The poster for this Tom Cruise movie about DEA informant Barry Seal says that it is “Based On A True Lie.” There are lies that are true. When a liar asserts what the liar believes to be false, but the liar is mistaken, and the liar asserts what is true, then the lie is a true lie. The liar is still a liar, even if the hearer is not deceived (although the hearer may still be deceived about what the liar believes). This is not what the poster is referring to, however. Presumably, it is referring to a lie (or deception) that was actually told (or perpetrated) by the U.S. government. Interestingly, the movie’s director, Doug Liman, has described the movie as “a fun lie based on a true story.” Strictly speaking, however, a fictional movie cannot be a lie. On why works of fiction cannot be lies, see my “Novels Never Lie.”