DINNER AND A MOVIE A film review by Steve Rhodes Copyright 2001 Steve Rhodes RATING (0 TO ****): ***
In writer/director Lisa Kors's DINNER AND A MOVIE, Katie Semelhack (Marianne Hagan) has great plans for her 9 part documentary on Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn. A terribly unsuccessful but determined 31-year-old redhead, she just needs funding. Since her father, played wonderfully by the late Paul Bartel (EATING RAOUL) in his last picture, is trying to get her to pay back her student loan from him, she can't turn to him for money. Instead she looks to the local Pittsfield, Massachusetts PBS station for her backing.
As luck would have it, PBS producer Arlene (Barbara Gulan) is looking for a documentarian, only she wants this person to make a reality based show on dating to be called "Dinner and a Movie." Arlene describes it as, "a scorching exposé of the local dating scene." Still not over the breakup of her last relationship -- 3 years ago! -- Katie thinks that she is the last person who should be picked for this assignment, but she really needs the cash and reluctantly agrees.
For the male subject, Arlene thinks she has just the right hunk in mind with Jed (Dave Gibbs), who turns out to be a loquacious guy with an oversized ego. Katie can't stand Jed and neither can her cameraman, Spider (Mike Dooly). Spider is an old friend of Katie's who is clearly still sweet on her. As Jed turns off one woman after another on a series of disastrous dates, Katie, of course, begins to get sweet on him, which makes for a cute love triangle among Katie, Jed and Spider. Turning to psychological textbooks with articles like "Corralling the Marlboro Man," she tries to change Jed's personality so that some woman will finally like him.
The brightly written script got lots of laughs from our audience. Everyone will have their favorite parts in this very entertaining film, but mine comes when Jed sings Emily Dickinson poems to the tune from Gilligan's Island. Jed claims that all of her poems can be sung to the tune. I believe him.
DINNER AND A MOVIE runs a fast and funny 1:25. It is not rated but would probably be PG. It has nothing to offend anyone of any age although one would probably have to be at least 9 to be interested in the material.
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