Analyze This

Buy This Item Analyze This by Warner Home Video  Available from Amazon  $9.49  on 8-9-2008     Cast Robert De Niro and Billy Crystal together in a film and it should be a sucker's bet as to who's going to be funnier and who's going to give the more nuanced performance. Somehow, though, De Niro walks away with most of the laughs in <I>Analyze This</I>, a buddy action-comedy about a mob boss (De Niro, natch) suffering from panic attacks who makes a nebbishy shrink (Crystal, natch) an offer he can't refuse--actually, it's not really an offer, it's a command. The good doctor is forced to help the gangster get in touch with his feelings. Had the brilliant TV series <I>The Sopranos</I> not underscored how thin and watery and shticky director-cowriter Harold Ramis's approach to such potentially rich material actually is, the movie--a hit in theaters and De Niro's biggest film ever--would seem more fresh and kicky. De Niro's definitely a hoot as the ever milder menace, and Crystal actually concentrates on giving a credible performance opposite the acting legend (alas, he doesn't turn his character's fear of his patient into inspired comedy, as Alan Arkin did in <I>Grosse Pointe Blank</I>). The conclusion devolves into the requisite gunplay, and Chazz Palminteri and Lisa Kudrow are criminally wasted as an opposing mob boss and Crystal's fiancée, respectively, but overall, it's breezy fun. <I>--David Kronke</I> Reader Reviews If you'd like to see and hear Billy Crystal at the top of his game, while Robert De Niro does a terrific parody of some of his previous roles, go no further. This movie has something for everyone, including a very hip score, as well as a surprise appearance by Tony Bennette. Try to beat that combination for some entertainment on a chilly night in front of the television, along with a fire in your fireplace, a glass of Champagne and a bowl of popcorn, shared by the one you love. Tony Horowitz [...]

Analyze This Available from Amazon Price: $9.49 Updated on 8-9-2008.

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