Directed by Ron Howard  "I hope it's better than The Truman
Show," said the woman in line behind me at the publicized "sneak
preview" of EDtv. Afterward, a man in my row declared, "That was
a lot better than The Truman Show." Pretentious high-concept
films like The Truman Show often garner accolades and let down
audiences. EDtv, another film about a man who lives his life on-
camera, isn't my favorite kind of movie, either. It gets caught
between shriveling satire and upbeat family entertainment, and
it runs a half-hour too long. But EDtv has funny stretches and
agreeably loose performances, whereas all The Truman Show gives
us is Jim Carrey under glass. At its best, EDtv suggests that
manufacturers of big-screen sitcoms, who are merely trying to do
a proficient job of entertaining, come closer to the fabric of
American life than artistes who are trying to make a statement.
At its worst, it proves that even a light parody needs a more
astringent point of view than the belief that love conquers all.
Unlike the