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Little White Lie

Play trailer Poster for Little White Lie 2014 1h 5m Documentary Biography Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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80% Tomatometer 5 Reviews 78% Popcornmeter 100+ Ratings
Filmmaker Lacey Schwartz thinks her dark skin and hair are from a Sicilian ancestor. When she uncovers the lie that haunted her parent's marriage, she begins a journey to reconcile her past as she embraces her African-American heritage.
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Little White Lie

Critics Reviews

View All (5) Critics Reviews
Martin Tsai Los Angeles Times Schwartz's first-person narrative proves moving. But given that the film is barely an hour long, one can't help but feel that parts could have been developed more ... Nov 26, 2014 Full Review Ben Kenigsberg New York Times The film is a searing portrait of collective denial - a diagnosis from which Ms. Schwartz doesn't exempt herself. Nov 24, 2014 Full Review Ben Sachs Chicago Reader That story is interesting enough, though Schwartz uses it mainly as a pretext for navel-gazing. Aug 14, 2014 Full Review John Beifuss Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN) Fascinating so long as it focuses on Schwartz's history and the thorny issues of racial identity that accompany it. Rated: 3/4 Mar 23, 2015 Full Review Chris Barsanti PopMatters ...as a journal of personal discovery, 'Little White Lie' is rich and complex, stippled with surprising revelations. Rated: 6/10 Nov 18, 2014 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (9) audience reviews
Solange G It was good, but in the end, I felt a little bit unsatisfied. Maybe it needed to be a bit longer and it could have gone a bit deeper. I was interested in her biological father's ancestry. Worth the watch thought! Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 10/29/23 Full Review Audience Member Sad for Lacy bc she lived with 2 ppl who were in denial their entire marriage & most of her life, until she forced it out of them. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 06/29/23 Full Review Georgina E Had a nice message that the black community is welcoming and that there's hope to find "your place" in the world, but the film was slow, repetitive and didn't show anyone in a good light. Lacey seemed angry at everyone for not being ready to talk when she was, blamed her father for a situation out of his control, didn't like the answers people gave. Unfortunately people don't owe us answers, parents can make mistakes too, and one would think Lacey could've chosen a more blended life (to match her own 50/50 ethnicity) by not segregating her "white life and black life". Overall if felt like the director was trying to strong arm the viewer into feeling she was wronged, with emotive scenes and showing family tripping up over her questionings. Otherwise the films seems to show a couple raising a child, loving her in an accepting family, but it just turned out to be not what she wanted her story to be. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 06/22/23 Full Review Audience Member Really well done Documentary that in the first 5 minute I sized up but was wrong and the story telling was excellent, I thought it was a 2 hour doc because Of how wrapped up in the story I was, but it's only 66 minutes and well worth watching. I wish dad felt ok to really talk which would have added length to the film but it's real life. #littlewhitelie #amyschwartz Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/17/23 Full Review Audience Member Riveting. It's amazing how anyone will believe what they want to believe regardless of how ridiculously obvious the truth is. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/29/23 Full Review Audience Member Lacey Schwartz finalizes her therapeutic journey regarding her self-questioned identity into something worth sharing in both a consequential reality of uncovering family secrets and the redemptive struggle, while a celebrative portrait about accepted individuality. (B+) (Full review TBD) Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/17/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Little White Lie

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Movie Info

Synopsis Filmmaker Lacey Schwartz thinks her dark skin and hair are from a Sicilian ancestor. When she uncovers the lie that haunted her parent's marriage, she begins a journey to reconcile her past as she embraces her African-American heritage.
Director
Lacey Schwartz, James Adolphus
Producer
Mehret Mandefro, Lacey Schwartz
Screenwriter
Mehret Mandefro, Lacey Schwartz
Production Co
Truth Aid
Genre
Documentary, Biography, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Streaming)
Jul 26, 2016
Runtime
1h 5m
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