, however, was the extent to which the tragedy was mixed up with beauty. And these were these momentary, almost sweet scenes--the laughter round bonfires, the feeling of liberty on the island--that provoked me to live in their circle, in spite of my knowledge of the final outcome. Those lines gave me this bitter sweet pain, as the mind of a childhood summer that you will never be able to relive.
By the end, I wasn’t just sad—I was unsettled, haunted, but also strangely grateful. Because We Were Liars doesn’t just tell a story about wealth, privilege, and secrets. It forces you to sit with grief, guilt, and the question of how far love can twist before it breaks. It asks you: what lies are you still holding onto, and what would it cost to finally tell yourself the truth?
Thumbnail is designed by me on pixelLab and other images are screenshot from the movie