Analyze This

The very concept behind "high concept" comedy is that the concept sells itself; unfortunately, so many "high concept" comedies are mediocre because no one bothers to think past the marketing campaign. The odd coupling of Robert DeNiro and Billy Crystal made Analyze This a box office success, but the idea-- DeNiro playing a crime boss looking for relief from bouts of anxiety and finding a reluctant assistant in psychiatrist Crystal--is better than the result. Yes, the possibilities are limitless--and so are the missed opportunities. The casting of Crystal may have seemed inspired, but it's awkward watching him play what should have been the straight man as a clownish shtick figure. Meanwhile, the gifted Lisa Kudrow is wasted in a token girlfriend role, as is Chazz Palminteri as a rival gangster. Most distracting of all the film's constantly shifting tone--from slapstick to violent action to emotional breakdowns--making Analyse This a candidate for its own multiple-personality therapy session. Thank heaven for DeNiro, who somehow finds yet another twist on the many wiseguys he has played in his career. It's fun watching him show the comic chops he's too rarely allowed to display, and it's a hoot watching him nod to his own past in a Godfather-inspired dream. Sporadically amusing, Analyze This is a marketing campaign to which a film has been attached almost as an afterthought. Not recommended. (S. Renshaw)