20 Dates

Other than perhaps Eric Schaeffer, I cannot think of a more appalling or less appealing leading man than Myles Berkowitz, the writer/director of this obnoxious vanity project, a slick, suspect documentary that combines, he says, his two biggest failures, his personal and professional life. Reeling from a divorce, he gets the idea to film himself going out on 20 dates, to show--he claims--the difference between how love is portrayed in the movies and how real people fall in love. His very first date, though, sees right through him. "This is all about you," she chastises. Berkowitz is, as one friend states, "not for everyone...an acquired taste." What an understatement. Though he casts himself as an underdog aspiring filmmaker who can't get past the studio gates, any rooting interest in him dissipates the moment he opens his mouth. He records several unwitting and understandably appalled women with a hidden camera (perhaps he can hook up with Linda Tripp). Among his ideas of a good date: crashing a wedding, or making casual remarks at a restaurant that pasta sauce gives him diarrhea. Incredibly, it was recently reported that he is engaged to one of the women he met in the film. Truth is indeed stranger than fiction. Not recommended. For insights into modern relationships, I urge you instead to check out Ross McElwee's infinitely superior epic documentary, Sherman's March. (K. Lee Benson)