STARS : JOE PESCI, MARISA TOMEI, RAPLH MACCHIO, MITCHELL WHITFIELD & LANE SMITH

Suprisingly after being on TV a number of times and on video for the best part of a decade, I have never gotten around to seeing this film in its entirety. I’d seen bits and pieces but never actually sat down to watch it so here’s my thoughts on My Cousin Vinny

Bill (Macchio) and Stan (Whitfield) are two college students on their way to school when they are arrested for the murder of a small town convenience store clerk, a crime which they didn’t commit.

To have legal representation in a murder trial is expensive at the best of times and as neither of the kids are rich they are forced to seek whatever method of lawyer they can. Enter Bill’s cousin Vinny Gambini (Pesci) who is the only attorney that either of them know and more importantly the only one they can afford.

Vinny though has only been an attorney for 6 week’s and failed the Bar exam 6 times before finally passing. This fact when combined with the fact that his foul mouthed and from New York is really going to stir things up in Alabama with his New York attitude and foul mouth.

Mona Lisa (Tomei) is Vinny’s assistant and is excellent in her role and is clearly the outstanding actor in the movie. This is her Academy Award winning role although conjecture still reigns though about whether Jack Palance read out the right name at the academy awards although that’s another story for another time!

Most of the film is set in the court room and Vinny’s attempts at representing Bill & Stan in his first trial with less than conventional methods.

THE EXTRAS

* Director’s Commentary : Jonathon Lynne talks about his reasons for making the film in the manner that he chose. Basically it’s your normal run of the mill comm with nothing to make it standout.

* 2 Theatrical trailers

CONCLUSION

Even though the film is over 10 years old and has a dated appearance it is still an extremely funny movie and well worth a re-visit if you havn’t seen it for a while, or if like me you haven’t seen it at all.