In this task, you must classify if a given review is positive/negative, indicating your answer as P or N.

stephen , please post if appropriate .
" mafia ! "
- crime is n't a funny business by homer yen ( c ) 1998 on a particular night when i found myself having some free time , i had a chance to either go to sleep early or to see " mafia ! " , a spoof of mafia and crime films such as " the godfather , " " goodfellas " and " casino " .
at 84 minutes in length , i thought that i could enjoy a few laughs before getting a good nights sleep .
but by my account , i think that my laff - o - meter only registered a few grins , one giggle , and maybe one chortle .
i suppose that you could justify your time as homage to the venerable hollywood star , lloyd bridges , who just recently passed away and whose last performance was in this film .
" mafia !
" chronicles vincenzo cortino 's ( lloyd bridges ) life . separated from his family when he was young , he escapes to america and tries to live an honest life .
but as fate would have it , vincenzo grows up to be a powerful and klutzy crime lord .
following in his footsteps are his two sons , joey ( billy burke ) and anthony ( jay mohr ) .
like all siblings in powerful crime families , they squabble over power , the future of the family , fortune , and women .
" mafia !
" is co - written by jim abrahams , who also contributed to some gut - busting funny spoofs such as " airplane " and " the naked gun .
"
but these previous movies were funny because the jokes seemed more universally understood and there was more of a manic silliness at work .
as i write this , i also wonder how many people have actually seen the movies on which this spoof is based .
crime movies in general contain a lot of profanity and violence .
it 's a tough genre to parody .
i was kind of hoping that they could somehow spoof the profanity used in all of those crime movies , maybe by having all of the tough crime lords say " please " as they decide which sector to take over , but this opportunity was never explored .
there were one or two moments that made me smile such as the scene where vincenzo is dancing with his newly we d daughter - in - law .
a gunman shoots him several times .
the impact of the bullets cause him to make these wild contortions that force the wedding band to change music styles to keep up with him , from the samba to disco to the macarena .
i think that i just gave away the best part of the film .
oh well , that just means that you can go to sleep a little earlier .
N

in the company of men made a splash at the sundance film festival because , in a year plagued by brothers mcmullen - style , earnestly shallow gen - x angst pictures , it seemed to be actually about something .
it angered people , started arguments outside the theater , riled things up .
it ignited a spark of excitement in what otherwise has been a disappointing year for independent film .
having endured my share of the hype , i waited calmly for men to reach the hinterlands wherein i reside , and then checked in to see what all the fuss was about .
does men live up to its press ?
well , yes it does .
and it may make you think twice before you consider dating anyone your office .
for the uninitiated , newcomers aaron eckhart and matt malloy play chad and howard , two corporate drones who are dispatched by their nameless company to a remote branch office for a six week assignment .
chad and howard are archetypes , examples of which you can no doubt find in your own place of business .
chad is the blond golden boy , genetically engineered for success , the natural charmer who seems to glide effortlessly up the corporate ladder .
howard is chad 's boss , but he is weaker of will , the clumsy practitioner of office politics who has achieved his position through dogged persistence rather than raw talent .
we first meet them awaiting their flight in a drab airport lounge .
there chad suggests a scheme worthy of a shakespearean villain : he and howard will find a vulnerable single woman at the branch office , woo her simultaneously , win her love , and then dump her .
the reason ?
both men have recently been dumped themselves , and chad sees an easy route to revenge against the fairer sex .
"
it 'll restore a little dignity to our lives , " he says .
howard , helpless against the force of chad 's will , agrees to the plan .
they quickly spot their prey in the form of christine ( stacy edwards ) , a fragile deaf woman working as a temp .
chad moves in for the kill , flashing his golden boy smile , plying christine with lunch , then flowers , then dinner .
howard follows suit , though his efforts are in contrast ham - handed and desperate .
flattered to have the attention of two eligible men , christine dates them both .
you can guess which one she falls for .
soon a tragic lovers ' triangle develops : christine loves chad , chad loves himself , and howard loves christine on the grounds that , since she 's handicapped and shy , she just might be wretched and lonely enough to settle for him .
adult social interaction never really progresses beyond the level of junior high , does it ?
in chad , writer / director labute and actor eckhart have created one of the most chilling monsters ever committed to film - hannibal lector may eat human flesh , but chad is an eater of souls .
his evil is as subtle as a viper 's , and as easy as his smile .
we watch in stunned disbelief as he back - stabs coworkers , humiliates his subordinates , and works his deadly venom into christine 's heart .
his character would be a joke if he was n't so chillingly real-
all of us have worked with a chad , and some of us may be him .
he 's the guy who takes your job and then laughs at you for your weakness .
if one of his co - workers should happen to go postal and walk into the office with a bag full of handguns , he had best have his escape route clearly in mind .
politics is his game , and the modern cubicle - filled office is his playground .
men wears the guise of a black comedy , but it functions best as allegory .
the most controversial moment in the film happens when chad humiliates a black temp by asking him how badly he wants to succeed in the company , then forces him to prove it in a manner i wo n't describe .
the scene is charged with racism and fraught with peril .
could it happen in the real world ?
probably not .
taken as allegory , however , it is representative of the treatment of the meek by the powerful in all facets of society .
maybe it 's just the english major in me , but chad , in his motiveless cruelty towards christine and his careful manipulation of howard , can be seen as a symbol of unbridled capitalism , of greed without conscience .
the entire film is a metaphor for social darwinism- only the strong will survive .
the marvel of labute 's multi - layered script is that it can disturb each member of its audience in an entirely different way .
but does the film work as entertainment ?
its darned funny in spots , particularly in the men 's room scenes , which demonstrate the lengths to which guys will go to hold a conversation while engaged in the most basic of bodily functions .
it works less well as drama , since by necessity the characters in an allegory tend to be flat ciphers .
stacy edwards gives a measured dignity to christine , and succeeds in making us care for her
, but by the end of the film we still know nothing about her .
likewise , chad and howard are simply the sum of their actions .
by the end of the film you 'll feel as if you 've met a genuine monster in chad ; perhaps we can also classify men as a horror film .
certainly those expecting a conventional hollywood resolution to the story will walk away disappointed . but the picture is often mesmerizing , and the script is a work of fine craftsmanship , which makes it well worth your time .
like all good films , it offers a myriad of parallels to the outside world .
while watching chad in his moment of triumph , i could n't help but think that bill gates must have felt the same sort of cold , merciless satisfaction when he finally stuck it to steve jobs .
there may be a little bit of chad in all of us , but some of us have taken chad - ness to the level of art .
P

if there is one thing that bothers me about hollywood films it 's their predictable endings .
the devil 's advocate has the atypical hollywood ending , when everything that should happen does .
unfortunately for the devil 's advocate , this ending nearly collapses in on itself , and ruins the entire film .
nevertheless , the film does provide two and a half hours of pure entertainment
( note to self :
kill whomever was in charge of the previews for this film ) .
i do n't think i was quite prepared for this movie because the trailers made it appear to be some supernatural horror film about satan .
well , it does contain this element , but what is not mentioned in the ads is the other plot elements ( and seemingly more interesting ones at that ) .
the devil 's advocate begins in florida with an ongoing trial in session .
kevin lomax ( keanu reeves ) is the defense attorney , working for a client whom has been accused of raping a young girl .
he ends up with a not - guilty verdict , despite an emotional testimony from the victim ( heather matarazzo ) .
he leaves the courthouse with his lovely wife mary ann ( charlize theron ) where he is approached with an offer to travel to new york city to help choose a good jury .
he accepts ( mainly after seeing the paycheck he will receive ) and he flies to new york with his wife .
after proving his worth for selecting juries ( and his perfect winning streak in court ) , the head of the firm , john milton ( al pacino ) , asks him to work permanently as a criminal lawyer .
he graciously accepts , where he is treated almost as a god .
he is given an incredible apartment ( which is bigger than my entire house now ) , and a hefty paycheck .
his life seems to be on the rise .
and of course , his life suddenly begins to waver and slowly decline .
he is attracted to fellow employee christabella ( connie nielson ) , and his wife begins to feel very lonely in her large apartment .
mary ann takes up a friendship with a neighbor who always gives advice , especially if it is not wanted .
meanwhile , kevin nabs a case surrounding alexander cullen ( craig t. nelson ) who apparently murdered three people .
he spends hours upon hours with this case , while forgetting his loving wife , who may or may not be going insane .
all of this while john milton may or may not be the devil himself .
after a while , things turn completely upside - down , as kevin 's wife claims to have seen monstrous images superimposed on her friends .
a fellow employee is murdered in the park , and his mother ( judith ivey ) reveals information about kevin 's real father .
is it all just a big nightmare ?
or is john milton really satan , playing tricks with kevin 's life ?
the devil 's advocate plays out fairly straight - forward , but for some odd reason , the screenwriters wanted to surprise everyone by giving us something we do n't expect . is this surprise conclusion supposed to make us feel good and go home without feeling depressed or disturbed ?
if so ,
the devil 's advocate messes up completely , and ironically , i felt more depressed because of the ending as is now , than i would have if it had ended ten minutes early .
i went into the devil 's advocate expecting a shocking horror film , and that is exactly what i got .
i was settled in to be disturbed mentally and emotionally , and that is what i got .
but what was the most disturbing and horrible aspect of the movie is the poor ending
( did i mention that i did n't like the ending ? ) .
the producers of this film take you on a thrilling roller coaster ride and just as it is ending , they pull the rug out from under you .
films like se7en and the usual suspects can survive with this surprise ending because it is expected , more or less .
we know it is going to end in an unpredictable way .
the devil 's advocate , on the other hand , ends unpredictably , not from us knowing a lot , but knowing nothing at all .
if that is confusing , i recommend watching the film , and then reading that again .
as for the film overall , i enjoyed the entire first two hours , being drawn in by a terrific character study and then adding the supernatural plot to increase the tension build from the character study .
the film runs like a well - built clock , slowly building until finally exploding with a highly charged climax ( and an unpredictable one at that ) .
and then you settle in for a nice resolution , which does not occur .
it was at this point that i felt cheated .
taking us on a terror ride of intrigue , we follow kevin lomax around , as he is the centerpiece of the film .
everything occurs from his perspective .
he is our representation on screen ( sort of ) .
but we are forced to witness a conclusion which makes most of the film seem like a game .
i do n't want to spoil the ending , so all i can say is go see the film and decide for yourself .
perhaps the most shocking thing about the devil 's advocate is the extreme amount of everything .
it earned its r rating for a reason .
there is plenty of nudity , sex , violence , gore , and then you have gore , violence , sex , and more nudity .
this film really is n't subtle about anything , showing us everything .
it actually surprises me that this film did not receive an nc-17 rating , as it is quite harsh .
however , the movie does have its merits , and nudity and sex are among those .
i do n't condone sex and nudity in films , but if its there , i might as well enjoy it .
the biggest merit of this film is also the most interesting to watch .
the confrontations between kevin lomax and john milton are entertaining , but what stands out amidst this extreme hatred is the decline of the wife , mary ann . portrayed by the extremely effective charlize theron , mary ann 's problems are incredibly intense , and i found myself wanting to witness her decline .
this may sound uncaring , but i wanted to watch because i felt sorry for her .
she is the most interesting character on the screen , who is forced into a world where she is not wanted .
something the devil 's advocate contained actually shocked me for reasons other than extreme violence and nudity , especially for a film of this nature .
the story actually has something to say about humanity .
in one of the last scenes , john milton explains to kevin lomax the game god plays with his children ( he is satan , of course ) .
he comments that it is human nature to lust and loathe in vanity .
then , god sets up rules which contradict human nature .
this semi - religious bashing is more humorous than frightening .
what milton says is so true about our society that i found myself laughing out loud , partially thinking it was funny , but patially realizing it was true .
these moral dilemmas are present throughout the devil 's advocate , giving it an added depth many films skip over in their writing ( but i 'm sure they came straight from the novel it was based on ) .
when a film has something to say about our society , it deserves to be watched .
the cast of the devil 's advocate is one of the highlights , as we see memorable faces , and they put spins on those memorable faces we do n't expect .
heather matarazzo makes a brief appearance as the terrorized victim in the opening court case , and she does a great job .
probably the big surprise of this film is keanu reeves .
he has proven himself an uneven actor ( successes such as speed and bombs such as johnny mnemonic ) ,
but he tops himself with this performance .
i have never seen him more believable to date .
al pacino is of course the scene stealer .
his devilish performance is equal to those of jack nicholson
( the witches of eastwick ) and max von sydow ( needful things ) .
he could have easily gone too far over the top in many scenes , but he remains completely believable
( if that is the correct term ) .
jeffrey jones ( mostly known as the principal in ferris bueller 's day off ) also gives a good performance as eddie barzoon .
judith ivey manages a credible performance
as the mother who holds a secret to kevin 's past .
connie nielson is very effective in her role , and she also appears naked several times .
one familiar face with a twist was " coach " star , craig t. nelson , who gives a very good performance .
the devil 's advocate is rated r for sexuality , nudity , violence , language , and some gore .
at 144 minutes , this film moves along fairly quickly .
for the first two hours , i sat completely engaged in the good performances and strong characters .
the technical quality is also remarkable , with great special effects and a good musical score .
director taylor hackford has managed to create a very disturbing motion picture , only to ruin a good chunk of tension with the final fifteen minutes .
i guess my biggest problem with the ending is the fact that i went into the theater expecting a disturbing film , and hackford gave me just that for a long time .
but just before the end , he got jitterish and relied on the hollywood safety net in order to make his film more mainstream .
personally , i would have preferred it ending fifteen minutes early .

P