Wise Guys (1986) review

Best buddies (and next-door neighbors!) Harry (Danny DeVito) and Moe (Joe Piscopo) work as underlings for Tony Castelo (Dan Hedaya), a mob boss in Newark, but when they botch a bet they were supposed to place at the Meadowlands Racetrack and lose Tony money, the two of them take off for Atlantic City to hide, and while there they run into old acquaintance Bobby DiLea (Harvey Keitel), who just so happens to own the Resorts Casino Hotel.  De Palma has admitted he wished he didn't make this (writer-director Billy Wilder supposedly said even worse things about it after a screening) and I can see why: it's a ramshackle attempt at a parody of Mafia movies and the comedic timing is horrible - Piscopo, in particular, is a dead zone of laughter, and someone needed to calm down Captain Lou Albano (the big screen isn't a wrestling ring).  On the positive side, Certified National Treasure™ DeVito keeps it humming along with his overexuberance and Patti LuPone, one of the Legends of American Theatre, has a nice role playing his loyal wife.