''Forever, Lulu'' is a 1987 West German-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

Amos Kollek Amos Kollek (; born 15 September 1947) is an Israeli film director, writer and actor. Biography Amos Kollek was born in Jerusalem. He is the son of Teddy Kollek, the long-time mayor of Jerusalem. Kollek studied psychology and philosophy at the ...

, and starring

Hanna Schygulla Hanna Schygulla (; born 25 December 1943) is a German actress and chanson singer associated with the theater and film director Rainer Werner Fassbinder. She first worked for Fassbinder in 1965 and became an active participant in the New German ...

Deborah Harry Deborah Ann Harry (born Angela Trimble, July 1, 1945) is an American singer, songwriter and actress, best known as the lead vocalist of the band Blondie. Four of her songs with the band reached on the US charts between 1979 and 1981. Born in M ...

Wayne Knight Wayne Elliot Knight (born August 7, 1955) is an American actor. In television, he played recurring roles such as Newman on the NBC sitcom ''Seinfeld'' (1992–1998) and Officer Don Orville on the NBC sitcom ''3rd Rock from the Sun'' (1996� ...

and

Alec Baldwin Alexander Rae Baldwin III (born April 3, 1958) is an American actor and film producer. He is known for his leading and supporting roles in a variety of genres, from comedy to drama. He has received List of awards and nominations received by A ...

in his film debut. The film features

sex therapist Sex therapy is a therapeutic strategy for the improvement of sexual function and treatment of sexual dysfunction. This includes dysfunctions such as premature ejaculation and delayed ejaculation, erectile dysfunction, lack of sexual interest or a ...

Ruth Westheimer Karola Ruth Westheimer (née Siegel; June 4, 1928 – July 12, 2024), better known as Dr. Ruth, was a German and American sex therapist and talk show host. Westheimer was born in Germany to a Jewish family. As the Nazis came to power, her paren ...

. It was the final film starring

Beatrice Pons Beatrice Pons ( Posner; January 28, 1906 – June 17, 1991) was an American stage, radio, television and film character actress. She is best known for her recurring television roles on ''The Phil Silvers Show'' and ''Car 54, Where Are You?'' She a ...

and R. L. Ryan. In the film, a German woman works as a secretary in New York City, while trying to publish her novel. Within a few days, she is fired from her job, her manuscript is rejected, and she has a disastrous

blind date A blind date is a romantic meeting between two people who have never met before. Both parties arrange a date with little to no information about each other, hoping for the possibility of making a lasting impression. Typically, a family member or ...

. She has a mental breakdown and randomly waves a gun in the air. She is mistaken for a mugger, and a couple hands over their coats to her. The coats contain a signed photograph of a recent female acquaintance of the writer, and the writer unwittingly gets involved in a criminal case connected to this mystery woman.

Plot

The film centers on a German woman, Elaine Hines (

), living in New York City with aspirations of becoming a novelist. Reality settles in when Elaine loses her secretary job at a toilet seat company. Her agent calls her manuscript unsellable and not sexy enough before dropping her as a client. As if life couldn't get more unbearable for Elaine, her unexpected blind date turns disastrous. She runs out in the rain, waving a gun in the air in a mental breakdown. A couple sees her in the rain, assuming she has some violent tendencies. Afraid for their lives, they give Elaine their coats. Inside one of the coats' pockets is a picture of a blonde woman (

) she previously encountered, signed "Forever, Lulu" and an address. From this point, Elaine's life takes a crazy turn that involves gangsters, money, drugs, a handsome cop (

) and the mystery blonde in the photograph.

Box office information

According to

Box Office Mojo Box Office Mojo is an American website that tracks box-office revenue in a systematic, algorithmic way. The site was founded in 1998 by Brandon Gray, and was bought in 2008 by IMDb, which itself is owned by Amazon. History Brandon Gray ...

, ''Forever, Lulu'' grossed $36,786 in its brief North American theatrical run.

Home media

RCA/Columbia Pictures Home Video released ''Forever, Lulu'' on VHS in late 1987.

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Inc. (abbreviated as SPHE) is the home entertainment distribution division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony. Background SPHE is responsible for the distribution of the Sony Pictures libra ...

(successor to RCA/Columbia Pictures Home Video) officially released this on DVD in 2005. It was released by other home entertainment distributors under the alternate title, ''Crazy Streets''. Some DVD copies portrayed either Alec Baldwin or Deborah Harry on the cover, even though they are featured in supporting roles.

References

External links

* * 1987 films 1987 black comedy films 1980s comedy mystery films West German films American black comedy films American comedy mystery films 1980s English-language films English-language German films Films directed by Amos Kollek Films scored by Paul Chihara Films set in New York City Films shot in New York City TriStar Pictures films 1980s American films Films about writers English-language black comedy films English-language comedy mystery films {{1980s-US-film-stub