Product Description

Two carefree pals (Ralph Macchio and Mitchell Whitfield) traveling through Alabama are mistakenly arrested, and charged with murder. Fortunately, one of them has a cousin who's a lawyer - Vincent Gambini (Joe Pesci, Lethal Weapon 3, Home Alone), a former auto mechanic from Brooklyn who just passed his bar exam after his sixth try. Vinny's never been in court - or in Alabama - and when he arrives with his leather-clad girlfriend (Marisa Tomei in her Oscar® winning Supporting Actress performance), to try his first case, it's a real shock - for him and the Deep South!

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #12803 in DVD
• Brand: PESCI,JOE
• Released on: 2000-07-25
• Rating: R (Restricted)
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Formats: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English, French
• Subtitled in: English, Spanish
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 120 minutes

Amazon.com
When two Italian-American boys from New York are falsely accused of murder in a small Alabama town, they call for a lawyer--but the only lawyer they know is their cousin Vinny (Joe Pesci), who made six attempts before he passed his bar exam. My Cousin Vinny is a classic fish-out-of-water comedy; the flimsy plot about clearing the two boys and solving the murder is just a hook to support a lot of culture-clash humor. Thanks to the strong cast of character actors like Fred Gwynne, Austin Pendleton, and Lane Smith, it's pretty funny--even old-hat jokes about Brooklyn versus Southern accents come to life. Pesci has played a few too many schticky characters, but this time it works. There's just enough humanity in his caricature to make Vinny likable and entertaining. When the movie was released, there was controversy about whether Marisa Tomei, playing Vinny's big-haired and black-leather-wearing fiancée, deserved to win the best supporting actress Oscar (she beat out Judy Davis, Joan Plowright, Miranda Richardson, and Vanessa Redgrave); but seeing her performance on its own, it's a comic marvel and worthy of honor. --Bret Fetzer

Customer Reviews

Could have been 5 - had they added anything
I believe this to be one of those 90s comedies we all love, so the BD transfer was a nice addition to see come over. Playing it in the store today reminded everyone how fun the film was, but the obvious preservation work made for a nice sell on how these older films should be done.

The colors and clarity were actually cleaned up well, with the artifact being random to where there was no real detraction. The credit sequences looked solid, which for some of these 90s block letter credits the BD transfers can leave in horrible grain. With how they did Tomei's makeup in this, there could have been plenty of chances for a dull saturation look, but in actuality it turned out looking great.

The sound is what sold me though. They mixed and re-amplified it into a 5.1 DTS that rocked the channels. The train scenes were excellent and that owl made customers do a double take. The supplements suck though. They included a variety of trailers from theater and TV, but in that it does show how the original stock looked compared to this upgrade. The commentary was fine, but I was hoping for some visual treats. Instead, the film will have to stand alone for buying the Blu. The menu shows a cleaned up reel also and the navigation was simple. Enjoy.

South Brooklyn meets The South
Subtly employing the city mouse/country mouse theme, MY COUSIN VINNY is a light-hearted courtroom comedy. While it occasionally stoops to some stereotyping, the movie doesn't do so mean-spiritedly. In any event, both sides get equal skewering.

Vinny Gambini, brilliantly portrayed by Joe Pesci, is a Brooklyn boy who has finally passed the Bar (after repeated failures) and now finds himself defending his nephew and his nephew's friend against murder charges in the Bible Belt. Along with his too beautiful fiancee, played by Academy Award Winner Marissa Tomei, Pesci investigates the southern style of life, as he fathoms southern courtroom procedures and tries to get some sleep. The resulting clash of cultures is sometimes predictable, but honestly, is very inventive for the most part.

The comedy of the court room scenes is heightened by the late Fred Gwynne who plays the presiding judge. His by-the-book habits and short-fused temper are a perfect foil to Vinny's laconic style. It is their interaction that feeds most of the cultural clashing. But there is also a clash of the sexes that underlies the film, as Vinny stubbornly refuses the help of his fiancee. This confrontation is also highlighted in the courtroom when the DA refuses to believe that she could possibly be considered an expert in automechanics, even though her brothers, her father, her uncles, and just about everyone else in her family are expert mechanics. (The DA becomes convinced in a wonderful cross-interview scene.)

MY COUSIN VINNY was both critically well-received and a huge box-office success. There's a reason for that: it is a well-written, well-directed and perfectly acted comedy that stands up well even after repeated viewings. See it for yourself and you'll understand why, too.

Feel Good Comedy About "City Slickers" Colliding With "Southern Bumpkins" In Courtroom "Drama"
I cautiously first went to see "My Cousin Vinny" when Marisa Tomei won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress, because--unlike many people--I don't like Joe Pesci. I still don't like Joe Pesci, BUT the role of Vincent LaGuardia Gambini in "My Cousin Vinny" is perfect for him, and his performance is stellar. For me Joe Pesci is Vincent Gambini and Vincent Gambini is Joe Pesci. And, it was my opinion when I first saw "My Cousin Vinny," as it is now after watching the DVD I just got, that Marisa Tomei more than deserved the Oscar. It is my opinion, moreover, that many times award winning performances are discredited by viewers because the actor is performing so well that it appears they are not acting at all. (Please note that I count myself among those who see the Oscars as politically driven; so, when I agree with them--which is seldom--I am truly standing up to be counted).

The product description does a fair job of describing the story outline; although it hardly makes "My Cousin Vinny" sound nearly as funny as it is. But the movie is about more than two kids from the city mistakenly arrested for murder in (the implicitly implied "redneck") Alabama. The film is a light-hearted study of culture clashes, where all characters have stereotypical traits and stereotype the other characters themselves. The movie is also about assumptions--along with the inherent danger of such--and how the "meaning" of these assumptions vary with regards to experience and socialization. "My Cousin Vinny" also examines gender roles--and it is here that Tomei shines--and education/science versus experience and common knowledge. But, most importantly, "My Cousin Vinny" demonstrates the importance of "doing the right thing," regardless of the consequences (and in some cases the legality of the action). Pesci's character finally "gets it," and is able to find his way; but only through the assistance of Tomei's character and the trust of Billy Gambini (inconsistently performed by Ralph Macchio).

As for the other reviewer's triad about the language in this DVD version of the movie, as compared to the bleeped television version, I have these comments: 1) the movie is rated "R," which should have informed you about the probability of profanity; 2) while it may seem like there is a lot of profanity in the movie, it is completely applicable to the way these characters would actually speak--and I suspect that there is actually less profanity than it sounds like; 3) when "My Cousin Vinny" was made (1992), most movies were moving towards increased use of profanity--especially "R" rated movies; and 4) is overt profanity that much worse than suggested or ribald "comedy?" Moreover, just how does the sudden inclusion of (generally appropriately used) profanity into any dialog--films or otherwise--change the humor or make it no longer funny? In fact, I personally hear just as much, if not more, profanity used by children, teenagers, adults, and seniors at the store than in the movie; which I believe is gross misuse of profanity, but is the way of life today. For me, and I am sure many others, a great funny movie, is a great funny movie in spite of the language. Remember, there was a day when movies couldn't even rely on language to be funny.

Now for the mystery I am having trouble understanding: Why is this version of the DVD/VHS not being lumped together with the other versions with regards to reviews? To date (12 June 2008), there is only one review listed for this version, while there are 129 reviews for the other version currently available. This is so uncharacteristic of Amazon! And, in near ultimate irony, it appears that there is no difference between this version and the other "lower priced" (I got mine when it was sale) version, other than the fact that this version has a gold cardboard slipcase (the box inside is exactly like the other one) and the listing has the wrong actors!

Update--1 July 2008: If this review was not helpful to you, I would appreciate learning the reason(s) so I can improve my reviews. My goal is to provide help to potential buyers, not get into any arguments. So, if you only disagree with my opinion, could you please say so in the comments and not indicate that the review was not helpful. Thanks.