Rating: 
Summary: A CULT CLASSIC...
Review: One of the funniest films of the 80's is Paul Bartel's "Eating Raoul" starring Bartel and cult actress Mary Woronov as Paul and Mary Bland, an old-fashioned "straight" couple with dreams of owning their own restaurant. Paul is a wine connoisseur working at a liquor store in a bad neighborhood and Mary's a dietician working in an LA hospital. They are bewildered and disgusted by their dead end jobs, crime and the amount of sexual deviants piling into their apartment building. They also don't have enough money to buy the choice property they've found for their dream restaurant. Paul loses his job and things really start to look bleak. But optimistic Mary has high hopes and these come to fruition when they kill a "swinger" with a frying pan who tries to attack Mary and find he has a lot of cash on him. Soon , they're in business thanks to a sexy add in a swinger's trade paper...luring "swingers" to their apartment with fake set ups, whacking them with the frying pan and rolling their pockets. Things are looking good until they meet Raoul, a shyster locksmith with an agenda of his own, a dog food connection...and an attraction for Mary. "Eating Raoul" manages to poke fun at everything and remain consistently entertaining evry time you watch it. The cast is energetic and funny and full of familiar faces: Edie McClurg, Hamilton Camp and many others. Susan Saigler as Doris the Dominatrix is especially funny. The Bland apartment is a delightful nightmare of "fabulous fifties' furniture" and other kitsch. The DVD looks good and Mary Woronov's incredibly long and tawny legs seem to fill up the screen. She's sexy yet the kind of girl you'd like to know. She's a thinking man's sex symbol and an excellent comic rolled into one. "Eating Raoul" may be this underrated and underused actress' finest hour. So for anyone who hasn't seen this, it's a rare ode to everything tacky and a very funny film. Enjoy and Bon Appetit!
Rating:
Summary: A Great Movie
Review: This is one of those movies that is enjoyable no matter how many times you watch it. Eating Raoul is Paul Bartel's second greatest film. Loaded with humor and fast paced it should not be missed by anyone. Paul Bartel's Best movie is 1972s Private Parts but this one is a very close second. I am also a Star Trek fan and are always on the lookout for early roles of Star Trek players, this one offers Robert Beltran (Chakotay of Star Trek Voyager) in the title role as Raoul and he played the part well.
Rating: 
Summary: Love the movie, but could have been a better DVD.
Review: I have waited long for the release of Eating Raoul for years to come to DVD. Now that its here, I have forgotten what a great and funny film it actually is. However, I wasn't expecting much as far as the DVD transfer is concerned (since I first saw it on a deteriorated VHS tape I rented and I would have liked anything even slightly better)but like the other reviewers stated, I don't think the anamorphic transfer is correct. It seems to look better when you watch it streched to fit a full screen television. The company should have done a better job putting this onto DVD and I could have waited longer for better package, mabye with some spceial feature to go with it. Besides the disapointing DVD, the movie is a comedy satire classic and its really great.
Rating:
Summary: Must See For Dark Comedy Lovers
Review: I have watched this movie so many times I may have to go buy a new tape because I have worn it out. One of the best comedies I've seen in a long time. The cast is wonderful and for those of you who are Star Trek Voyager fans, Raoul should give you something to think about the next time you see Chakotay. In the best tradition of adult comedy with a slightly twisted side. Lets see Robert Beltran's dimples, goofy sexual situtions and deep belly laughs, what more could you want in a movie!
Rating:
Summary: I Laughed So Hard My Stomach Started To Hurt:
Review: Don't let the odd title of this film mislead you, there's actually nothing in it that's pornographic or even visually in bad taste. This is my all time favorite comedy, though I wish it had a different name for when I try to recommend it to people. I had better not tell you the plot, and you shouldn't read too much about it either, as that might prepare and stabilize you too much. You need to be an innocent target on this one, and the effect on me was all the more extreme because I really wasn't expecting much at the time either. In my case, I nearly fell on the floor because I was laughing so hard, overworking my stomach muscles. That's unusual for me, but I am into black humor and Eating Raoul seemed to just keep coming without mercy. Whatever your condition when you see this you'll find it's in a class all by itself; for it's dark and twisted humor at the highest level.
Rating:
Summary: You need to watch this movie!!
Review: Paul Bartel -- a genius. Mary Woronov - one of the best (and, unfortunately, underappreciated) comedic actresses of our times. This movie pairs the two of them for the first time, and one of the best comic duos of all times had been born. Playing an uptight married couple trapped in a swingers world, watching Bartel and Woronov playing off of each other, and the various characters that come in and out of their lives, shows us why independent movies still shine far above most commercially/studio made movies out there. Get this movie -- better yet, buy this movie and add it to your collection. You won't be disappointed.
Rating: 
Summary: AVOID: Bad Transfer
Review: This long awaited DVD is an incredible disappointment. The major problem that makes this unwatchable is that somehow this movie has been stretched horizontally to fit a widescreen TV. The result makes everything look distorted. I don't know what the original aspect ratio was but this presentation is an abomination. I tried running it on my computer software to manually adjust the picture dimensions. The film does appear to be wider than the standard screen size but not the ratio as presented on this DVD. And to top it off the print appears to be something of the VHS quality (i.e. poor) with color and resolution deficiences. There appears to be a gash in the screen as if the video was shot from a movie screen with a tear in the top middle. The sound appears to have been mono that someone has doctored up by added fake stereo and reverb, then steering the dialog from side to side. Warning: Listening to this may cause sea sickness. Sony should be sued for selling this junk. I probably will be returning my copy. One thing for sure: if you are unable to manually adjust the aspect ratio with a computer, do not buy this. I will be anxiously waiting for this to be remastered - this is a good and funny film.
Rating: 
Summary: I Agree with D. Hartly!
Review: 5 stars for the movie/1 for dvd. Not only does everyone on this dvd look like oompa loompas, the sound is weirdly inconsistent and there are absolutely no extras pertaining to the film(3 trailers for other random movies). DO NOT ENCOURAGE studios to put out shoddy work like this. No matter how much you love this quirky little gem, do not buy this dvd!
Rating:
Summary: "Tasty Comedy of Bad Manners" Gets a Mediocre DVD Treatment
Review: The 1982 low-budget outré comedy EATING RAOUL from writer/director Paul Bartel, who also stars, is an outrageously funny satire that needles such diverse elements of American culture as the concept of The American Dream, high-society status symbols, overzealous capitalism, racial stereotyping, and sexually deviant subgroups. Paul and Mary Bland (Bartel and Mary Woronov) are a conservative, happily married middle-class couple who share an interest in fine wine, good food, and sexual repression. They also share entrepreneurial dreams of opening their own restaurant for epicures. Unfortunately, the Blands are flat broke. Paul is an unemployed wine connoisseur, and Mary only makes a pittance working as a Nurse's Aide. To make matters worse, the building they want to purchase for their restaurant has also caught the eye of another buyer, so if Paul and Mary don't raise the $20,000 down quickly, they'll watch their hopes and dreams turn to dust. Things actually take a turn for the better one evening when a "swinger" mistakes their apartment for the location of a wife-swapping party and elbows his way inside. Assuming that Paul and Mary are the party's hosts, the horny gent tries to put the make on Mary, and in a passionate, knee-jerk response, Paul beans the guy with a frying pan and kills him. Examining the body, the two discover hundreds of dollars in cash. Surmising that all swingers must carry large sums of money, Paul and Mary employ the personal ads to lure horny men to their apartment, after which they off 'em, take their money, then dispose of the bodies in their apartment building's communal trash compactor. Now their dream finally seems to be within their grasp. Enter the titular Raoul (Robert Beltran, later a regular on TV's STAR TREK: VOYAGER). A two-bit con artist and thief, Raoul stumbles upon the Blands' murder-for-money scheme and demands a piece of the action. Oddly, he doesn't want any of the victims' money; he only wants the cadavers. It seems he knows where he can sell 'em, and he makes so much from each sale, in fact, that he offers to share HIS earnings with the Blands. At first, the arrangement with Raoul works well, and the Blands are pretty close to having that down payment. But when Raoul decides that he also wants a share of MARY, it's up to Paul to devise a way to remove the small-time grifter from the picture without losing his wife or endangering their culinary aspirations. Robert Beltran, in the eponymous role, marks his first major film appearance with EATING RAOUL. Although his part is obviously a satirical caricature of Anglo misperceptions and misconceptions about Hispanic and Latin folks, Beltran creates a remarkable portrait of the sleazy, opportunistic Raoul and avoids delivering a mere parody. Pretty, quirky Mary Woronov--once a favorite of artist/filmmaker Andy Warhol during the 1960s--is a pure delight in the role of Mary Bland. She portrays Mary with just the right mix of restraint and flakiness, being very careful not to take the character too far over the top and risk losing audience sympathy. While not curvaceous or large-bosomed like the stereotypical porn queen, Woronov has a subtle, natural sexuality that makes her few nude scenes in EATING RAOUL very sensuous and erotic. Heterosexual male viewers have no problem understanding why all the men in the film desire Mary. Writer/director Paul Bartel is perfect as the pitiful, lethargic pseudo-intellectual Paul Bland. One would never expect a wimp like Paul Bland to murder somebody, not even in defense of his wife, which makes it all the funnier when Paul develops an indignant pugnacity and DOES start whacking the victims. A talented comic thespian, Bartel pulls this all off with a straight face and avoids pushing it to the point of camp. In addition to the wonderful performances of the three principals, there are also some notable cameo appearances. Comedy writer Buck Henry--known to most viewers as a writer/co-creator of TV's classic sitcom GET SMART--appears as a slimy bank officer appropriately named Mr. Leech. Ed Begley, Jr., shows up as a wannabe hippie; improv great Edie McClurg can be seen hamming it up at a wife-swapping party; prolific character actor Allan Rich has a bit as a gent with a Nazi fetish; and director John Landis makes a very brief (and uncredited) appearance at a sex party. Yes, EATING RAOUL jumps back and forth across the line that divides mainstream comedy from avant-garde satire, especially by the standards of the era in which it was originally released. But it's difficult to dislike this sardonic, satirical, low-budget dark comedy. In spite of the Blands' murderous exploitation of unwary members of the "swinging" subculture, viewers tend to identify with the couple and feel an inexplicable desire to see them realize their epicurial dream. And this emotional ambivalence seems to make the film all the more humorous and enjoyable. In a way, perhaps, it's even cathartic. The Columbia/Tri-Star DVD release of this delightful satire is a bit disappointing. Though offered in an anamorphic widescreen format, the digital transfer has many noticeable flaws. There are a few times when the image warbles or shakes (especially perceptible on a sizable HDTV monitor), and throughout the movie there are spots where the image seems excessively blurry. There are also numerous scratches, hairs, and filmic artifacts. Considering that EATING RAOUL has attained the status of cult classic, the flick deserves a higher-quality DVD release. Also, it would've been nice if the disc had included some bonus material, like maybe a commentary track featuring Mary Woronov and Robert Beltran. The bottom line: The film EATING RAOUL deserves 5 stars; the DVD treatment only 3. The 4-star rating, then, is the average of the two. Longtime fans of the flick will want a copy for their DVD collections, as the disc IS better than the previously released VHS versions. But uninitiated viewers should wait for a higher-quality DVD release.
Rating:
Summary: Cult classic absolutely ruined by botched DVD transfer.
Review: I have a dream. I have a dream that, one day, I will not have to sadly report that yet another DVD technican on crack has butchered a five-star movie. As much as I love Paul Bartel's "Eating Raoul", I have already returned my copy for a full refund, and here is why: Columbia/TriStar (a major film company who should know better) took a movie that was NOT shot in widescreen, and s-t-r-e-t-c-h-e-d the image without properly matting it. As a result, tall and leggy Mary Waranov looks about three feet tall (and just as wide) because of the horizontal compression. My fellow reviewer who timidly stated that there is a "slight" problem with the picture is being much too kind and forgiving. The movie is NOT WATCHABLE and this transfer is NOT ACCEPTABLE to anyone who has even an inkling about proper screen ratios. In case you think I'm the one on crack, I did an "A/B" comparison with my s-vhs full screen copy taped from cable, and it is far SUPERIOR to the DVD version! When are film studios going to get over this presumption that every film ever released has to be in "widescreen", even when it was not the director's oriignal intent (witness the DVD version of Stanley Kubrick's "The Shining"-it is available in "Full Screen" only, because THERE ARE SOME FILMS THAT MORE ACCURATELY RETAIN THIER ORIGINAL ASPECT IN FULL SCREEN PRESENTATION!!) This is also a shameful insult to the memory of the late great Paul Bartel, whom I am sure would not have allowed this, had he still been alive to supervise the DVD transfer. Buyer beware.
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