In & Out 

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When Matt Dillon accepts the Oscar (already a suspension of belief, right?) he inadvertently "outs" his drama teacher Kevin Kline, who not only is in the closet, but is about to get married to Joan Cusack. This sets his small Indiana town through a firestorm of gossip, and Kline finds himself fighting for his job, his girl and his manhood. Never knowing what it really wants to be, Frank Oz's movie ends up as a pleasing mixture of it all. A Farce in the beginning (the "scenes" from Matt Dillon's Oscar-winning performance are hilariously terrible), a Physical Comedy in the middle (Kline does a fantastic disco sequence while trying to establish his manliness via cassette tapes), and a Weepy Drama at the end (complete with a "Spartacus"-like finish!), it's an emotionally confusing journey, but a fun one nonetheless. Tom Selleck is great as the gay journalist for an "Entertainment Tonight"-style show who tempts Kline to the other side. And Joan Cusack... I mean, come on. "Sixteen Candles"? "Working Girl"? "Men Don't Leave"? Can somebody please give this woman the Oscar before I die?

—Ian Williams

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