EdTV had the misfortune of being released half a year after The Truman Show entered the zeitgeist and contributed a powerful commentary on the American fixation with entertainment and the illusion of reality. Such lofty cultural criticism and highbrow storytelling are not intrinsic to the method of EdTV , which is not so much a Truman-esque parable as it is an ambitious bit of mainstream popcorn entertainment. It also happens to boast an engaging story, a handful of good insights, and some very funny moments.

Ron Howard's sometimes overly goofy, sometimes uncomfortably weighty, but oftentimes charming comedy tells the story of Ed (Matthew McConaughey), a video store clerk who unwittingly becomes the subject of a 24-hour-a-day broadcast of his life. Ed does not, at first glance, seem to be ideal television material -- he's a laid back dude who scratches his nether regions in the morning and uses a mirror to view the TV while sitting on the toilet. However, once the everyday drama of his life begins to unfurl before the cameras, his stock rises with the viewing public. We are introduced to Ed's eccentric family: his conflicted mother with a checkered past (Sally Kirkland), wheelchair-bound stepfather (Martin Landau), and unmitigated loser of a brother, Ray (Woody Harrelson). The family becomes a breeding ground for drama, as Ed becomes interested in Ray's erstwhile girlfriend Shari (Jenna Elfman) and they begin a tentative relationship, Ed's family becomes fodder for water cooler gossip and pop culture critics, and his long-lost father (Dennis Hopper) suddenly shows up, presumably to cash in on his son's newfound fame. Ed's business angst and family angst collide, and the story sometimes becomes too layered to work seamlessly, but it consistently maintains its central charm.

Performances in the film are universally strong. This film landed at what was likely the high point of McConaughey's Hollywood stardom, and it is still stands as one of his strongest pieces of work. Lord knows McConaughey starred in some ridiculously awful comedies both before and after EdTV , but few films have captured the actor's good ol' boy charm quite like this one. The role is a true movie star vehicle and McConaughey fills it with ease. Elfman is good as the fame-phobic Shari, though the filmmakers strain to make her seem wet-haired, unattractive, and whiny for most of the movie. There is an effortless dynamic among Ed's family circle -- Kirkland and Landau make a great movie old couple, Hopper displays a talent for sly humor, and Harrelson is especially great, playing a loud, brash, blithering rube and milking it for all the laughs it's worth.

The story works best when it focuses on the ins and outs of Ed's personal plight, as he struggles (sometimes unnecessarily, but movies operate on conflict) to balance his rising stardom with the everyday challenge of marinating a new relationship. McConaughey and Elfman develop convincing chemistry, and Harrelson is a very amusing third wheel. The in-film intricacies of television production work pretty well, too, though sometimes we get a few too many shots of the camera crew (and subsequent home viewer one-liners). Complexities of Ed's family situation run deep -- too deep, really, to sustain audience interest beyond the initial surface humor of the family's hillbilly squalor. Howard insists on following through with every last story thread no matter how tertiary, and as a result the film runs just over two hours, far too long for a movie that starts with hick jokes and ends with a penile implant gag.

EdTV is ambitious in its attempt to blend mainly broad humor with some dramatic meditation on the sensationalism of celebrity, but coming courtesy of writers Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel (perpetrators of the schmaltz of Parenthood and the manipulation of Where the Heart Is), the drama rarely rises above the purely sentimental. Nonetheless, Howard's direction is assured, the actors work very well together, and the material, while imperfect, is fun and entertaining throughout. No, it's not The Truman Show, and it never intended to be, but EdTV is solid, entertaining fun.

Aka Ed TV.



...or, the real reason we recommend EdTV.