LITTLE WHITE LIES
(A FEATURE FILM)
Screenplay by: Sheri Sussman
Synopsis: “Little White Lies” is a relentless look at the world of addiction through the lives of two brothers. One brother tries to stage his own intervention on his younger brother by taking him to his vacation home for a week to "set him straight". Events occur that cause both of their lives take a dark turn spiraling down the "rabbit hole", testing their morals, ethics, and consciences. Each discovers their lifelong judgements about each other were wrong.
The film is a character study exploring sibling rivalry - one brother who lies to himself about who he is, and the other who lies to the world; the line within ourselves we cannot cross before losing who we are; and about those people who believe they safely get away with living a façade – behind the “white picket fence”. The week the two brothers spend together creates a bond they can never break, as ultimately one brother is faced with the choice of sacrificing himself for the other.
Script available upon request.
BLACK LIST COVERAGE:
(review)
"The issue plaguing most 'drug movies' is their sensational melodrama, but LITTLE WHITE LIES manages to completely eradicate the possibility of sensationalism, didactic moralizing, or "fun" spectacle by fearlessly going as far as possible into the minutia and nature of addiction. The end result is a refreshing (and harrowing) character study unlike most contemporary drug/addict specs, and its horrors are rigorously earned and tremendously affecting. This is a striking work that both pulls no punches and yet makes it tonally clear that the grotesquerie on display is not meant to amuse, titillate, or preach -- the script instead endeavors to achieve something far more emotional and real. Jason and Christian are of course striking characters who carry the narrative well, and their subtle reversal of roles is a slow-burn, wrenching occurrence. The treatment of sex and violence will definitely alienate some viewers, but for open-minded and attuned audiences, it stands to become a fine rumination on the nature of modern masculinity and malaise. Staggerigly unique characters such as Popper flesh out the read in a beautiful fashion, and the writer offers a wrenching ending that defies easy categorization -- it cannot be shaken off or neatly disregarded. LITTLE WHITE LIES is a staggering read.
LITTLE WHITE LIES will almost certainly prove too disturbing for a conventional/mainstream treatment, but its confident writing, assured tone, and absolute fearlessness could potentially find it an audience in the art house/independent world. The modest production demands make the notion of a low-budget execution quite feasible, and the central roles stand to attract some hungry, bankable talent. It is admittedly difficult to make guarantees about the prospects of a project this artistically risky, but the strength of writing and vision here are obvious, and LITTLE WHITE LIES stands to garner some beneficial attention at the very least."
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