Review of The Armstrong Lie (2013) by Matt M — 24 Oct 2013

The exploration of the construction of a lie. The investigative documentarian par excellence of this generation, Alex Gibney, returns shortly after the release of his fearless The Story of WikiLeaks and Mea Maxima Culpa with another gripping and exciting documentary that retains the urgency of unfolding history.

Here, the subject of his documentary is Lance Armstrong, the seven times Tour de France winner who was caught for doping, thus tainting his legacy as sports icon. The interesting aspect is that in 2009, Armstrong's return to the Tour the France after his retirement would have been the subject of another Gibney documentary which would have looked at him in a totally different perspective.

This adds a personal element to the film which makes it a little more personal and hence interesting whilst never taking over the mystery of the plot as it unravels at an exciting pace. Gripping and entertaining, this film is also an interesting behind the scene to a sport tainted renowned for being repeatedly tainted by doping scandals whilst being accessible to an audience that wouldn't be very familiar with the sport.

In short, it seems that Alex Gibney is a trend setter and there is no one better, at least in cinema nowadays, in making the kind of films that he makes and in making them with such an amazing consistency.