ANALYZE THIS
A movie review by Joe Barlow
(c) Copyright 1999
STARRING: Robert De Niro, Billy Crystal, Lisa Kudrow DIRECTOR: Harold Ramis WRITERS: Peter Tolan, Harold Ramis, Ken Lonergan RATED: R RELEASED: 1999
RATING: *** 1/2 (out of a possible ****)
Paul Vitti (Robert De Niro) has a problem: although he's one of the most feared and powerful gangsters in the country, he's lost his passion for his work. Things aren't as simple as they once were ("We gotta change with the times," states an advisor. "What, are we gonna get a web site?" sneers Vitti in reply). But there are other reason for the boss's recent distaste for violence: having just witnessed the murder of his best friend, Vitti is so torn with stress and tension that he now bursts into tears at the slightest provacation.
The members of Vitti's "family" are concerned: if word gets out that their boss is turning into a quivering crybaby, their organization will lose prestige and power. Hoping to reclaim his composure and save his career, the boss seeks the help of an unwitting psychiatrist, Dr. Ben Sobol (Billy Crystal). Sobol wants nothing to do with the infamous Vitti, but the gangster won't take "no" for an answer. Soon the two men are working through the complex issues which have resulted in Vitti's breakdown.
Harold Ramis's "Analyze This" could just as easily be called "There's Something About Gangsters." Funny and clever, the film gathers up the entire "Untouchables" genre and shakes it vigorously. The jokes are sly, revolving more around verbal gags than we expect from an action-film spoof, though the humor never once descends to the level of stupidity which earmarked lesser mobster parodies, such as "Mafia!" It is, quite simply, the most unabashedly funny movie I've seen since last autumn's "Rush Hour," with Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker.
The interplay between Crystal and De Niro is well developed: their psychiatric sessions skip by like a live-action episode of Comedy Central's "Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist," including a great scene in which Sobel tries to explain Oedipel complexes to Vitti. Sobol also challenges Vitti's adulterous habits:
SOBOL: "Why do you feel the need to cheat on your
wife?"
VITTI: "Because I can do things with my girlfriend
that I can't do with her."
SOBOL: "Why can't you do them with her?"
VITTI: "Are you crazy? She kisses my kids with that
mouth!"
We are given ample insight into Vitti's personality, witnessing both his crumbling power and growing insecurity with himself. De Niro makes Vitti real to us: he may be a hardened criminal, but he's also a loving father (observe how he casually gathers up his kids' wildly strewn Disney videos before making his escape in one crucial scene). It's a clever directorial touch from Ramis, and it adds a subtle degree of characterization.
Much of the film reminds me of "What About Bob?", the Bill Murray/Richard Dreyfuss psychiatric comedy in which a clingy patient pushes his psychiatrist to the limit. The same thing happens in "Analyze This," as Vitti demands more and more of Sobol's time, much to the chagrin of the doctor's fiancee', Laura (a spunky Lisa Kudrow, fresh from her success as Lucia in "The Opposite of Sex").
Only two minor items mar the film: (a) the Billy Crystal character finds himself forced to attend a Mob meeting for reasons that struck me as thoroughly unbelievable, and (b) the story culminates in a yawn-inducing shoot-out with a rival "family." I was hoping for a more original resolution to the movie, as the film sparkles with energy and wit for the rest of its duration.
These are not major flaws, however, and won't stop me from unhesitatingly recommending "Analyze This," the best comedy to emerge so far in 1999. Great acting, great directing, great writing, and a cameo by Tony Bennett? Oh man, I am *so* there.
E-Mail: jbarlow@earthling.net Joe Barlow on Film: http://www.ipass.net/~jbarlow/film.htm
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