In 1957, there was a big mob boss meeting to split up the country. It was broken up by the Feds. There was never another meeting until now. There is a big bosses' meeting for the survival of the mob coming up. Boss Paul Vitti (Robert De Niro) is in a mob war but his anxiety attacks prevent him from inflicting violence. Psychiatrist Ben Sobol (Billy Crystal) is tired of his patients' petty problems. His son is spying on his patients. His parents can't even come to his wedding to Miami TV reporter Laura (Lisa Kudrow). Ben rear ends into Vitti's man Jelly (Joe Viterelli) with a tied up victim in the truck. Ben gives him a business card and later Don Paul Vitti comes in to see Ben for his problems before the big meeting in 2 weeks.
De Niro is cashing in on his mobster persona to give it a different spin. That locks up that part of the movie. However the comedic aspect is surprisingly sparse considering the Harold Ramis name. Jelly provides a few good laughs. The DeNiro Crystal pairing doesn't come up with enough laughs unless DeNiro fake crying is funny to you. It's funny when DeNiro tries to tell the other boss his feeling. Considering this was made before The Sopranos, a psychiatrist and a mob boss is a pretty good idea. Harold Ramis doesn't milk enough big laughs. He just left too much on the table.
