My Cousin Vinny (1992)

Two dim-wits from New York (Ralph Macchio and Mitchell Whitfield) become the victims of circumstance in the deep south in this hilarious courtroom farce. Macchio knows that his one hope is the titled character (the priceless Joe Pesci) and his red hot girlfriend (Marisa Tomei in a well-deserved Oscar-winning turn). The two use street smarts to show the small-town folks that the case is not as cut-and-dried as it seems. 4 stars out of 5.

Fmovies: This is the first film I have seen where Pesci is the lead role and he proved to sore beyond what his talents are, he's definitely one of the most under rated actors of all time, I feel like he's Hollywood's hidden secret weapon. :) I had heard a lot about My Cousin Vinny, I know this was the movie that won Marissa's Oscar and not to mention I heard how funny it was. My Cousin Vinny turned into a very intelligent and great comedic story.

It's about two boys who have been accused of murder, with a lot of pressing evidence against them that can get them executed, but one of the boy's cousins, Vinny, is a lawyer, well, just graduated and starting his first six weeks. Not to mention, he's never fought a trial or murder case. Vinny has also brought along his Brooklyn talking fiancée, Mona Lisa Vito. With little experience and getting into a web of lies, Vinny must learn that good arguing is not just what will help, but he also has to learn how to be a lawyer.

Joe and Marissa absolutely steal the show. I think my favorite part was when Mona Lisa was on the stand talking about which cars were involved in the murder case, she just got into a fight with Vinny and she refuses to help him, but she does and he kisses her hand and you can tell they made up, but it's just their looks that are just plain priceless! Everything about this film could make anyone laugh and make them fall in love with Joe Pecsi, he's just so awesome!

9/10

MY COUSIN VINNY is just one of those "feel good" movies delivering some grins that won't wash away. An excellent cast includes Joe Pesci in one of his best roles as a hotshot lawyer. Expect a few unbelievable surprises from the irresistible guy who's smart enough to make one hilarious movie after another. He is downright likeable, and so is Marisa Tomei, a sassy and stylish figurine who was amazingly superb to take home the Best Actress Oscar. Both Pesci and Tomei have the colorful wits and personalities to make a wild pair for themselves (almost like living in the 50s for sure!). Also, the movie's best moment arises when a freight train disturbs Pesci's sleep at five in the morning. The deep downside is the latter portion: a climatic courtroom scene that, while up to the point of interest, runs terribly long and weak....until one of the film's cast members gets into the act! Still, it's worth plenty of good gags and good laughs that aren't so bugging. Pesci would look terrific in a torn-up leather jacket in front of the judge, to his ultimate disgrace! Smart comedy is smart thinking after all.

My Cousin Vinny fmovies. My Cousin Vinny was a great movie. I borrowed this film from a friend but had no idea what it really was but just knowing Joe Pesci, Ralph Macchio, and Marisa Tomei were starring in it. After seeing it, I really liked it. It was a funny movie. There were tons of laughs and I never knew it was going to be this funny but mainly Joe Pesci as Vinny was hilarious. He had the best role in this movie out of anyone but Marisa Tomei as Vinny's fiancée and Fred Gwynne as the judge did wonderful. I was surprised how good the movie was and overall it really entertained me. I highly recommend the film.

Hedeen's Outlook: 8.5/10 ***+ B+

Some people really do lack a sense of humor and take life way too seriously. These are the people that will complain that this movie is not funny. The rest of us will find at least some genuine funny moments. In my case, I found several. My Cousin Vinny is a movie that I will play to cheer me up because it's hard to feel down while watching it.

Joe Pesci who scared the hell out of us as Tommy Devito in Goodfellas takes on the role of wise cracking, inexperienced attorney Vincent Gambini. He is wonderfully matched with the nagging, street smart, and charming Maria Tomei as his girlfriend Mona. The two hard core New Yorkers wind up in rural Alabama to defend Vincent's cousin (Ralph Macchio) and friend on robbery and murder charges. There are plenty of funny moments created from the culture clash between the "yankees" and the southerners ranging from the fascination with grits to the colorful colloquialisms used by each. Some of the best moments involve the exchanges between no non-sense Judge Haller (Fred Gwynne) and Vincent who he can't understand due to his New York accent. However, this film does not rely on stereotypical southern slapstick comedy. It is actually smart and there's a real plot involving a court case that all but looks clear cut until Vincent and his girlfriend begin looking at the evidence. I love all the court room scenes and Pesci and Tomei have great chemistry.

This movie is truly underrated; although Tomei did earn an Academy Award for her role in this film. I highly recommend it to those of us with a funny bone!

This was the best way for Joe Pesci to follow up GOODFELLAS and JFK. Those two were ultra-serious roles for him and to forray into comedy was perfect. It was a perfect role, perfect timing and a perfect opportunity to show people that he could play something other than the heavy or the bad guy. MY COUSIN VINNY is really just a distant cousin of his character in Goodfellas anyway. Just imagine one of the guys in Goodfellas that didn't want to follow in the footsteps of the rest of the gangsters and this is him. Vinny is a foul mouthed, sometime violent, insecure but smart man. He went to law school but took six attempts before he passed the bar. They are definitely similar characters. The difference is that Goodfellas was a serious film with a funny side and My Cousin Vinny is an absolutely hilarious film with a somewhat serious side.

What makes the film work as well as it does, is many things. First of all you have the fish out of water scenario with Vinny and his fiancee Lisa, wearing leather jackets and cowboy boots down in the south where it seems everyone is wearing overalls and they hang out in establishments where their best selling feature is chicken and pool.

You also have a great supporting cast that features Lane Smith as a very animated D.A. that has to hammer home every point to his jury like they were morons. He says the word "truth" is a word that comes down from England where all of our ancestors come, and looking at him incredulously is some of the black jury members. Fred Gwynne supplies some of the best comedy for the film with his constant badgering of Vinny. Everything from his suit, to his enunciation of words like "youts", to his court room impropriety to his just plain dislike of him. Gwynne and Pesci are so opposite as people. Gwynne being a giant of a man with a southern drawl and a long, virile face while Pesci is a short man with a distinct New Yawk slur and a pudgy, baby looking face. They are complete opposites and much of the hilarity comes from their inability to see eye to eye on many things.

It also has to said that Marisa Tomei is brilliant in this film. There are people out there that try to demean her Oscar triumph that year because the favourite did not win like anticipated. But her performance here is nothing short of Oscar worthy. She is a gifted actress and her comedic timing in this film is bang on, or as she would say, " dead on balls accurate. "

This is one of the funnier films to come out in the 90's and it is well worth seeing again.

9 out of 10