Further proof that the phrase "Gen-X comedy" is an oxymoron, Dish Dogs stars Sean Astin and Matthew Lillard as self-proclaimed "philosopher-warriors" who view their lives of menial labor and dorm-level philosophizing as rebellious blows against bourgeois conformity. Astin plays the more serious (and therefore more unbearable) of the two, a glum would-be deep thinker who prides himself on his ability to refuse the advances of beautiful women. Of course, as a chubby, dour, pretentious dishwasher, beating back gorgeous members of the opposite sex should be the least of Astin's problems, but that doesn't stop him from treating prospective mates like vermin. While groovy surfer-dude Lillard—in a performance that seems to pay homage to Pauly Shore—considers abandoning the pair's vague ideals for a spot as a manager in the food industry, Astin finds himself falling in love, a process that causes him to re-examine his existence. The object of Astin's reluctant affection is Confucius-quoting stripper Shannon Elizabeth (Scary Movie, American Pie), a ridiculously implausible male fantasy who finds Astin's glum self-absorption irresistible and asks nothing of him except that he never abandon his earth-shattering philosophical pursuits. Gen-X comedies are generally rife with loathsome, self-absorbed protagonists, but even in a genre filled with slap-worthy antiheroes, Astin stands out as grating and unlikable, and he's more than matched by the mannequin-like Elizabeth, whose performance heads steadily downhill from the moment she opens her mouth. Only Brian Dennehy as Astin's Nietzsche-loving mentor emerges unscathed, despite at one point officiating over a wedding ceremony conducted entirely in surfer slang and New Age psychobabble. Funny only when it attempts to be serious (as when Astin tearfully tells pistol-packing lap-dancer Elizabeth that his "existential code" prevents him from ever being with her while dewy-eyed strip-club employee Richard Moll looks on), Dish Dogs should, but sadly won't, kill off the angst-ridden Gen-X comedy once and for all.