Released in American cinemas on this day (15 January 1988): Rent-A-Cop. When Burt Reynolds and Liza Minnelli were originally teamed for the 1975 film Lucky Lady, the result was a notorious and expensive mega-flop. So, I could kiss on the lips whoever approved reuniting the duo for crime thriller / romantic comedy hybrid Rent-A-Cop, the acme of gleefully enjoyable 1980s schlock. When a police sting operation goes horrifically wrong, gruff tough-as-nails Detective Tony Church (Reynolds) joins forces with kooky free-spirited escort girl Della Roberts (Minnelli). Della, you see, witnessed the carnage and is the sole person who can identify masked gunman Adam "Dancer" Booth (played by James Remar. Sex and the City fans will recognise him as Samantha Jonesā on-off boyfriend Richard Wright). But not if Dancer kills her first! Or, as Rent-A-Copās tagline summarizes āThereās a killer on the loose and the lady is the target.ā Inevitably ā after some wacky hi-jinks - the sparring odd couple of Tony and Della gradually fall in love. Aside from a cameo appearance in The Muppets Take Manhattan, this represents Minnelliās first screen role after a gap of five years following her highly publicized stint at the Betty Ford Clinic. Awash in sequins and mugging furiously, this is certainly Minnelli at her most āMinnelliā. Dellaās sex work is depicted as a wholesome lark (she offers her johns the gamut of āhis mommy, Little Bo-Peep, or Helga the Bitch Goddessā. It should be noted that the same year, Minnelliās peer Barbra Streisand also unconvincingly played a prostitute in Nuts). Anyway, Rent-A-Cop abounds with āwhat-the-fuck?ā moments: Dancer inexplicably performs a sweaty homoerotic Flashdance-style number in front of a mirror. A bewigged drag queen at a nightclub accosts Della with āI love your muff!ā Guest star Dionne Warwick portrays Dellaās madam. Weirdly, Rent-A-Cop is set in Chicago, and exteriors were shot there but the interiors were filmed in Romeās CinecittĆ Studios. Reynolds and Minnelli were both nominated for the 1988 Golden Raspberry Awards for Worst Actor and Worst Actress (Minnelli won).
