Only the Lonely

Chicago policeman Danny Muldoon (Candy) is bored. His working day is spent with a loutish partner (Belushi), while evenings are devoted to his cantankerous mother (O'Hara). Even this is more exciting than the existence suffered by Theresa (Sheedy), who spends her day making-up corpses in the local morgue. She overcomes painful shyness, and the unlikely couple fall in love, much to the annoyance of Danny's mother. It's ultimatum time: move with Mom to Florida, or marry his girlfriend. Writer-director Columbus never really hits his stride (is this a drama about overcoming loneliness, or a comedy about a domineering mother?). Worse, he can't resist indulging in overwrought fantasy sequences which, far from being funny, serve to undermine the prevailing tender mood. The performances, at least, are fine, particularly the exchanges between O'Hara and Quinn as her patient suitor.