ANALYZE THIS (1999) ***1/2 (out of five stars) A Review by Jamey Hughton
Starring-Robert DeNiro, Billy Crystal, Lisa Kudrow, Joe Viterelli and Chazz Palminteri Director-Harold Ramis Rated-14A
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It must be tough to be a mob boss. Just ask Paul Vitti (Robert DeNiro), a man who finds his job as Mafia head to be rather stress inducing. I can believe it, too - one can't even begin to fathom the turmoil he must go through when he's forced to choose between an ice pick, baseball bat or sledgehammer to torture victims with. Suffering from reoccurring panic attacks, Paul decides he needs to consult some professional help.
And who better than Billy Crystal. After appearing in bottom-of-the-barrel flops, Father's Day and My Giant, Crystal finally finds a reliable costar and some very promising material here. Playing Vitti's private shrink, the two very different stars strike an unorthodox, but interesting relationship that carries this enjoyable comedy on a steady wave of laughs from start to finish. Casting Robert DeNiro as Paul Vitti is something of an in-joke, I think. Placed in this mobster's shoes, DeNiro gets to spoof characters he himself played in films like The Godfather, Part II and Casino. It's obvious he's having a lot of fun doing so.
The man behind the camera is Harold Ramis, whose credits include Ghostbusters (as writer and star), and his best directing effort, the Bill Murray vehicle, Groundhog Day. Ramis has a knack for drawing laughs because he simply knows what's funny, and here he manages to accentuate the strengths of nearly all the actors. The only character who weakens the payoff is Crystal's bride-to-be (Lisa Kudrow). Playing the same dumbed-down role as she does in Friends, Kudrow is amusing, but doesn't fit into this comedy mold as well as the director may have hoped.
The supporting cast sparkles. Joe Viterelli is hilarious as Jelly, Vitti's pea brained right-hand man, and Chazz Palminteri is a show stopper playing a fellow mobster who's in desperate need of the definition of `closure'. The movie manages to maintain consistent chuckles throughout, putting the emphasis on 3 or 4 really big laughs that will have audiences grasping their sides. The situation is just too cute to resist.
It's unfortunate that the language gets somewhat out of hand. But hey, if you're in the Mafia, using obscenities probably comes naturally. And near the end, seeing Billy Crystal attempt to walk and talk like a mob boss is truly a special treat.
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Jamey Hughton was a 1999 Writing Finalist in the YTV Achievement Awards and writes a Published Weekly Column in The StarPhoenix (Saskatoon, Sk. Canada).
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