''On the Run'' (

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

: ''Em Fuga'') is a 1999

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definit ...

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or 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. The term o ...

film directed by

Bruno de Almeida Bruno de Almeida (11 March 1965) is an independent filmmaker whose body of work navigates between fiction and documentaries. He is also a composer. He is New York City and Lisbon-based. Biography Bruno de Almeida was born in Paris of Portuguese ...

in his directorial debut. It stars

Michael Imperioli Michael Imperioli (born March 26, 1966) is an American actor, writer, and musician. He is best known for his role as Christopher Moltisanti in the HBO crime drama ''The Sopranos'' (1999–2007), which earned him the Primetime Emmy Award for Out ...

and

John Ventimiglia John Ventimiglia (, ) is an American actor. He portrayed Artie Bucco in the HBO television series ''The Sopranos'' and had a recurring role as Dino Arbogast, an Organized Crime Control Bureau Chief for the NYPD, on the American police procedur ...

and is written by

Joseph Minion Joseph Minion (born 1957) is an American screenwriter, producer and film director, best known for his screenplays for the 1985 film '' After Hours'' and the 1989 cult film ''Vampire's Kiss''. Biography Born in New Jersey in 1957, Minion briefl ...

, based on a story by de Almeida and Jonathan Berman. The film premiered in Portugal in January 1999 and was given a

limited theatrical release __FORCETOC__ Limited theatrical release is a film distribution strategy of releasing a new film in a few theaters across a country, typically art house theaters in major metropolitan markets. Since 1994, a limited theatrical release in the Unite ...

in the United States on June 2, 2000. It won the award for Best Film at the 1999 Ourense Film Festival in Spain and was nominated the Open Palm Award at the

Gotham Awards The Gotham Awards () are American film awards, presented annually to the makers of independent films at a ceremony in New York City, the city first nicknamed "Gotham" by native son Washington Irving, in an issue of ''Salmagundi'', published on ...

. It had its cable debut on The Independent Film Channel in 2001 and was released on DVD in 2002.

Premise

Albert is an introverted travel agent living a lonely life in New York City. When Louie, his best friend from childhood, appears having just escaped from prison, Albert's quiet existence is permanently disrupted. What ensues is one long, crazy night in New York that will change both their lives forever.

Cast

Reception

Lisa Nesselson of ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' wrote, "Mostly inventive, and consistently well played, this mismatched-buddy film boasts ample laughs and awkward situations that are easy to identify with, wacky though they are." Writing in the ''

New York Press ''New York Press'' was a free alternative weekly in New York City, which was published from 1988 to 2011. The ''Press'' strove to create a rivalry with the ''Village Voice''. ''Press'' editors claimed to have tried to hire away writer Nat Hento ...

'',

Matt Zoller Seitz Matt Zoller Seitz (born December 26, 1968) is an American film and television critic, author and film-maker. Career Matt Zoller Seitz is editor-at-large at RogerEbert.com, and the television critic for '' New York'' magazine and Vulture.com, as ...

said "the vibe is wonderfully fresh, and there isn't a dull or unpleasurable scene in the movie, thanks to De Almeida's ability to build spare but sustained comic setpieces and give the actors room to maneuver within them." He also praised the acting of the two male leads as well as the supporting cast. Portuguese publication '' Público'' similarly lauded the pairing of Imperioli and Ventimiglia and said they are given a "rare opportunity to shine as protagonists."

Awards

*1999 Ourense Independent Film Festival, Grand Prize for Best Feature - winner * 2000 Gotham Film Awards, Open Palm Award - nominated

Home media

''On the Run'' was released on DVD by Pathfinder Home Ent. on August 27, 2002.

References

External links

Official site
* * *{{AllMovie title, 180120
''On the Run'' trailer
at

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1999 films 1999 directorial debut films 1999 independent films 1999 comedy films 1990s buddy comedy films 1990s crime comedy films Films set in New York City American buddy comedy films