Solid Fun - Nothing More
Rating: 7 of 10 
While it doesn't reach the tragedy and intensity of 'The Truman Show', with which this film often is compared, needless to say why, it nevertheless delivers a both fitting and disturbing image of reality and society, criticizing not only the media but also a society which makes the media the way it is. Without an audience, there would be no television, no movies; without readers, no newspapers, no books; without listeners, no music, no speeches. Blaming the media is the easy part, but it is to a large degree mostly blaming the messenger.
The people being shown in 'Edtv' are normal people, normal in the way that they are common; they are ordinary - without any pejorative meaning applied here to that word. They are people from around the corner, living their normal, daily lives without the luxury of the so-called "high society". People like Ed Pekurny whose life is now being shown on tv, live, from morning to bedtime. He enters a world of lies, of disguise, of fame, of primarily monetary impetuses, is stripped off his privacy - to get his five minutes. He soon is confronted with an ever-changing reality, his publicity being a catalyst for several developments in his life.
'Edtv' is a more comedic approach to the topic of publicity than 'The Truman Show' is, but this is the only topic both movies have in common anyway. There is no point comparing them beyond that, this would do both films a grave injustice. 'Edtv' is a comedy, so its solution lies in the realm of comedy too - and Ellen DeGeneres is brilliant in her role as a tv producer. It is her who keeps both this movie and the tv show, "Edtv", running. Acting in general is a primer in this one, featuring also Martin Landau, Jenna Elfman (Dharma & Greg), Woody Harrelson and Dennis Hopper. Matthew Broderick sort of has to fight for screen time against the rest of the cast, but that's a usual problem when you have that much characters in a movie or in a tv show. But apart from these, from a filmmaking aspect, this one is rather conventional, again owing to the genre of comedy, and the story is that of the French film 'Louis 19, le roi des ondes' (Michel Poulette, 1994). But it still remains a solid movie with great acting and comedy, and quite some indication of depth and insight.
August 22nd, 1999
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