Synopsis
They locked up mob boss Paul Vitti (De Niro) in Sing Sing and that's where he sang sang—croaking tunes from Westside Story and carrying on in a way that convinces the FBI Vitti is better suited for the nut house. Better yet, they conclude, let's release Vitti into the custody of his therapist Ben Sobel (Crystal). Vitti is ready to find gainful employment and go straight. Or so he says. But can high-anxiety Sobel believe Vitti, especially when guys like Lou the Wrench keep showing up?

Critique
With the $100+ million success of Analyze This in 1999, a sequel seemed like a good idea at the time. The characters are funny in a conflicted kind of way and the premise is interesting enough. Three years later, Analyze That hits theatres. The problem is nobody really remembers much of This anymore. I don’t. Three years is a long time for a sequel of this caliber to come out of the Hollywood "second installment" pipeline. Analyze That sees the return of Director Harold Ramis and actors Robert De Niro and Billy Crystal, but the characters and material they return to feel much too dated and recycled.

The film’s first twenty minutes take longer than they should, simply because much of it is included in the theatrical trailer. For the rest of the film, Vitti and Sobel just walk and talk, almost sleepwalking through the thin threads the plot is made of. There is not much substance in the plot, other than a subplot involving a war between two rival Mob bosses. Vitti fits into this war because if he doesn’t join one of the two families in business he’ll get whacked, or so says the terminology. The second subplot sees Vitti as a consultant of a TV drama production. This subplot exists to garner laughs and make jokes, but feels somewhat irrelevant also.

In This, Ben Sobel was a focus point and his family life was explored, but here he’s reduced to secondary status and has nothing else to work with other than offering unheard advice and taking the fall for Vitti’s behavior. Analyze That includes some very good jokes, but the plot doesn’t offer the kind of support that’s needed to make them stand out. It might be a stretch to say this, but the acting is rather impressive, especially De Niro who does his best to keep a straight/gangster-like face. Crystal doesn’t have much to work with and therefore the film can’t benefit from his talent. Lisa Kudrow is in the film for about twenty or so minutes and Joe Viterelli, who plays Jelly, has absolutely nothing to do. Consider Jelly’s role in This, which included more screen time and better dialogue. He’s asked, "what kind of sandwich ain’t too fattening?" to which he replies, "a half a sandwich."

Analyze That is a disappointment, despite some efforts to create valuable comedic relief, even if some of it is toilet-like humor or completely ridiculous, like the sushi incident. I wish the film would have spent more time analyzing this than that—if this even makes sense. Ben Sobel exclaims, "I’m grieving. It’s a process." By the time he’s repeated this five times, he’s not the only one grieving.
4 out of 10

Video
Warner Bros. presents Analyze That in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen. The print offers no major distractions. The transfer is handled very nicely, especially the color detail and black tones during dark scenes. Sharpness in a few scenes isn’t consistent with the rest of the transfer, but this is only a minor discrepancy. The transfer is better than the film in a way. In the end, Analyze That looks pretty clean and sharp.
8 out of 10

Audio
I believe Analyze That comes in Dolby Digital 5.1 even though it is not specified on the DVD cover or language menu. The film is not audio driven and doesn’t rely on sound effects, but dialogue scenes occupy most of the soundtrack and are clearly understandable and sharp. David Holmes’ bland score sounds off only in a few scenes of the film, but it’s not in conjunction with any surround usage. Front speakers emit all the sound and the rear speakers probably didn’t sound at all. As it stands, the audio transfer is handled decently and that’s all there is.
6 out of 10

Extras
Feature Length Audio Commentary by Director/Co-Writer Harold Ramis – Ramis comes from a promising background and he probably knows more than he is given credit. Speaking about Analyze That, Ramis reveals things about the production, locations, and characters. He allowed some ad-libbing and speaks about the people involved with the film. Overall, the commentary isn’t very exciting mainly because the film isn’t. If you love the film, you might want to give it a listen, otherwise browse through it.

M.A.D.E. Challenge – Play the challenge to test whether you have what it takes to be part of the Mob. This feature is a nice inclusion, but serves its purpose only once. I don’t think I’ll play this one again, because it would be repetitive and not fresh.

The Making of Analyze That – This behind-the-scenes featurette is labeled the following: “Takes You Inside This Criminally Talented Moviemaking Gang.” You get interviews with the cast and crew, some footage of the production of the film, etc. This Making-of is not too exciting, but warrants a one-time viewing.

The DVD offers English, French and Spanish subtitles. The menus are not animated. The 96-minute feature is organized into twenty-eight chapters.
4 out of 10

Overall
Analyze That lacks plot substance, but includes some funny jokes. De Niro does his best as Vitti, but Crystal’s talent is reduced too much. If you liked Analyze This, don’t expect much from this sequel. Some might consider this film a guilty pleasure, but I can’t make that statement. First-time viewers might want to consider a rental.

Overall DVD Rating: 4 out of 10 (not an average)

Dennis Landmann
www.moviefreak.com