Sadly, said lines are a quote from the film, and not anything anyone has actually ever said about this comedy.
With a regular run of comedic roles in the 90s it seemed as if De Niro was taking a dramatic shift away from his regular persona. However, it's easy to overlook the fact that six of his first ten pictures were comedies, often so-so farces like The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight.
After reaching his zenith as an actor and performing his most famous roles (Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Deer Hunter et al) it was the dark comedies of The King of Comedy and Brazil that led him back into the genre. The decent but unremarkable Midnight Run followed, then this.
We're No Angels has a title reminiscent of some Cagneyesque piece (indeed, it was based on a play and previously made in 1955 with Bogart) yet also sounds like the kind of vehicle you could imagine Laurel and Hardy starring in. Fittingly, it's set in the 1930s and Penn's simple-minded expressions, especially in the final scene, are almost Laurelesque. But even Laurel and Hardy couldn't string an amusing feature-length picture out of two escaped convicts (as the less than great Pardon Us would attest) so De Niro and Penn are on a hiding to nothing.
We're No Angels is well acted, well directed and pretty well written. But it's a comedy with no laughs. A dramady, if you will. Yet after years of reading about this as De Niro's nadir, then... it's not that bad. Sure, he does mug a little too often in the vague approximation of a "comic" performance, but never enough to really grate. It's charming at times, engaging at others, and all the cast work well. Just don't expect to crack your face.
With a regular run of comedic roles in the 90s it seemed as if De Niro was taking a dramatic shift away from his regular persona. However, it's easy to overlook the fact that six of his first ten pictures were comedies, often so-so farces like The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight.
After reaching his zenith as an actor and performing his most famous roles (Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Deer Hunter et al) it was the dark comedies of The King of Comedy and Brazil that led him back into the genre. The decent but unremarkable Midnight Run followed, then this.
We're No Angels has a title reminiscent of some Cagneyesque piece (indeed, it was based on a play and previously made in 1955 with Bogart) yet also sounds like the kind of vehicle you could imagine Laurel and Hardy starring in. Fittingly, it's set in the 1930s and Penn's simple-minded expressions, especially in the final scene, are almost Laurelesque. But even Laurel and Hardy couldn't string an amusing feature-length picture out of two escaped convicts (as the less than great Pardon Us would attest) so De Niro and Penn are on a hiding to nothing.
We're No Angels is well acted, well directed and pretty well written. But it's a comedy with no laughs. A dramady, if you will. Yet after years of reading about this as De Niro's nadir, then... it's not that bad. Sure, he does mug a little too often in the vague approximation of a "comic" performance, but never enough to really grate. It's charming at times, engaging at others, and all the cast work well. Just don't expect to crack your face.