Essen gehen

I don't know why I keep watching gay-themed movies when I hardly ever enjoy them - because they're mostly cheaply made with inexperienced actors, and corny or predictable.

'Eating Out' is a no brain cells required movie with a plot as simple as can be, which is maybe a good thing. It's sole purpose is to be sexy - or at least, trying to be. The film revolves around Caleb (Scott Lunsford) who gets dumped by his girlfriend, Tiffani. (By the way, all attempts to make Caleb appear straight, fails). Caleb then falls for Gwen (Emily Brooke Hands), but the only way to get close to her, is to pretend he is gay (!!!). Gwen believes him, and sets him up with her best (gay) friend, Marc (Ryan Carnes). Meantime Caleb's roommate, Kyle (Jim Verraros) - who is gay - is madly in love with Marc.

We once again have a gay-themed movie with a confused straight guy... oh, enough already, they're all so similar! The girls in the movie are overbearing and annoying - so much so that I wouldn't blame guys for turning gay!! The female actors over-acted to the point where it became cringe worthy. The male actors, thankfully, were much better and more believable. The dialogue had some funny moments, but were mostly forced and rather crude instead of actually funny.

The film's draw card is the hunky guys with their great bodies - especially well endowed Scott Lunsford who gives us a full frontal peek. This is the type of movie where you have to go in expecting very little, and might find it entertaining. I must admit it wasn't all that bad.

This film is about a man who pretends to be gay and has a date with a gay guy, in order to get the girl he wants.

"Eating Out" is a low budget comedy, but it has all the right ingredients to be an entertaining film. I like the story as it is a refreshing change from all the standard romantic comedy. It has adult themes and at times stretches on for a bit too long, but these scenes do not feel out of place. There is a lot of positivity and social support for the main characters too, which is uplifting and empowering.

"Eating Out" is fun, lighthearted and makes people happy. That's all that matters for a comedy.

It's so bad that I destroyed the DVDs after watching it ! And yes, I forced myself to watch and listen to it until the end, because I never would condemn something without seeing it. No acting to speak of, no script, nothing ! After this, not only will I avoid this director and actors (or so called !)like the pest at any time, but I won't rely on IMDb ratings because this is really in the top 5 worst things I have seen in my life ! I would not even call it a film. If you want a good gay film, watch Queer as Folks (UK or US), beautiful things, Maurice, my beautiful launderette... (there is no shortage of them !).... but not this kind of c...p !!!

EATING OUT is a good looking film. It's young stars are hunky, sexy guys who look great on camera and turn in credible performances. The gal pals are a gay man's fantasia, however - as one character says "a reality show without the camera crew". The film manages to neatly hide it's low budget roots. After a few establishing shots of Tuscon, we forget the rest of the film is basically house-bound. The centerpiece of EATING OUT (the title has nothing to do with finding a good restaurant) is a phone sex scene that manages to be quite sexy despite it's extended length. The film's biggest disappointment (and disservice) is it's idiotic dialogue. Characters speak in a "Clueless" slang that is both annoying and unreal. The fatuous dialogue turns the likable cast superficial. It might be cute to occasionally say 'parfait' for 'perfect' and 'Fabio' for 'fabulous' but when every line contains something like this, it gets annoying. There are also a lot of 'jokes' and 'one liners' (a truly appalling one about being HIV positive) that don't contribute much. If this is Oscar Wilde, he's slumming. Turn off the volume and just watch EATING OUT - then it'll be nearly parfait - maybe even downright Fabio.

At a current tally of 12 reviewers on the 1 - 10 scale above, and with a score close to 9.5 on that scale, I had to come in and give my review, which would place it at a 5.

I caught Eating Out at the London Lesbian Gay Film Festival 2004. The film was OK, it was pretty funny, but it's definitely not up there with the "greatest gay films on the planet". It's predictable, a little offensive in its insular vision of young gay life ("oh, he is so totally hot!") but overall it's an enjoyable if slightly brainless movie to catch when you need to unwind or destress. The audience generally enjoyed the comedy of the film, and 90% of the audience seemed to be laughing in the right places.

I do tend to think a lot of the hoopla over this film comes from the two model-quality leads in Caleb and Marc. However, I think this movie has a modicum of opportunity as a successful small-scale commercial release.

I'd say it's an OK movie, and Q. Allan Brocka may be one to watch, but I much preferred the infamous Legomen sketch of his, and I think that will be far more remembered than this.