instruction:
In this task, you must classify if a given review is positive/negative, indicating your answer as P or N.
question:
the happy bastard 's quick movie review analyze this how does one do a comedy focused on the mob ?
well , a few years ago , there was a sly little comedy called the freshman , which had marlon brando doing a romp of a send - up of his famous don corleone character and , recently , the utterly stupid ( in a bad way ) movie mafia ! failed to really get the joke .
this time around , however , warner bros .
may have gotten it right with analyze this , a movie that hits its targets
more than it misses .
. .
and for plenty of reasons .
the story goes like this .
a mobster ( robert deniro ) finds himself receiving several panic attacks as of late , fueled by the stress of an upcoming mobster meeting and a near - death following a drive - by shooting .
it 's these attacks that prompt him to hire a psychiatrist ( billy crystal ) who 's mostly reluctant to take the mobster 's case for two reasons .
first , of course , he 's a mobster , but secondly , he 's trying to get married and enjoy a quiet honeymoon with his wife ( lisa kudrow ) and kid .
and , of course , he ca n't rest worth for a moment because the mobster 's goons are always needing the shrink for something , be it a quick consultation or dream analyzation .
fortunately , the movie is played out for plenty of laughs .
director harold ramis ( who also helmed the comedy multiplicity , which was n't half bad ) keeps the tone peppy and light , even if it 's sometimes sprinkled by slight dramatic moments ( shootings ca n't always be taken for laughs , you know ) .
deniro
does some of his finest comic work since the king of comedy , giving off a somewhat similar performance to his role in goodfellas , but with a bit of a lighter heart .
( a scene where he tries to display his anger over the phone and fails miserably is hilarious . )
crystal plays an excellent straight man to deniro 's character , uplifting him from such bombs as father 's day and my giant .
kudrow is also a hoot as crystal 's wife - to - be , who 's on the verge of a breakdown thanks to deniro 's presence .
is the movie perfect ?
not really , thanks to a simplistic ending and some slightly wasted moments with a character portrayed by chazz palminteri
( he 's a comic actor , too , come on , give him some more ! ) , but
it is an enjoyable romp
that lets deniro do something different but same for a change , taking his dramatic act to a new field of comedy . kudos to crystal and kudrow for not just making it his show , either .
line of the movie : crystal :
" when you said you needed family therapy , this is not the family i had in mind ! "
answer:
P


question:
look back at all the times in your life when there was a fork in the path to the future .
some sort of decision had to be made , and , for better or worse , it irrevocably altered the course of your existence .
> from time - to - time , everyone thinks about the roads not taken , and how things might have turned out if the choice had been different .
perhaps even more dizzying to contemplate is how a seemingly minor action -- catching the 10 am train , for example -- could have an equally profound , yet less obvious , impact .
maybe that 's where you met your significant other , and , had you reached the platform just a few seconds later ?
film makers are no less fascinated by issues of destiny than anyone else , and that 's why there 's no shortage of movies about this subject .
the best of the bunch were probably made by the late polish director krzysztof kieslowski , who was obsessed with questions of fate and chance .
these themes weave their way through many of his movies , including decalogue , the double life of veronique , and the triptych of blue , white , and red .
however , they are most explicitly examined in a 1981 film called blind chance , where kieslowski presents the three different fates of one man after a minor action ( missing or catching a train )
changes the course of his life .
in his autobiography , kieslowski on kieslowski , the director describes his attraction to the concept this way : " [ the idea is ] rich and interesting ?
that every day we 're faced with a choice which could end our entire life yet of which we 're completely unaware .
"
while this approach has been the fodder for several notable dramatic films ( including , in a way , frank capra 's it 's a wonderful life ) , sliding doors is the first romantic comedy to plumb its depths .
the " road not taken " approach is n't just a plot device , either .
writer / director peter howitt expands upon both possible fates of a character after she just misses / catches a train .
the audience watches , with ever - growing fascination , how this one event impacts upon every aspect of her life : her future career , where she lives , whom she loves , and whether she has a family .
as her separate destinies diverge and then re - converge , she becomes two completely different individuals .
that woman is helen , played by gwyneth paltrow as a long , dark- haired brit .
one day , after losing her job as an advertising executive , she decides to return home in the middle of the day .
the scene of the pivotal moment is a train platform .
in scenario # 1
, she just slips through the sliding doors before the train pulls out of the station .
on board , she meets the cheerful , talkative james ( john hannah ) , a monty python fan who is taken with her beauty .
minutes later , in her flat , she walks in on her lover , gerry ( john lynch ) , in bed with another woman ( jeanne tripplehorn ) .
in scenario # 2
, she misses the train and , shortly thereafter , is the victim of an attempted mugging .
she does n't meet james and fails to make it home in time to discover gerry 's infidelity .
juxtaposed one against the other , while sharing many places , cues , and characters , the two stories proceed in parallel from there .
on one level , for viewers who enjoy pondering the workings of fate , sliding doors can be viewed as a deep and wonderful experience .
but , for those who just appreciate a romantic comedy characterized by solid acting , a script with a few twists , and a great deal of genuinely funny material , sliding doors still fits the bill .
one of its most obvious strengths is that it can satisfy many different types of audiences -- those who demand something substantial from their motion pictures , and those who could care less .
it should n't come as any surprise that the acting , at least from three of the four leads , is solid .
paltrow , who does double duty as two helens who are initially the same , yet gradually become much different , is the standout .
she plays both of her roles effectively and believably -- the shy , insecure woman who stays with gerry and the liberated , platinum - blond who severs the ties to her old life and embarks on a new career with a new man .
john hannah , known to most american viewers as the younger gay character in four weddings and a funeral , is instantly likable .
john lynch , taking a break from movies about ireland 's troubles , does a good job presenting gerry as a inept , selfish philanderer .
only jeanne tripplehorn , who plays an over - the - top vixen , seems out of place .
her attempts at broad comedy are occasionally jarring , and it 's occasionally difficult to see her lydia as anything more than a plot element .
one member of the supporting cast deserves special notice .
douglas mcferran , who plays gerry 's best friend , russell , is an absolute delight , stealing every scene that he 's in .
part of this is surely because he is given the best lines in the movie .
on one occasion , he has a marvelous monologue bemoaning how advances in the telecommunications industry have trapped men into a life of monogamy .
on another occasion , while laughing at gerry 's plight with the women in his life , he comments , " being with you makes the wait for the next episode of seinfeld more bearable .
"
but it 's not all in the dialogue .
mcferran tears into this part with relish ; his performance becomes one of the most memorable aspects of a top - notch comedy .
this is the first feature film for peter howitt , and he approaches the task with unimpeachable aplomb .
the script is shrewd and inventive , combining wit , romance , and intelligent melodrama into a crowd - pleasing whole .
sliding doors grants more than just a good time at the movies , however .
for those who are so inclined , its central theme offers an opportunity to ponder some of the more philosophical questions about the workings of the universe -- all while having a good time .
answer:
P


question:
when bulworth ended , i allowed myself a sigh of relief : ?
it is possible for me to enjoy political satire . ?
there have been several recent political films that did n't do a whole lot for me -- wag the dog , for instance , i found to be an intelligent but heartless film , while primary colors is unbearable and unwatchable in its awfulness . ?
bulworth is a far better film than these , both in its execution and lasting impression .
?
it 's a tremendously funny and intelligent picture , but it also has an emotional center -- writer / director / star warren beatty
allows the audience to identify with his character , and , in turn , we like him and actually care about the story . ?
beatty plays incumbent democratic senator jay billington bulworth ; the film opens and we see bulworth sobbing as he watches his television spots over and over again . ?
he has n't slept in days , nor has he eaten , and , almost instantaneously , he goes insane . ?
he 's not stark raving mad ( not outright , anyway ) , but he 's definitely bonkers .
?
it 's the final weekend of his campaign , and his assistant , murphy ( oliver platt ) has written him a speech to feed to a group of black people in a church in the ghetto . ?
bulworth begins the speech , but suddenly goes off track and just starts being honest . ?
"
you mean , " one lady asks , " the democratic party does n't care about the african american community ? " ?
" well , " he shouts , laughing , " is n't that obvious ?
"
the story is propelled by a device in which bulworth puts out a contract on his own life ( he muses later that it 's a bad thing to make decisions when you 're suicidal ) ; he keeps seeing a man in sunglasses ( graham beckel ) whom he believes to be the hitman . ?
bulworth also meets nina ( halle berry ) with whom he becomes infatuated . ?
suddenly , in the short span of this weekend , bulworth 's
no - nonsense " truth in politics " methods become a national sensation , and he shoots ahead in the polls despite the fact that he 's appearing on television wearing gang clothes and spewing more profanity than coherent sentences .
beatty 's work on both sides of the camera is excellent . ?
his script and direction are both extremely sharp , as is the surprisingly strong characterization of bulworth himself . ?
here is a man who 's reached his limit , and his way of lashing back is by screwing over the entire political structure . ?
i like
that the film does n't take a clear shot at any of the political parties or affiliations , but at politics in general and how everything is run by the rich ( although the anti - rich sentiments do get a bit tiresome by the end of the film ) . ?
some of the segments are simply hilarious , such as a lengthy rap that he delivers at a luncheon dedicated to him . ?
much of the film is completely absurd , but that 's the fun part about it .
?
it 's an angry , serious film at the core , but the package that beatty has created is so much more accessible
than recent attempts in the genre . ?
what adds to this feeling is beatty 's portrayal of bulworth ; this is a performance that deserves recognition on a higher scale . ?
beatty is so much fun to watch here -- he 's always funny , but he 's also subtle in ways that flesh out his character without dialogue or hugely noticeable actions . ?
beatty is so good that bulworth , despite his shortcomings as a human being , is an entirely sympathetic and likable character almost from the beginning .
the supporting cast is vast and colorful .
? berry is luminous , as always , and adds to her repertoire of solid supporting roles . ?
don
cheadle has a good role as a drug dealer who uses gun - toting toddlers to do his dirty work .
?
oliver
platt is an actor who should be careful , for someday i fear he may induce a heart attack with the intensity of his acting ( though he 's very funny to watch ) . ?
paul sorvino adds the southern accent to his list of mastered inflections .
is bulworth offensive ? ?
i suppose some may see it that way . ?
i was n't offended by the film , but then again , i hardly care about politics . ?
i think that people who find this film offensive will just be blindsided by the honesty of the story .
?
the film is n't perfect , of course -- the ending did n't quite work for me , and the a few of the scenes between bulworth and nina feel forced ( although the eclectic dance sequence is fantastic ) .
?
but these are minor quibbles about an otherwise brilliant film . ?
bulworth is a smart , uproariously funny picture that proves to me that political satire can scratch far deeper than the surface . ?
answer:

P