Am i the only one who thinks........Average?

While it is a pity that the story wasn't told with more visual finesse, this is trivial compared to our real-world problems. It takes a good movie to put that into perspective.

Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Eat (2001) ** (out of 4) Good tastes has never been mentioned in a Plympton film and that continues with this weird one. The action takes place inside an Italian restaurant where various people show up to eat. I can't say I enjoyed this short because I simply didn't laugh enough but even though the laughs were short I must admit that the entire film is so strange and surreal that it's hard not to recommend it on some levels. The people that show up in the restaurant range from a lonely man who pretends his pasta is a woman, kids fighting and we even get a vomit scene that will have many hitting the stop button on their remotes. Again, I didn't find anything here funny but at the same time there's such a strange atmosphere that you can't help but be somewhat entertained by what you're seeing. There's a certain darkness to the movie that makes it rather original even if you can't enjoy what jokes are here.

While most people who go on IMDb have probably seen a bit of Bill Plympton's strange cartoons (such as with the old car insurance ads from the 1990s and early 2000s), he certainly is not a mainstream animator. His bizarre sense of humor and unique colored pencil look is something I love, but this particular film is harder for the average person to love. It made me laugh out loud repeatedly, while my oldest daughter sat there with her face covered during much of "Eat"--it's certainly NOT a film for all tastes.The entire film consists of action that occurs inside a restaurant. One guy is lonely and is pretending his pasta is a lady (don't ask), a guy is out with a woman who talks non-stop, some kids start having a fight that goes to AMAZING heights and there is a choking/vomiting scene that will certainly put many off---though I laughed as the guy vomited like a geyser! The entire film is very surreal and strange and is just something you have to see to appreciate...and I did.

Another gem from Bill Plympton. His legions of regular fans won't be disappointed and perhaps it will even recruit some new ones, since the end is very reminiscent of Monty Python's "Just one thin mint?" sketch.This humorous short reminds me of when I served time behind a menu and a tray. You get kind of numb to all sorts of gross eating habits of people, otherwise you wouldn't survive your shift let alone the week till your next paycheck. This film brings it all back: the weird-o single diner; the annoying couple, complete with the man ordering for the girl; the family that brought the obnoxious, messy brats along. The benefit of this film is that I don't have to serve these people, but can just commiserate with the poor waitress who does. Of course, what do you want from a restaurant whose name translates to "House of Eats"?I think you can pick this up over at www.Filmporium.com They include the Academy-Award winning "Ryan" and Chris Hinton's frenetic short "Flux" in the five dollar DVD.

E-Gads! that is what we need, a "Womyn's Studies" major from Sarah Lawrence giving her take on a Bill Plympton short. If this one upset you by being politically incorrect, do yourself a favor and don't watch any others, especially the early ones. As for Eat, this was the first Plympton cartoon I've noticed where the animation (especially the backgrounds) was a lot cleaner than usual Plympton fare. It was almost distracting NOT to have "dancing lines" on everything in the frame! Very good plot, and the kids section was very well done. Not one of his best, but still a very entertaining 10 minutes or so.