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Only the Lonely

PG-13 Released May 31, 1991 1h 45m Romance Comedy List
65% Tomatometer 23 Reviews 50% Popcornmeter 5,000+ Ratings
Rose (Maureen O'Hara) dearly loves her adult son, Danny (John Candy) -- but when Danny meets Theresa (Ally Sheedy) and falls deeply in love, Ruth feels threatened. Desperate not to lose her son to the shy young woman, Ruth uses dirty tactics to keep the two apart. Danny is perplexed as to what he should do, so he consults his friends Patrick (Kevin Dunn) and Sal (James Belushi), who give him some skewed advice. Now Danny is torn between what his loved ones advise, and what his heart tells him.

Critics Reviews

View All (23) Critics Reviews
Bob Thomas Associated Press Columbus... enhances the comedic bits with commentary on the human condition: the emergence of male-female love; the silver cord between mother and son; the plight of aging single men whose only ties are their pub companions. Jun 12, 2018 Full Review Owen Gleiberman Entertainment Weekly Rated: C Sep 7, 2011 Full Review Marc Savlov Austin Chronicle Rated: 2.5/5 Jan 1, 2000 Full Review Rene Jordan El Nuevo Herald (Miami) Ends with incredible sweetness. [Full review in Spanish] Dec 8, 2022 Full Review Tim Brayton Antagony & Ecstasy A pretty easy ride, almost entirely because of John Candy and the miraculous casting of Maureen O'Hara. Rated: 6/10 Nov 14, 2011 Full Review Brian Orndorf BrianOrndorf.com Orchestrates a peaceful stream of gags and one-liners while piecing together a puzzle of broken hearts...one of Columbus's best films, and easily ranks as Candy's most dimensional performance. He's a joy to watch here. Rated: B+ May 24, 2011 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (221) audience reviews
Munkhchimeg T The movie that shows really well about the insecurity and overcoming Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/20/24 Full Review Cristina G A fairy tale -- I love this! Who would know?! John Candy had leading-man charisma! And as for Ally Sheedy, ahhh, I had a big crush on her during the brat-pack days and after. Ally was a very talented and fascinating actress. I wish she had done more interesting work. (I re-watched this movie because of the doco "Brats".) Rated 5 out of 5 stars 06/26/24 Full Review Les L Aside from some racial stereotypes, the underlying story is great and directed well. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/09/24 Full Review S R Really great heartwarming movie from John Candy. Nice seeing him in a romantic comedy where he could show off some acting skills. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 12/05/23 Full Review Steve D Far more uncomfortable than funny. Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 02/24/23 Full Review Minerva S I love this movie. Candy is great & O'Hara sounds just like my mom (she would play the part exactly the same way, lol.) Rated 4 out of 5 stars 03/17/22 Full Review Read all reviews
Only the Lonely

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Cast & Crew

The Pick-Up Artist 58% 37% The Pick-Up Artist TRAILER for The Pick-Up Artist French Kiss 48% 75% French Kiss TRAILER for French Kiss Just Married 20% 47% Just Married L.A. Story 91% 75% L.A. Story Mr. Wonderful 52% 42% Mr. Wonderful Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

Movie Info

Synopsis Rose (Maureen O'Hara) dearly loves her adult son, Danny (John Candy) -- but when Danny meets Theresa (Ally Sheedy) and falls deeply in love, Ruth feels threatened. Desperate not to lose her son to the shy young woman, Ruth uses dirty tactics to keep the two apart. Danny is perplexed as to what he should do, so he consults his friends Patrick (Kevin Dunn) and Sal (James Belushi), who give him some skewed advice. Now Danny is torn between what his loved ones advise, and what his heart tells him.
Director
Chris Columbus
Producer
John Hughes, Hunt Lowry
Screenwriter
Chris Columbus
Distributor
20th Century Fox
Production Co
Hughes Entertainment, 20th Century Fox
Rating
PG-13
Genre
Romance, Comedy
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
May 31, 1991, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Nov 30, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA)
$19.9M
Runtime
1h 45m
Sound Mix
Stereo, Dolby SR, Surround
Aspect Ratio
35mm