My Cousin Vinny

There have been many courtroom dramas that have glorified the great American legal system. This is not one of them.
There have been many courtroom dramas that have glorified the great American legal system. This is not one of them.
MY COUSIN VINNY (15)
D: Jonathan Lynn
20th Century Fox (Dale Launer & Paul Schiff)
US 1992
119 mins
 
Comedy
 
W: Dale Launer
DP: Peter Deming
Ed: Tony Lombardo
Mus: Randy Edelman
 

Joe Pesci (Vincent LaGuardia Gambino), Ralph Macchio (Bill Gambini), Mitchell Whitfield (Stan Rothenstein), Marisa Tomei (Mona Lisa Vito), Fred Gwynne (Judge Chamberlain Haller), Lane Smith (Jim Trotter III), Austin Pendleton (John Gibbons), Bruce McGill (Sheriff Farley)
 
My Cousin Vinny gives Joe Pesci one of his best comedy performances as a hugely inexperienced Italian-American lawyer from Brooklyn, way out of his comfort zone in small town Alabama, where he has to represent his cousin on a false murder charge.
The script is excellently written, giving Pesci more than a handful of one-liners, whilst the supporting cast is also fantastic. Marisa Tomei's Oscar win for Supporting Actress is oft-maligned, but she does bring much sassiness to a love interest who, could easily have blended into the background had it been portrayed by anyone else.
It also has to be noted that, despite the film being a comedy, it nails courtroom procedure more accurately than the vast majority of dramas.
8/10

Joe Pesci & Marisa Tomei in My Cousin Vinny
Joe Pesci & Marisa Tomei in My Cousin Vinny