''Off and Running'' is a 1991 American

comedy Comedy is a genre of dramatic works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. Origins Comedy originated in ancient Greec ...

mystery film A mystery film is a film that revolves around the solution of a problem or a crime. It focuses on the efforts of the detective, private investigator or amateur Detective, sleuth to solve the mysterious circumstances of an issue by means of clues, ...

directed by

Ed Bianchi Edward Bianchi (born April 24, 1942) is an American television director and television producer, producer. He is better known for his work on ''Deadwood (TV series), Deadwood'', ''Boardwalk Empire'', ''Yellowstone (American TV series), Yellowstone ...

, written by Mitch Glazer, and starring

Cyndi Lauper Cynthia Ann Stephanie Lauper ( ; born June 22, 1953) is an American singer, songwriter and actress. Known for her distinctive image, featuring a variety of hair colors and eccentric clothing, and for her powerful four-octave vocal range;Jerome, ...

and David Keith.

Orion Pictures Orion Releasing, LLC (Trade name, doing business as Orion Pictures) is an American film production and film distribution, distribution company owned by the Amazon MGM Studios subsidiary of Amazon (company), Amazon. It was founded in 1978 as Ori ...

originally had plans to give this movie a wide release but due to the company's financial problems at the time, the movie went straight to video in United States. However, in United Kingdom in was released in theaters on June 12, 1992 by Rank Film Distributors.

Plot

Lauper stars as a

mermaid In folklore, a mermaid is an aquatic creature with the head and upper body of a female human and the tail of a fish. Mermaids appear in the folklore of many cultures worldwide, including Europe, Latin America, Asia, and Africa. Mermaids are ...

-themed

lounge singer Lounge music is a type of easy listening music popular in the 1950s and 1960s. It may be meant to evoke in the listeners the feeling of being in a place, usually with a tranquil theme, such as a jungle, an island paradise or outer space. The ran ...

and actress who gets involved with a caring but troubled man (played by Jose Perez). Because of his involvement with

horse racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its bas ...

and breeding (and consequent

mafia "Mafia", as an informal or general term, is often used to describe criminal organizations that bear a strong similarity to the Sicilian Mafia, original Mafia in Sicily, to the Italian-American Mafia, or to other Organized crime in Italy, organiz ...

ties), the man is

murdered Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification or valid excuse committed with the necessary intention as defined by the law in a specific jurisdiction. ("The killing of another person without justification or excu ...

in front of her, and she goes on the lam to escape his killers. On the way, she takes on the company of a professional golfer and a rebellious pre-teen boy, and together they attempt to unravel the mystery behind her slain lover's past.

Cast

Release

The film was not widely distributed and coasted into notability mainly because of Lauper's involvement. It is generally available on VHS for less than a dollar. The film fared far better in other countries where Lauper's popularity has sustained. In Germany and Japan it was released under the title ''Moon Over Miami''.

Reception

Film critic Derek Elley from '' Variety'' gave it a negative review writing: A lame meld of comedy, thriller and romance, “Off and Running” doesn’t make it far out of the starting blocks.... With her pretzel voice and offbeat looks, Lauper still shows evidence of being a passable screwball thesp given a decent script and director, but she gets neither here.

References

External links

* {{IMDb title, 0102577, Off and Running 1991 films 1991 comedy films 1990s comedy mystery films 1990s English-language films American comedy mystery films English-language comedy mystery films Films about singers Films directed by Ed Bianchi Films scored by Mason Daring Films shot in Florida Films shot in New York City Films shot in West Virginia Films with screenplays by Mitch Glazer Mafia films Orion Pictures films 1990s American films