neumu [ cinematronic ]




	Analyze That
	Harold Ramis Robert De Niro, Billy Crystal, Lisa Kudrow, Joe Viterelli, Cathy Moriarty-Gentile 2002		As sequels go, "Analyze That" does a good job of moving beyond its predecessor, the successful Robert De Niro/Billy Crystal mobster-meets-psychoanalyst comedy "Analyze This," and capturing the qualities that made the first movie fly. In "Analyze This," mob boss Paul Vitti (De Niro) suffered depression that prevented him from effectively running his gang. He sought help from timid therapist Ben Sobel (Crystal) and screwed up both of their lives to humorous end. "Analyze That" is set a few years on. With enemies plotting to kill him, the jailed Vitti shows symptoms of a nervous breakdown. He's remanded to Sobel's care and forced to share Sobel's home, to the chagrin of the doctor and his wife (Lisa Kudrow). TV's "The Sopranos" shares plot-points with the "Analyze" films, and director Harold Ramis gets a chance to lampoon the series when Vitti becomes the expert advisor on a "Sopranos"-like show. "Serious" actor De Niro, toying with his tough-guy persona, gets most of the laughs in both team-ups with comic Crystal. In the final analysis, "Analyze That" has some dead spots, but De Niro kills with a punch line.