The Film Pie

Look no further as we have already have the best film of 2001 in Dude, Where’s My Car? I was touched by its drama and surprised by the intelligent level of its comedy. How the Academy could overlook the film at this year's Oscars astounds me. First Jim Carrey was snubbed, then Billy Elliot, and now this. Serious changes need to be made to the Academy's judging criteria if they wish to be taken seriously (especially in light of the recent Gladiator triumph).

Tell me if you've been through a similar situation. Jesse (Kutcher) and Chester (Scott) wake up one morning and cannot remember a single moment from the night before - they must have gotten so "wasted". Their girlfriends call winging about how their house has been trashed and they'd better be over there soon with their anniversary gifts or else. Sounds simple enough but when they open the front door, Jesse's car is strangely missing and the question is asked - dude, where's my car?

The next hour sees them fit the pieces together and I won't spoil the many surprises for fear of ruining this cinematic masterpiece. The complex political and ethical issues it deals with will put it on the curriculum of English departments across the country. It will be spoken about, studied and analysed for decades to come.

Television director Danny Leiner has broadened his horizons and is now illustrating his immense talent on a bigger screen. One can expect 20th Century Fox and the world's other leading film studios to be flooding him with millions of dollars to produce their finest scripts. And just where has writer Philip Stark come from? His brilliant screenplay must have required years of research to capture the depth he does of its characters.

Speaking of the cast, That 70's Show's Ashton Kutcher and American Pie's Seann William Scott will blow you away with their performances. Look out Tom Hanks and Tom Cruise, there's some new competition on the block. I've heard there's an intense bidding war between Steven Spielberg and Martin Scorsese to secure their services for upcoming projects.

Dude, Where’s My Car? shows that with each day, we are getting closer to achieving perfection of the craft. I'm sure I'll be suffering from post-film depression for days as I yearn to see it again and appreciate all that I missed from the first viewing. Disregard Almost Famous. Forget Traffic. Ignore Cast Away. This is as good as it gets.

Now that's sarcasm!