MURPHY SHINES IN `PROFESSOR'.

Byline: Amy Dawes Daily News Staff Writer

In ``The Nutty Professor,'' there's a moment when Eddie Murphy is mugging and preening so fiercely that he pops a blood vessel and claps a hand to his forehead, laughing at himself. That pretty much describes what goes on here, as Murphy makes a mighty effort to re-establish himself as a one-man comedic powerhouse, and succeeds quite winningly, despite the limitations of this erratic remake.

The basic story line of Jerry Lewis' 1963 Jekyll and Hyde comedy, in which a frumpy university scientist drinks a potion to transform himself into a dazzling but obnoxious ladies' man, offers Murphy a showcase in which to draw on all the gifts at his disposal, including his considerable manic energy.

He aims low, to be sure, and hits the target squarely, but the sheer entertainment and inspiration provided by the star, who dominates the screen in a variety of roles, should be enough to win back the audience that has waned since Murphy's early-1980s heyday.

To call this comedy broad would be its own joke, since Murphy plays blimpy, big-butt professor Sherman Klump - a rather astonishing impersonation that no doubt required heroic sessions in the makeup chair. The well-padded Klump, portrayed with a rumbly deep voice and the kind of good humor and sensitivity one doesn't expect from Murphy, is the movie's most winning element and best visual joke.

There's also the svelte, wildly obnoxious Buddy Love, who emerges after Klump, desperately in love with a sweet, shapely new teacher (Jada Pinkett), drinks a reducing potion he's been developing in the lab.

Love is a blast at first in his exuberance over his athleticism and sex appeal, then increasingly grating as director Tom Shadyac drives him toward the movie's force-fed conclusion.

Shadyac directed ``Ace Ventura: Pet Detective,'' the vehicle that vaulted Jim Carrey to movie stardom, and Carrey's pace-setting influence is keenly apparent in ``Nutty'' (the movie, in its elastic visual effects and outrageous color schemes, also reflects Carrey's ``The Mask'').

As Buddy Love, Murphy performs like he's trying to beat Carrey at his own frenetic game. That's not necessarily a good thing, though it's appropriate, since Jerry Lewis, who is considered Carrey's antecedent, originated the role.

Still, Carrey's blithe spirit can make his excesses palatable; Murphy's urban sharpness can make Buddy's fierce mugging and manipulating seem aggressive, shrill and hysterical. It's a relief when the monster gets corked up again, though his defeat in the service of the movie's simplistic, throwaway ending is not much to crow over.

Which is not to say the movie doesn't serve Murphy well. Buddy Love's rapier wit when he thrashes an acidic stand-up comic (Dave Chappelle) in a nightclub is a bravura scene to outdo Steve Martin's 25 nose jokes in ``Roxanne.''

And in the movie's most uproarious scenes, Murphy plays five members (including his mother and grandmother) of the food-loving Klump family as they gather to feed their faces and indulge in the most outrageous, rollicking dinner conversation imaginable.

Also astonishing - and likely to escape most viewers - is that it's Murphy who's portraying the flamboyant TV aerobics guru, who's not only white, but a Richard Simmons clone.

Yes, it's true - this movie contains the single biggest flatulence joke likely ever to dim an American movie screen - and that will repel as many moviegoers as it will appeal to.

But it aims to entertain, and has comic brilliance at its core. With his sheer audacity, sweat and verve, Murphy gives his all to win back the spotlight. He delivers, and deserves applause.

THE FACTS The film: ``The Nutty Professor'' (PG-13; sexual references).

The stars: Eddie Murphy, Jada Pinkett, Larry Miller, James Coburn, Dave Chappelle, John Ales.

Behind the scenes: Directed by Tom Shadyac. Written by David Sheffield, Barry Blaustein, Tom Shadyac and Steve Oedekerk, based on the movie ``The Nutty Professor.'' Produced by Brian Grazer and Russell Simmons.

Playing: Citywide.

Our rating: Three Stars.

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2 Photos

Photo: (1--Cover--Color) BODY LANGUAGE

Eddie Murphy is l iving large in `The Nutty Professor'

(2) Eddie Murphy plays a frumpy scientist who undergoes a major change in ``The Nutty Professor.''