Peter Greenaway’s programmatic and schematic 1989 dark comedy about conspicuous consumption isn’t very funny, although it offers a nearly unbroken string of obnoxious verbal abusemisogynist, racist, scatologicalfrom a crook (Michael Gambon) who runs an expensive gourmet restaurant. Similarly, it isn’t very erotic, although it features a great deal of nudity, and there’s also fair amount of unpleasant (if otherwise affectless) violence. The film is mainly set in the canyonlike rooms of the restaurantimmaculately lit and shot by master French cinematographer Sacha Vierny in ‘Scope, with elaborate color coding, extended tracking shots, and a striking neoclassic score by Michael Nyman. Greenaway has suggested that this is supposed to be an attack on Thatcher England, but while his film certainly has the nastiness of satire, it doesn’t have much political focus; petty malice rather than anger is the main bill of fare, with deep-dish notations about food and sex thrown in for spice. 124 min. (JR)