"Sticky Fingers" stars Helen "Supergirl" Slater and Melanie "thirtysomething" Mayron as a couple of quirky but poor New York City street musicians who come upon a satchel filled with ill-gotten money.
Slater, who is stunningly pretty, also shows a surprisingly deft comic ability. And Mayron, an often dull actress, holds her own well in a film she co-wrote.
The supporting cast is also made up of beautiful comediennes, including the always adorably funny Carol Kane and the late Danitra Vance, the first black female "Saturday Night Live" cast member, who lost her life to breast cancer in 1994. I still swoon at her smile.
Late character actress Eileen Brennan also stands out as the leads' impatient landlord.
Though the movie was written and directed by women, co-writer/director Caitlin Adams is no Susan Seidelman or Joan Micklin Silver. Her director's hand is unsure. She allows what should be a humorous take on female empowerment to be undone by protagonists who are classic screwball-comedy bubbleheads, and a plot that devolves into a standard caper film.
But I love it for its '80s style, its funny leads and supporting cast (I'd watch Carol Kane read the phone book), and the funky way it captures my beloved New York City, in a similar to, but somewhat lesser way than Seidelman's "Desperately Seeking Susan" did.
But see, I've always found "Desperately Seeking Susan" a bit of a bore. "Sticky Fingers" is flawed, to be sure. But it's enjoyable enough to watch all the way through.
For me, more than once.
