My Blue Heaven (1990 film)

Plot

Vinnie Antonelli is a former mobster recently inducted into the Witness Protection Program with his wife, Linda. The two are under the watchful eye of Barney Coopersmith. Vinnie and Barney soon find common ground when both of their wives leave them due to their lifestyles. When he succeeds in getting Vinnie to a suburb in California and a private house, Barney has one more problem: he must make sure the jovial and sometimes mischievous Vinnie conforms to Witness Protection protocol until he is sent to Federal Court to testify against mob kingpins. Doing this is not as simple as it appears to be.

Casting

Originally, Martin was cast to play Coopersmith, with Arnold Schwarzenegger playing the role of Antonelli. However, Schwarzenegger was soon thereafter offered the role of Det. John Kimble in Kindergarten Cop, and left the production. Failing to find another suitable "Vinnie" for Martin's Coopersmith, Martin offered to take on the role of Vinnie himself. Producers agreed, and then cast Rick Moranis as Coopersmith, who had originally been considered for the role, but was unavailable until then.

Filming

Principal photography took place primarily in the California cities of San Luis Obispo, Atascadero, Paso Robles, and the surrounding area, though the nominal setting is a fictional suburb of San Diego, California. Some scenes were shot in San Diego. The film's title comes from the famous song which appears on the soundtrack, performed by Fats Domino.

Music

The film's score was composed by Ira Newborn.

1. "My Blue Heaven" (Music: Walter Donaldson, Lyrics: George A. Whiting) - Fats Domino
2. "Surfin' U.S.A." (Chuck Berry and Brian Wilson) - The Beach Boys
3. "Stranger in Paradise" (Robert Wright and George Forrest) - Tony Bennett
4. "I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch)" (Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier, and Eddie Holland) - Billy Hill
5. "The Boy from New York City" (John Taylor and George Davis) - The Ad Libs
6. "New York, New York" (John Kander and Fred Ebb)
7. "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" (Albert von Tilzer and Jerry Northworth)
8. "The Star-Spangled Banner" - United States Marine Band

Box office

My Blue Heaven opened in 1,859 venues on August 17, 1990 and earned $6,207,092 in its debut, ranking fourth in the North American box office and second among the week's new releases. It closed with a domestic gross of $23,591,472.

Critical response

The film was coolly received by critics. It holds a 71% score on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes based on 17 reviews, with an average of 5.6/10. Metacritic reports a 35 out of 100 score based on 14 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews". The New York Times said the film was "a truly funny concept and a disappointment on the screen."