Ultimate Lie To Me Fansite
Episode 1 - Pilot
A stone-faced skinhead sits in an interrogation room. His lawyer says his client refuses to talk. The man sitting across from them -- psychologist Dr. Cal Lightman -- says, OK, he'll just ask some questions. As he does, Cal focuses on the prisoner's split-second changes in expression, which unwittingly reveal the location of the black church where he's planted a bomb. Cal walks out and tells the waiting ATF agents exactly where to go. Plot foiled.
Facing a roomful of plainclothes officers, Cal replays a video of this interrogation on an overhead projector, pausing to illustrate -- using extreme close-ups -- the small twitches at the corners of the eyes and mouth that gave him the information he wanted. He underscores each "tell" with similar famous photos of politicians and celebrities' reactions to hard questions. The audience laughs.
Back in the Washington, D.C., offices of the Lightman Group, Cal's partner, Dr. Gillian Foster, says the mayor wants them to investigate the recent murder of a local high school teacher. The prime suspect is one of her students; the police caught the 16-year-old running down the street when the body was discovered. He's also a previously home-schooled Jehovah's Witness whose parents complained about this teacher's reading assignments.
But not everyone's convinced of the boy's guilt, and, as Cal says, "There's truth, there's right, and there's us," so he takes the job.
During questioning, Cal realizes the boy's failure to avoid eye contact indicates he's lying about never having been to the teacher's house and that he "didn't mean to kill her." Cal then questions the boy's fellow students, who say he was a social misfit, but one girl, Jaquelin, displays unusual breathing patterns.
After an argument over an airport parking space, Cal parks his car so the guy who took the spot he was about to pull into can't exit his vehicle. Cal snorts, "One liar down, 6 1/2 million to go."
When Cal enters the airport, a TSA screener named Ria Torres pulls him aside and orders him to open his briefcase, which is full of cash. He congratulates her, saying she's an extremely rare, "natural" deception detector -- he's been looking at her records -- and offers her a job with his company. And the cash is her signing bonus.
Over at the school, Cal discovers Jaquelin has discipline problems, and the principal is a ball of tension. Back at the office, we learn that Gillian loves junk food and romance novels.
Meanwhile, the Democratic National Committee requests the Lightman Group's help. The congressman who chairs the Ethics Committee is about to be accused of frequenting a club that specializes in escort services, which would be a public relations nightmare.
When Ria arrives at the Lightman Group, Cal's audio/video expert, Eli Locker -- who always tells the truth -- makes inappropriate sexual remarks. Ria's not amused.
Cal questions the boy's parents. The father is hostile; the mother is evasive. And back at the office, they discover that Jaquelin is pregnant.
Meanwhile, Cal goes home, where Emily, his teenage daughter with his ex-wife, reminds him not to apply his professional skills to their relationship. But when her date appears at the door, Cal asks if his plans include having sex that evening.
When Cal interrogates the congressman, he denies having gone to the sex club but can't describe what he did last Friday night in backward order -- which Cal explains is a sure sign that he's lying.
Cal returns to the boy's parents, who show him photos of the teacher that their son had shot through the window outside her home -- which they'd hidden from the police. After comparing them to the crime scene photos, Cal figures the boy had a fantasy relationship with the teacher that involved spying on her and when he saw her dead, he panicked and ran.
In the meantime, Ria goes to the sex club and interviews an escort, Melissa, whose genuine smile reveals the congressman was a regular customer, but their relationship wasn't sexual. However, reports of the congressman's behavior are now all over the TV news.
Cal's staff finds photos of the dead teacher arguing with someone in a car. When Cal asks the principal who owns the car, his suddenly cold handshake betrays his fear -- he knows, but it's not him.
The congressman privately explains that he's been seeing Melissa because she's the daughter he'd given up for adoption more than 20 years ago. But she doesn't know this, and to protect her future reputation, he'll take the fall.
Turns out the mystery car belongs to Jaquelin, who swears she didn't kill the teacher, but won't say who did -- until Gillian interrupts the interrogation by handing Cal a note saying the boy in custody just hung himself.
Jaquelin then reveals the principal got her pregnant. And when the teacher discovered this, the principal -- afraid she'd report them-- killed her and tried to frame the boy. The principal gets led away in handcuffs. (Yes, Cal used a lie to determine the truth.)
As for the DNC, they discuss the subtle differences between lies, claiming it's the intent that matters.
Back at the office, Cal notices that Gillian's husband is lying to her, but says nothing. As he heads home, he passes one person after another who's busy lying, whether from kindness, to make themselves look better, or to continue an extramarital affair.
Facing a roomful of plainclothes officers, Cal replays a video of this interrogation on an overhead projector, pausing to illustrate -- using extreme close-ups -- the small twitches at the corners of the eyes and mouth that gave him the information he wanted. He underscores each "tell" with similar famous photos of politicians and celebrities' reactions to hard questions. The audience laughs.
Back in the Washington, D.C., offices of the Lightman Group, Cal's partner, Dr. Gillian Foster, says the mayor wants them to investigate the recent murder of a local high school teacher. The prime suspect is one of her students; the police caught the 16-year-old running down the street when the body was discovered. He's also a previously home-schooled Jehovah's Witness whose parents complained about this teacher's reading assignments.
But not everyone's convinced of the boy's guilt, and, as Cal says, "There's truth, there's right, and there's us," so he takes the job.
During questioning, Cal realizes the boy's failure to avoid eye contact indicates he's lying about never having been to the teacher's house and that he "didn't mean to kill her." Cal then questions the boy's fellow students, who say he was a social misfit, but one girl, Jaquelin, displays unusual breathing patterns.
After an argument over an airport parking space, Cal parks his car so the guy who took the spot he was about to pull into can't exit his vehicle. Cal snorts, "One liar down, 6 1/2 million to go."
When Cal enters the airport, a TSA screener named Ria Torres pulls him aside and orders him to open his briefcase, which is full of cash. He congratulates her, saying she's an extremely rare, "natural" deception detector -- he's been looking at her records -- and offers her a job with his company. And the cash is her signing bonus.
Over at the school, Cal discovers Jaquelin has discipline problems, and the principal is a ball of tension. Back at the office, we learn that Gillian loves junk food and romance novels.
Meanwhile, the Democratic National Committee requests the Lightman Group's help. The congressman who chairs the Ethics Committee is about to be accused of frequenting a club that specializes in escort services, which would be a public relations nightmare.
When Ria arrives at the Lightman Group, Cal's audio/video expert, Eli Locker -- who always tells the truth -- makes inappropriate sexual remarks. Ria's not amused.
Cal questions the boy's parents. The father is hostile; the mother is evasive. And back at the office, they discover that Jaquelin is pregnant.
Meanwhile, Cal goes home, where Emily, his teenage daughter with his ex-wife, reminds him not to apply his professional skills to their relationship. But when her date appears at the door, Cal asks if his plans include having sex that evening.
When Cal interrogates the congressman, he denies having gone to the sex club but can't describe what he did last Friday night in backward order -- which Cal explains is a sure sign that he's lying.
Cal returns to the boy's parents, who show him photos of the teacher that their son had shot through the window outside her home -- which they'd hidden from the police. After comparing them to the crime scene photos, Cal figures the boy had a fantasy relationship with the teacher that involved spying on her and when he saw her dead, he panicked and ran.
In the meantime, Ria goes to the sex club and interviews an escort, Melissa, whose genuine smile reveals the congressman was a regular customer, but their relationship wasn't sexual. However, reports of the congressman's behavior are now all over the TV news.
Cal's staff finds photos of the dead teacher arguing with someone in a car. When Cal asks the principal who owns the car, his suddenly cold handshake betrays his fear -- he knows, but it's not him.
The congressman privately explains that he's been seeing Melissa because she's the daughter he'd given up for adoption more than 20 years ago. But she doesn't know this, and to protect her future reputation, he'll take the fall.
Turns out the mystery car belongs to Jaquelin, who swears she didn't kill the teacher, but won't say who did -- until Gillian interrupts the interrogation by handing Cal a note saying the boy in custody just hung himself.
Jaquelin then reveals the principal got her pregnant. And when the teacher discovered this, the principal -- afraid she'd report them-- killed her and tried to frame the boy. The principal gets led away in handcuffs. (Yes, Cal used a lie to determine the truth.)
As for the DNC, they discuss the subtle differences between lies, claiming it's the intent that matters.
Back at the office, Cal notices that Gillian's husband is lying to her, but says nothing. As he heads home, he passes one person after another who's busy lying, whether from kindness, to make themselves look better, or to continue an extramarital affair.
