Joe Gower's job is skating through library shelves, fetching books. A police officer/friend of his is chosen to participate in a charity dance performance. Gower agrees to take his place in the show by posing as a police officer. He falls for a female officer in the show and gets into various scrapes with fellow cops and also crooks. And he dances.
Acting
Judge Reinhold's floppy earnestness — peak himbo librarian cinema.
Writing
Preposterous premise executed with straight-faced commitment.
Production
Gritty NYC locations make the dance numbers accidentally surreal.
Director
Michael Dinner
Judge Reinhold
Joe Gower
Meg Tilly
Rachel Wareham
Cleavant Derricks
Abe Washington
Joe Mantegna
Pete Peterson
John Turturro
Neil Pepper
Amy Wright
Mary Ellen Gruenwald
Harvey Keitel
Mickey
Irving Metzman
Deluca
Jacques d'Amboise
August
James Tolkan
Harry
Julie Bovasso
Mrs. Wareham
Anthony Zerbe
Mr. Wareham
Fred Gwynne
The Commissioner
Victor Argo
Leon
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
This was Meg Tilly's first major film after her breakout in The Big Chill, and she took it specifically to prove she could do comedy.
The police charity dance show was based on real NYC events where actual cops performed — the film exaggerates nothing.
