Crazy Legs Conti: Zen and the Art of Competitive Eating

Only New York City could produce an eccentric like Crazy Legs Conti, a man utterly without ambition (that is, ambition as conventionally defined) who is dedicated to mostly off-the-beaten-career-track pastimes. As directors Chris Kenneally and Danielle Franco point out in this colorful profile, Crazy Legs doesn't really have a calling: he makes money as an occasional window washer, nude model, and sperm donor. But after breaking the world record for eating oysters, Conti decides to take up professional eating seriously. To be the best, of course, you have to beat the best, and Crazy Legs sets his sights on legendary Japanese gobbler Takeru Kobayashi for a showdown at the annual hot-dog eating contest at Nathan's Famous Restaurant in Coney Island. Now that Conti has found the ambition, does he have the stomach for it? Like its subject, this engaging documentary affects a breezy style and refuses to take itself seriously—which, no doubt, is why it's so darn entertaining. DVD extras include an audio commentary with Conti and the filmmakers, and a handful of featurettes. Recommended. Aud: P. (E. Hulse)