My Cousin Vinny fans - Backstory! (1 Viewer)

[Vickie_M]

(I'm not sure if this should go in Movies or TV)
AMC's excellent series "Backstory" (which goes behind-the-scenes and gives background on movies) is focusing an episode on the hilarious film My Cousin Vinny. I love this movie. It gets very little respect, and is probably more well-known for the Oscar hooha. Backstory doesn't even mention that "controversy" though, which I'm very happy about.
Upcoming Backstory-My Cousin Vinny showings:
Saturday (June 8th) 4:30pm (Central time)
Sunday (June 9th) 12:15am and 6:30pm
Backstory has become one of my favorite shows. It's probably been around for ages, but I just discovered it thanks to my wonderful Tivo. I've seen 2 episodes so far (Moulin Rouge and Roman Holiday) and I've now got a Season Pass for the series so I'll never miss it again. Upcoming Backstory episodes focus on Broadcast News, The Verdict, and Wall Street.

 

[Guy_K]

Off-topic, but what exactly is the oscar 'hooha' that the film is known for? I thought Tomei was very good in it.

I agree with you, the film is underrated. It's very funny.

 

[Craig S]

but what exactly is the oscar 'hooha' that the film is known for?

Tomei was up against some highly-respected British actresses, and surprised most observers by winning. Because some folks apparently think a young American actress in a broad comedy couldn't possibly have beaten high-powered thesps in high-falutin' dramas, an urban legend sprung up around the event.
The tale goes that Jack Palance (who presented Best Supporting Actress that evening) got confused and read the wrong name. Supposedly he was looking at the teleprompter when he opened the envelope and read Tomei's name from there instead of the name on the card. The Academy, to save face (theirs & Palance's), let Tomei keep the award.
Of course, this tale is bull, and it's an insult to Tomei, who is indeed a fine actress (as she proved again TWICE the past year in Happy Accidents and In The Bedroom).

 

[Jason_Els]

My problem with Tomei is that there really isn't a whole hell of a lot of acting going on. She plays a person you can see any day of the week in New York. There isn't a stretch. Maybe people in the Academy were amazed that people like this existed; after all, they never leave Manhattan. Tomei just managed to play a stereotype with reasonable ability and not much else. I don't think she deserved an oscar at all.

My biggest problem with the film is I never liked Pesce in the least. Here's his cousin, life on the line, and he has absolutely no familial connection to him. That bothered me intensely. If it was my cousin who was facing the death penalty I'd agonize over winning that case, I'd talk to him, show him some sympathy and support in his most dire need. Even if I didn't know him well I'd be a lot more concerned about his welfare than the stupid stuff Pesce does. Pesce doesn't express anything like that. Tomei is even worse! She throws a tantrum at the end completely oblivious that her non-participation could mean these kids will die. Get her on the stand and then dump her. What kind of self-centered bag is she??

Now I know you can very well say, 'It's a comedy, lighten up', but it just seemed so serious, particularly in the beginning where the film isn't really set-up as a comedy. That lack of even the slightest emotional commitment made me really, really dislike the main characters. I won't watch this again and that's saying something for me.

 

[Ryan Jameson]

Jason:
It's a comedy. Lighten up.

 

[Matt Stone]

Yah...lighten up man, it's just a comedy
...okay, okay...so I can't come up with an original joke.

 

[Vickie_M]

Tomei is even worse! She throws a tantrum at the end completely oblivious that her non-participation could mean these kids will die.

She didn't think her own testimony was important until she realized the significance of the tire tracks. Up until then, she had been trying to help but Pesci's character(yes, a selfish jerk) was too macho to let her help, until *HE* realized the significance of the tire tracks.

 

[Michael Reuben]

She didn't think her own testimony was important until she realized the significance of the tire tracks. Up until then, she had been trying to help but Pesci's character(yes, a selfish jerk) was too macho to let her help, until *HE* realized the significance of the tire tracks.

Nicely put, Vickie!
I too have TiVo set to pick up new episodes of Backstory, and the one on My Cousin Vinny was particularly good. I especially liked the director's story of where they got the famous exchange about "two yout's".
M.

 

[Bruce Hedtke]

I love AMC's Backstory. I don't get to watch AMC as often as I would like but the other night, I was watching Breakfast at Tiffany's and they were broadcasting it with what I think was called AMC Movie+. I have never seen this before and was wondering if it is a new format. Either way, it was terrific.
Bruce