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Jakob the Liar (1999)

tomatometer

30

Average Rating: 4.7/10
Reviews Counted: 71
Fresh: 21 | Rotten: 50

Any real story is buried by awkward performances and contrived situations.

32

Average Rating: 4.9/10
Critic Reviews: 22
Fresh: 7 | Rotten: 15

Any real story is buried by awkward performances and contrived situations.

audience

62

liked it
Average Rating: 3.2/5
User Ratings: 16,640

My Rating

Movie Info

This remake of the 1975 German film Jakob der Lügner stars Robin Williams in a dramatic role as a man who uses his active imagination to bring a ray of hope where hope was all but unknown. Jakob Heym (Robin Williams) is the owner of a small café during the Nazi occupation of Poland; he has little money and is struggling to keep body and soul alive in the shadow of the Third Reich. One day, he overhears a radio broadcast, forbidden to Polish ears, that reports a major victory for Russian troops

Mar 21, 2000

TriStar Pictures

Cast

All Critics (86) | Top Critics (24) | Fresh (21) | Rotten (51) | DVD (11)

The film anticipates all laughter and emotion in ways that make it its own worst enemy.

January 1, 2000 Full Review Source: New York Times | Comment
New York Times
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Robin Williams in his best film since Good Will Hunting!

January 1, 2000 Comment
Hollywood Reporter
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It's jolting that such a potentially life-affirming movie could be so lifeless.

January 1, 2000 Full Review Source: Dallas Morning News | Comment
Dallas Morning News
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The film leans from the comedic to the near-mawkish.

January 1, 2000 Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | Comment
Houston Chronicle
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Jakob the Liar is a trial of cliche, strained optimism, and dire quasi-comedy.

January 1, 2000 Comment
Mr. Showbiz
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Jakob the Liar deserves a place alongside Life Is Beautiful and, yes, even Schindler's List.

January 1, 2000 Comment
Boston Globe
Top Critic IconTop Critic

So sternly manipulative that it becomes a chore to watch.

January 3, 2009 Full Review Source: TheMovieReport.com | Comment
TheMovieReport.com

Jakob the Liar isn't nearly as intolerable as you might expect of a Holocaust fable starring Robin Williams.

September 24, 2007 Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | Comment
eFilmCritic.com

A sober drama about hope as a postive spiritual force.

March 4, 2002 Full Review Source: Spirituality and Practice | Comment
Spirituality and Practice
More Critic Reviews

Audience Reviews for Jakob the Liar

I haven't seen Frank Beyer's original so I can't really comment on this film as a remake but I can probably take a educated guess at it's comparisons. I wont though as that is a bad habit and one should stay open-minded, that said, I will defend the fact that this is not a comedy, Robin Williams and the rest of the

August 9, 2010
SirPant

Super Reviewer

In the fickle entertainment industry of celluloid, nothing can be as detremental to a film's success as timimg. And the latest Robin William's weepy not only suffers from poor timing, it cuts its own throat with the careless mistake. Coming hot on the heels of another World War II comedy/drama known affectionately as

February 23, 2006
boxman
Nate Zoebl

Super Reviewer

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