February 14, 2001 -- "The Tao of Steve" is a very funny movie about romance, intellectualism and relationships. The writing in this movie, by Duncan North, Greer Goodman and Jenniphr Goodman, among others, is as smart as anything I've seen in the past year. It is all about the tension between intellectualism and romanticism.

Dex (Donal Logue of "The Patriot"), a fat, charming, brainy slacker, uses his knowledge of philosophy to come up with a technique for scoring with chicks he calls the Tao of Steve. Rule one of the Tao (pronounced DOW) is "Eliminate your desires. If you are out on a date with a girl and you are thinking about getting laid, you're finished. A woman can smell an agenda." He comes up with several other rules too, combining the sayings of Lao-tzu, Heidegger, Groucho Marx and others into a technique for embodying the coolness of Steve McGarrett ("Hawaii Five-O"), Steve Austin ("The Six Million Dollar Man"), or the king of cool, Steve McQueen.

Dex waltzes easily through life until he meets the lovely Syd (Greer Goodman, who also co-wrote the screenplay). She is immune to his cynical techniques. While pursuing her, he forgets all of his Tao of Steve techniques. Soon, he is forced to re-evaluate his life. Dex also becomes a mentor to the younger Dave (played by Kimo Wills of "I Love Trouble"), who begins to take on Dex's persona. Watching Dave, he begins to wonder if the Tao of Steve ought to be about something more than just sexual conquest. The complex relationship between Dex and Syd is a memorable one. This is the best romantic comedy I've seen since "High Fidelity."

In most romantic comedies there is a painfully obvious formula. You know early into the film who is supposed to be romantically paired with whom, but the couple is usually separated by a series of lame plot devices until near the end of the film. The plot devices in this romantic comedy are not lame, they're slick, smart and they're funny. The dialogue is clever and thought-provoking. One subplot involving a camping trip doesn't really relate all that well to the rest of the film, but does provide one of the funniest moments in the movie.

Donal Logue is very good as the title character and Greer Goodman, who looks like Farrah Fawcett, is equally good as the woman he desires. They are ably supported by the rest of the cast. The original music by Joe Delia and Eytan Mirsky is apt, and the cinematography by Teodoro Maniaci seems to capture the location shots in Santa Fe with a bright crispness. First-time director Jenniphr Goodman (who also co-wrote the screenplay) does an excellent job with the material, aided by some innovative editing by Sarah Gartner. The only way you'd know this is not a major studio film is that it doesn't have any major stars in it. As it turns out, major stars are not needed. This film rates a B.

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