Not all college students are searching for the library.
At least that’s what we learn in “Tell Me Lies,” a steamy look at a freshman and the man she initially attracts.
Reeling from more than one curveball, Lucy Albright (Grace Van Patten) finds comfort with Stephen DeMarco (Jackson White), a seemingly good guy who reveals little.
Quickly, we learn, he has another woman on the string and doesn’t mind jockeying between them. Commitment? The word isn’t in his vocabulary. We don’t know what prompts this, however, until the Hulu series springs forward. Then, secrets that shrouded his family life somehow find their way into his adulthood.
Directed by Jonathan Levine, “Tell Me Lies” begins at a reunion of sorts, then flashes back, showing what once was and now is.
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At school (one of the loosest schools on record), Lucy seems open to what Stephen is selling, but she has no idea how deceitful he can be. His friends aren’t much better. They hide the details of an accident and try to convince others they’re not addicted to drugs.
Lucy’s posse is equally suspect. They’re mixing it up with some of Stephen’s boys and, soon, the shoes –and shirts – start falling.
While “Tell Me Lies” isn’t as complex as “Normal People,” a fascinating look at similar changes, it does hold interest, particularly since all of the students have plenty of time to dabble in things that don’t require a paper at the end of the term.
When we finally meet Stephen’s mother, plenty comes into focus. She has a way of bringing out the truth. But that truth is also something that hurts her, too.
White is fine in all those well-choreographed dorm room scenes, but he’s best interacting with his family. They’ve got a way of hurting others without really caring. School is merely a way to get disparate people into desperate situations.
When others are pulled into the mix (Edmund Donovan and Natalee Linez are fun additions), this extra-curricular society shows its stripes.
“Tell Me Lies” stacks up like a summer beach read. It’s filled with people you know you wouldn’t like but you don’t mind hanging out with them for a party or two.
Produced by Emma Roberts, it gives all those old “Gossip Girl” and “Pretty Little Liars” fans something new to talk about.
“Tell Me Lies” begins Sept. 7 on Hulu.
