# Moonstruck

Moonstruck is a 1987 American romantic comedy film directed by Norman Jewison and written by John Patrick Shanley. It stars Cher as a widowed Italian American woman who falls in love with her fiancé's hot-tempered, estranged younger brother, played by Nicolas Cage. The supporting cast includes Danny Aiello, Olympia Dukakis and Vincent Gardenia.
Moonstruck had a limited theatrical release on December 18, 1987, and was released nationally on January 15, 1988 by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The film earned critical and commercial success. It received six nominations at the 60th Academy Awards, winning three for Best Actress (Cher), Best Supporting Actress (Dukakis), and Best Original Screenplay (Shanley).

## Plot

Loretta Castorini, an Italian-American widow, works as a bookkeeper and lives in Brooklyn Heights with her parents, Cosmo and Rose, and her paternal grandfather. Loretta's boyfriend, Johnny Cammareri, proposes to her before leaving for Sicily to tend to his dying mother. Loretta accepts, but she insists on carefully following tradition as she believes failing to do so originally led to her first husband's sudden death after two years of marriage.
Johnny asks Loretta to invite his estranged younger brother Ronny to the wedding; Ronny and Johnny have not spoken in five years. Loretta returns home and informs her parents of the engagement. Cosmo, who runs a successful plumbing business, dislikes Johnny and is reluctant to pay for Loretta's planned "real" wedding. Hearing that Loretta likes but does not love Johnny, Rose tells her that true love can cause romantic partners to be easily hurt by each other.
Loretta goes to see Ronny at the bakery he owns and learns Ronny has a wooden prosthetic hand caused by absentmindedly putting his hand in a bread slicer while having a conversation with Johnny; Ronny's fiancée subsequently left him. Loretta insists that they talk privately. They go to Ronny's apartment, where Loretta cooks a meal, and both have several alcoholic beverages. Loretta compares Ronny to a wolf that would gnaw off its paw to escape a trap and claims he deliberately injured his hand to escape a bad relationship. Ronny reacts furiously and passionately, kissing Loretta; to her surprise, Loretta kisses him back. Ronny carries Loretta to his bed, where they make love.
That evening, Rose's brother Raymond and his wife Rita join Rose, Cosmo, and Cosmo’s father for dinner and they wonder where Loretta is. Raymond recalls a particularly bright moon that he believes was in the sky when Cosmo was courting Rose, which Loretta and Ronny witness as well. The next morning, Loretta is overcome with guilt, but Ronny promises to never bother her again if she attends a performance of La bohème at the Met with him. Loretta goes to church to confess her infidelity and afterwards calls at Raymond and Rita's store to close out the cash register. Upon leaving, she impulsively goes to a hair salon and buys a glamorous evening gown and shoes at a boutique.
Loretta is deeply moved by La bohème. While leaving the opera, she sees Cosmo, accompanied by his mistress, Mona, and confronts him. As Loretta is with Ronny, Cosmo suggests that Loretta keep their encounter a secret. Loretta attempts to return home, but Ronny desperately persuades her into another tryst. That same night, Rose dines alone at a restaurant and sees a college professor, Perry, being dramatically dumped by a female student.
Taking pity on Perry, Rose invites him to dine with her instead, allowing him to walk her home but refusing to invite him in because she is loyal to her marriage. Later, Johnny unexpectedly returns from Sicily after his mother's "miraculous" recovery and meets with Rose at the Castorini house. They agree that men chase after women for fear of death.
Returning home next morning, Loretta is distressed to learn from Rose that Johnny will be there soon. Ronny arrives, and Rose invites him for breakfast over Loretta's objections. Cosmo and Grandpa emerge from upstairs; Grandpa insists that Cosmo agree to pay for Loretta's wedding. Rose then confronts Cosmo and demands that he end his affair; he is upset but gives in and, at Rose's insistence, also agrees to go to confession. Both reaffirm their love for each other.
Raymond and Rita arrive, concerned that Loretta had not deposited the previous day's takings at the bank, and are relieved to learn that she merely forgot and still has the money. When Johnny finally arrives, he breaks off the engagement, superstitiously believing that their marriage would cause his mother's death. Loretta berates Johnny for breaking his promise and throws the engagement ring at him. Ronny borrows the ring and asks Loretta to marry him, to which she agrees. The family toasts the couple with champagne and Johnny joins in at Grandpa's urging, since he will now be part of the family after all.

## Cast

* Cher as Loretta Castorini
* Nicolas Cage as Ronny Cammareri
* Olympia Dukakis as Rose Castorini
* Vincent Gardenia as Cosmo Castorini
* Danny Aiello as Mr. Johnny Cammareri
* Julie Bovasso as Rita Cappomagi
* Louis Guss as Raymond Cappomagi
* John Mahoney as Perry
* Feodor Chaliapin as Old Man
* Anita Gillette as Mona
* Leonardo Cimino as Felix
* Paula Trueman as Lucy
* Nada Despotovich as Chrissy
* Joe Grifasi as Shy Waiter
* Gina DeAngeles as Old Crone
* Robin Bartlett as Barbara
* Helen Hanft as Lotte
* David S. Howard as Irv
* Robert Weil as Bobo
* Patricia Magrini as Benjamin's Secretary

## Reception
### Box office

On its wide release, the film finished third at the US box office and spent 20 nonconsecutive weeks in the top 10 and finally grossed $80.6 million in the United States and Canada. Internationally it grossed $41.5 million for a worldwide total of $122.1 million, on a budget of $15 million.

### Critical response

Moonstruck received critical acclaim upon release. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 89% based on reviews from 76 critics, with an average score of 7.8/10. The site's consensus read, "Led by energetic performances from Nicolas Cage and Cher, Moonstruck is an exuberantly funny tribute to love and one of the decade's most appealing comedies." On Metacritic, the film has a score of 83 out of 100 based on reviews from 18 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale.
Time wrote, "John Patrick Shanley's witty, shapely script puts an octet of New Yorkers under a lunar-tuney spell one romantic night. Cher shines brightest of all." Roger Ebert, who later added the film among his "Great Movies" list, said: "Reviews of the movie tend to make it sound like a madcap ethnic comedy, and that it is. But there is something more here, a certain bittersweet yearning that comes across as ineffably romantic, and a certain magical quality". Film historian Leonard Maltin gave the picture 4 out of 4 stars.
Gene Siskel, writing for the Chicago Tribune, recommended "Moonstruck, which is being sold as a romance but actually is one of the funniest pictures to come out in quite some time. [...] You will not easily forget this incredibly robust family, created by writer John Patrick Shanley and directed by Norman Jewison, who makes a comeback with this uproarious film."
It appeared on both Siskel's and Ebert's Top 10 lists for 1987.

## Accolades

| Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result |
| Academy Awards | Best Picture | Norman Jewison and Patrick Palmer | Nominated |
| Academy Awards | Best Director | Norman Jewison | Nominated |
| Academy Awards | Best Actress | Cher | Won |
| Academy Awards | Best Supporting Actor | Vincent Gardenia | Nominated |
| Academy Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Olympia Dukakis | Won |
| Academy Awards | Best Original Screenplay | John Patrick Shanley | Won |
| American Comedy Awards | Funniest Actress in a Motion Picture (Leading Role) | Cher | Nominated |
| American Comedy Awards | Funniest Supporting Male Performer – Motion Picture or TV | Vincent Gardenia | Nominated |
| American Comedy Awards | Funniest Supporting Female Performer – Motion Picture or TV | Olympia Dukakis | Won |
| Artios Awards | Outstanding Achievement in Feature Film Casting – Comedy | Howard Feuer | Won |
| ASCAP Film and Television Music Awards | Top Box Office Films | Dick Hyman | Won |
| Berlin International Film Festival | Golden Bear | Norman Jewison | Nominated |
| Berlin International Film Festival | Best Director | Norman Jewison | Won |
| British Academy Film Awards | Best Actress in a Leading Role | Cher | Nominated |
| British Academy Film Awards | Best Actress in a Supporting Role | Olympia Dukakis | Nominated |
| British Academy Film Awards | Best Original Screenplay | John Patrick Shanley | Nominated |
| British Academy Film Awards | Best Film Music | Dick Hyman | Nominated |
| David di Donatello Awards | Best Foreign Actress | Cher | Won |
| David di Donatello Awards | Best Foreign Screenplay | John Patrick Shanley | Nominated |
| Golden Globe Awards | Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy | Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy | Nominated |
| Golden Globe Awards | Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy | Nicolas Cage | Nominated |
| Golden Globe Awards | Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy | Cher | Won |
| Golden Globe Awards | Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture | Olympia Dukakis | Won |
| Golden Globe Awards | Best Screenplay – Motion Picture | John Patrick Shanley | Nominated |
| Japan Academy Film Prize | Outstanding Foreign Language Film | Outstanding Foreign Language Film | Nominated |
| Jupiter Awards | Best International Actress | Cher | Nominated |
| Kansas City Film Critics Circle Awards | Best Film | Best Film | Won |
| Kansas City Film Critics Circle Awards | Best Actress | Cher | Won |
| Kansas City Film Critics Circle Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Olympia Dukakis | Won |
| Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Olympia Dukakis | Won |
| Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards | Best Screenplay | John Patrick Shanley | Runner-up |
| Nastro d'Argento | Best Foreign Actress | Cher | Won |
| Nastro d'Argento | Best Female Dubbing | Ludovica Modugno (for dubbing Cher) | Won |
| National Board of Review Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Olympia Dukakis | Won |
| New York Film Critics Circle Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Olympia Dukakis | Runner-up |
| Sant Jordi Awards | Best Foreign Actress | Cher | Nominated |
| Writers Guild of America Awards | Best Screenplay – Written Directly for the Screen | John Patrick Shanley | Won |
In June 2008, AFI revealed its "Ten top Ten"—the best ten films in ten "classic" American film genres—after polling over 1,500 people from the creative community. Moonstruck was acknowledged as the eighth best film in the romantic comedy genre. The film is also number 72 on Bravo's "100 Funniest Movies," and number 41 on AFI's 100 Years... 100 Laughs.
The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists:
* 2000: AFI's 100 Years...100 Laughs – #41
* 2002: AFI's 100 Years...100 Passions – #17
* 2005: AFI's 100 Years...100 Movie Quotes:
** Loretta Castorini: "Snap out of it!" – #96
* 2008: AFI's 10 Top 10:
** #8 Romantic Comedy Film
Influential film critic Roger Ebert entered the film to his "Great Movies" collection in June 2003.

## Soundtrack

| Song | Artist | Notes |
| That's Amore | Dean Martin | Harry Warren, Jack Brooks |
| Canzone Per Loretta/Addio, Mulberry Street | Jack Zaza (mandolin) | Dick Hyman |
| Mr. Moon | | Dick Hyman |
| It Must Be Him | Vikki Carr | Gilbert Bécaud, Mack David, Maurice Vidalin |
| Old Man Mazurka | Dominic Cortese (accordion) | Dick Hyman |
| Lament for Johnny's Mama | | Dick Hyman |
| Che gelida manina | Ed Bickert (guitar) | Giacomo Puccini |
| Donde lieta uscì | Renata Tebaldi | Giacomo Puccini |
| Canzone Per Loretta | | Dick Hyman |
| O soave fanciulla | Carlo Bergonzi, Renata Tebaldi | Giacomo Puccini |
| Musetta's Waltz | Moe Koffman (alto saxophone) | Giacomo Puccini |
| Musetta's Entrance | Nora Shulman (flute) | Giacomo Puccini |
| La bohème (instrumental excerpts) | | Giacomo Puccini |
| (In Loretta's Bedroom) Gettin' Ready | Moe Koffman (alto saxophone) | Dick Hyman |
| Brooklyn Heights Stroll | | Dick Hyman |
| Beautiful Signorina | | Dick Hyman |
| Moonglow | | Eddie DeLange, Will Hudson, Irving Mills |
| Canzone Per Loretta | Dominic Cortese (accordion) | Dick Hyman |
| Gioventù mia, tu non sei morta (La bohème, act 2) | Carlo Bergonzi, Cesare Siepi, Ettore Bastianini, Fernando Corena, Gianna D'Angelo, Renata Tebaldi, Renato Cesari | Giacomo Puccini |
$^{Soundtrackreferences:}$