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DVD Reviews
 Eating Out
Finally, a film for people who watch pornos for the acting
and dialogue! Eating Out, writer/director Q. Allan Brocka's
tasteless, laugh-free gay rom-com about a guy playing gay
to get a girl (no, really), plays like an adult film, but
with the money shots missing. Reviewing this in July with
five months left in the year and a new Michael Bay film currently
in theaters, it's perhaps premature to call Eating Out the
year's worst film. One thing, though, is certain--it's the
smarmiest comedy in recent memory. While one expects lackluster
tech credits with a low budget, there's no excuse for the
poor writing and directing. The actors deliver their lines
as if its the first table read of the script. They look stranded
and embarrassed. They have reason to be and so does Brocka.
Honestly, comparing Eating Out to a porno is a disservice
to adult cinema. --Jeremy Kinser
 The Mary Tyler Moore Show, The Complete Second Season
There's something about Mary. If any series can be considered
a serious challenger to I Love Lucy's stronghold on the greatest
sitcom of all time crown, it's surely The Mary Tyler Moore
Show. Considered by many to be the blueprint for workplace
sitcoms like Cheers and Taxi, the classic series followed
single girl in the twin-cities Mary Richards who co-wrote
the evening news at WJM-TV in Minneapolis. A sterling cast
including Moore, Ed Asner, Valerie Harper, Ted Knight and
the inimitable Cloris Leachman wring the terrific writing
for all its worth. All 24 episodes are included on The Mary
Tyler Moore Show Season Two DVD and there's not a dud among
them. Bonus features include select episode commentaries,
the documentary "8 Characters in Search of a Sitcom,"
in which the actors discuss the characters they immortalized,
clips from the 1972 Emmy Awards with speeches from winners
Asner and Harper, a karaoke track for the show's hopeful
theme song, and a vintage Mad magazine parody. --Jeremy Kinser
 Remington Steele, Season One
Before he was bedding Bond girls, Pierce Brosnan played
the suave titular character in the romantic adventure comedy
series, Remington Steele. Laura Holt (Stephanie Zimbalist)
opens a detective agency, but gets no business until she
creates a fictitious male boss--Steele. Problem is, he doesn't
exist until an anonymous man and sophisticated jewel thief
(Brosnan) comes in to lay claim to Steele's identity É and
Laura's heart. The romantic sparks fly. Moonlighting creator
Gordon Glenn Caron was a supervising producer on early Steele
episodes, and his flavor is present: hints of romance and
whimsy and double entendres afoot. But it's the two leads
that engage viewers with genuine chemistry (so overlook the Ô80s-style
action that's pretty unsophisticated by today's standards).
Watch for before-they-were-stars guest spots by then-unknowns
like Sharon Stone, Paul Reiser, and Annie Potts. Early episodes
on the DVD set feature commentary by series creators and
writers. --By Michael Wood
 When Billie Beat Bobby
The much-hyped landmark 1973 tennis match between Wimbledon
champs Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs is documented in
the 2001 telefilm When Billie Beat Bobby. While the film's
title is a spoiler, it's the journey to get to the face off
at the Houston Astrodome that's such breezy entertainment
in the talented hands of out writer/director Jane Anderson.
Dubbed the ÒBattle of the SexesÓ in a time
when, a title card informs us, feminism was still considered
a dirty word, the pre-out King defeated chauvinist (and decades
older) Riggs while the world watched. Holly Hunter, peerless
at playing plucky determination, is ideally cast as King
and Ron Silver is fine as the blustery Riggs. Perfect period
atmosphere and a spot-on turn by Fred Willard as Howard Cosell
only add to the fun. --Jeremy Kinser
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