"My Cousin Vinny" is an engaging, funny movie that if nothing else shows us just how talented Joe Pesci and Marisa Tomei are. It's a superb showcase. The movie itself is an interesting case in how an amazing coincidence could serve to screw over two basically innocent guys. It would seem at first to be basically a one joke comedy - take an Italian American and drop him into the deep South - but it's developed in an entertaining way and has some real heart and charm going for it - although it does go on a bit long.
Pesci stars in the tailor-made role of Vinny Gambini, a so-called "lawyer" who needed six tries in order to pass the bar exam. He's thrust into the unlikely position of defending his college age cousin Bill (Ralph Macchio) when Bill and his buddy Stan (Mitchell Whitfield) are accused of murdering the clerk at a convenience store. With his fiancée Mona Lisa Vito (a radiant Tomei) in tow, Vinny finds adjusting to life in the South - and adhering to the strict procedures of its courts - to be a struggle.
Pesci and the Oscar winning Tomei are lots of fun to watch, and have fine chemistry with each other. They receive fine support from a well chosen bunch of actors. Macchio and Whitfield don't have much to do once Pesci enters the picture, but prove to be reasonably likable. (Macchios' character Bill, however, isn't too bright.) Top notch character actors Lane Smith (as the prosecutor), Austin Pendleton (as a stuttering public defender), Maury Chaykin, James Rebhorn, and Raynor Scheine (as witnesses), and Bruce McGill (as the sheriff) all do fine work. Fred Gwynne has some great moments as the stern, disapproving judge who doesn't care for Vinnys' way of doing things.
Serious at times but never too, too serious, "My Cousin Vinny" knows how to end big, and send us away with smiles on our faces. It's worth noting that Jonathan Lynn, the director, is British, adding to the overall sense of the outsider perspective.
Seven out of 10.
Pesci stars in the tailor-made role of Vinny Gambini, a so-called "lawyer" who needed six tries in order to pass the bar exam. He's thrust into the unlikely position of defending his college age cousin Bill (Ralph Macchio) when Bill and his buddy Stan (Mitchell Whitfield) are accused of murdering the clerk at a convenience store. With his fiancée Mona Lisa Vito (a radiant Tomei) in tow, Vinny finds adjusting to life in the South - and adhering to the strict procedures of its courts - to be a struggle.
Pesci and the Oscar winning Tomei are lots of fun to watch, and have fine chemistry with each other. They receive fine support from a well chosen bunch of actors. Macchio and Whitfield don't have much to do once Pesci enters the picture, but prove to be reasonably likable. (Macchios' character Bill, however, isn't too bright.) Top notch character actors Lane Smith (as the prosecutor), Austin Pendleton (as a stuttering public defender), Maury Chaykin, James Rebhorn, and Raynor Scheine (as witnesses), and Bruce McGill (as the sheriff) all do fine work. Fred Gwynne has some great moments as the stern, disapproving judge who doesn't care for Vinnys' way of doing things.
Serious at times but never too, too serious, "My Cousin Vinny" knows how to end big, and send us away with smiles on our faces. It's worth noting that Jonathan Lynn, the director, is British, adding to the overall sense of the outsider perspective.
Seven out of 10.