Mickey Blue Eyes (1999)

This past summer was a record year for box office grosses in the film industry. Between the thoroughly predictable success of Star Wars: Phantom Menace and the completely unpredictable success of Blair Witch Project it's been a good summer for moviemakers. The two films mentioned above probably owe more to their marketing departments than their creative genius, but there were others that were charming (Notting Hill) and/or innovative (The Sixth Sense). Alas, as we reach the end of the summer season, we are left to sift through the wretched refuse that remains. This brings us face to face with Mickey Blue Eyes.Hugh Grant plays the title character, more commonly known as Michael Felgate. Michael is in love with Gina Vitale (Jeanne Tripplehorn). Early in the film, he takes her out to dinner where he pops the question--in one of the few truly funny scenes in the movie. He knows she loves him, but she refuses to marry him, and he cannot understand why. He discovers why when he finally meets the family who are really, truly "family". Gina is sure that if they are married, her extended mafioso family will get its hooks into the man she loves and destroy him forever. He convinces her that true love will conquer all, and they decide to marry and beat the odds.Predictably, all is not smooth sailing. Before Michael knows it, and without his consent, he finds himself obligated to the mob. Thoreau once said "possessions are more easily acquired than got rid of". This apparently also applies to mob ties--although mob members appear to be fairly easily dispatched. The movie rather quickly degenerates into a series of sight gags, and a few almost funny scenes when Hugh Grant has to try to speak like one of the boys.Part of the problem here is the genre itself. The mafia/gangster film reached its apex with Coppola's Godfather films in the seventies. The best sign that a particular genre is wearing thin is when most of the films being made are parodies of the genre. Analyze This was much more engaging and original. Watching DeNiro parody the characters that made him a star was fun. Watching Hugh Grant here was just plain painful. James Caan--who was in the Godfather films--plays Gina's mobster father in a role that is flat and lifeless.There are inspired moments here, but they are few and far between. If you're a Hugh Grant fan, see him at his charming best in Notting Hill or rent The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill and Came Down a Mountain. If you must have a mafia parody, rent Analyze This or check out Steve Martin in My Blue Heaven. If it's move theater popcorn you long for, check out Sixth Sense, one of the more suspenseful and innovative films of the summer. But Mickey Blue Eyes? Fuhgeddaboutit!

Mickey Blue Eyes (1999): Dir: Kelly Makin / Cast: Hugh Grant, James Caan, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Joe Viterelli, Burt Young: Boy, did they ever rush this laughless trash out quickly after the success of Analyze This. Both comedies regards gangsters torn between their professional and personal lives. Title is totally lame but it is the name given to Hugh Grant who is an art auction dealer shocked when Jeanne Tripplehorn refuses to marry him. At first I figured it was because this is a shitty movie, but as it turns out her father is a gangster and she fears that he will have Grant running illegal favours. This indeed does occur and Grant ends up auctioning very expensive paintings. Then a series of events lead to Grant being blamed for the death of the son of another mob leader. Although the setup is amusing the delivery is repetitious with a contrived ending. Kelly Makin does fine as director but this is nowhere near as funny as her earlier comedy Brain Candy. While Grant pulls off humour effectively James Caan as his father-in-law is typecast and predictable. Tripplehorn labours under uninteresting material and is involved in an ending that is too stupid for words. Then we have Joe Viterelli as a carry over from Analyze This as if he just couldn't play any other role. Misfire comedy laden with clichés. It is enough to make Mickey close his blue eyes in order to erase the memory. Score: 2 ½ / 10

Considering the concept of this, it could perhaps have been funnier. And if the ending was not as formulaic, unsatisfying and easy to figure out/obvious, that would have been just peachy. But what you get isn't bad. Caan, Grant, Tripplehorn, Young and Viterelli shine. Anyone who would call themselves a fan of one or more of aforementioned may want to consider giving it a look or three. This definitely has memorable moments of pure gold and hilarity. The jokes and gags tend to remain within the confines of what can be called good taste, without being boring. The whole Italian/mobster thing is played well, in spite of somewhat clichéd portrayals here and there. The pacing is good. The music choices are...interesting, but often nice and fitting. As far as mafia comedies go, you can certainly do worse, there are ones out there where you have to wonder why even one movie was made, much less a sequel(read: Analyze This series). I recommend this to all who think this sound appealing. There are scenes in this that can leave you in stitches. It's really too bad both of them are within the first half hour or so. 6/10

Michael (Hugh Grant) is an art dealer/auctioneer for a Manhattan firm called Cromwell's, a knock-off of Sotheby's. He has a good eye for art and is also a great auction man, as he can liven up any sale with his dry jokes. Good fortune has also smiled on him in the romance department. He has been dating lovely Gina (Jeanne Tripplehorn) for three months and is ready to pop the question. Yet, when he proposes over dinner, Gina starts crying and bolts out of the restaurant. It is not the response Michael expected. But, he learns soon enough about Gina's misgivings. Although she is a public school teacher, Gina is also the daughter of a mobster (James Caan) and the niece of the godfather of the crime family. She fears that Michael will be compromised and drawn into a life of crime if he marries her. Michael insists that he has a strong backbone and will never break the law. Yet, the day after Gina puts on her engagement ring, an ugly and ridiculous painting by her cousin shows up at Cromwell's for the auction. To Michael's surprise, it sells. But, it is part of a money laundering scheme and the FBI shows up at Michael's office. Soon after, Michael's resolve is again compromised....and again and again. Will Michael and Gina find a way out of the mob existence? This film could have been dismissed as a meager mob comedy if not for the talents of Grant. He turns the film into a true winner with his deft touch for humor. Just watch him try to dump a dead body in a trash bag but tell the neighbor lady that he is "merely getting rid of all the foods with sugar" in his refrigerator, having been recently diagnosed as a diabetic. What fun! Watching him attempt to talk like a Brooklyn native is quite a stitch, too. Caan, Tripplehorn and, especially James Fox as the auction house owner, also play their parts well. The production values are high, as the film sports nice costumes, good settings, and zestful scene changes. No, it is not the funniest mob comedy of all time, and definitely not in the same category as Married to the Mob. Yet, if you love romantic comedies with a twist and/or you adore Grant, you will find this film very worthwhile. Make a date with Mickey soon, very soon.