Watch Shoot the Moon

Shoot the Moon is a heartbreaking family drama directed by Alan Parker, released in 1982. The movie stars an impressive cast, including Albert Finney, Diane Keaton, Karen Allen, and Peter Weller. It tells the story of a couple, George and Faith Dunlap, who face the disintegration of their marriage and the effect it has on their four daughters.

The film begins with George, a successful novelist, and his wife, Faith, still in love and seemingly content with their life together. They live in a scenic farmhouse in rural Northern California with their daughters, Caroline, Kristy, Andy, and Molly. The family is a tight-knit unit as Faith is a devoted wife and mother, and George is an involved father who shares the duties of caring for the girls with his wife.

However, the idyllic life the Dunlap family created gradually starts to unravel. George becomes smitten with a young woman named Sandy, and his wandering eye causes strife in the marriage. Despite Faith's desperate attempts to save their relationship, George leaves her for Sandy, a move that sends Faith spiraling into an emotional crisis.

With their marriage over, George and Faith decide to end their relationship as amicably as possible so as not to cause undue trauma to their daughters. But that proves easier said than done as the couple's continued involvement in each other's lives creates complications.

The separation creates chaos at home, particularly as Faith struggles to find her footing as a single parent. While George is busy starting a new life with Sandy, Faith is dealing with the difficulties of raising four headstrong daughters alone.

The film shoots forward in time, and the girls are older, but their parents' separation still hangs over them. The oldest daughter, Caroline, is estranged from her father, while Kristy retreats into her own world of obsessive-compulsive behavior. Andy, the third daughter, seems to be the most well-adjusted, but her life is not without struggles. And then there's the youngest daughter Molly, who is still a pre-teen but starts to see that her parents were not always right about one another.

Despite everything, both George and Faith are still very much present in their daughters' lives, and they're all still trying to navigate the consequences of their parents' break-up. As the film nears its conclusion, the two parents are compelled to confront each other about what caused their marriage to break down, a confrontation that provides a powerful, emotionally charged climax.

Overall, Shoot the Moon is an emotionally complex and thought-provoking film that explores the fallout of a broken marriage on both parents and their children. It's a deeply moving portrayal of the relationships between family members, and how the actions of one member can have a significant impact on everyone else in the family.

The performances of the cast are superb, particularly those of Diane Keaton and Albert Finney, who bring an incredible depth of emotion to their roles. The younger actresses playing the Dunlap daughters are also excellent, able to convey the confusion and distress that comes from trying to make sense of their parents' separation.

In sum, Shoot the Moon is a poignant and raw film that is sure to resonate with anyone who has experienced the pain of a family breakdown. It's an understated masterpiece that deserves to be seen by anyone interested in exploring the complexities of human relationships.

Shoot the Moon is a 1982 drama with a runtime of 2 hours and 4 minutes. It has received mostly positive reviews from critics and viewers, who have given it an IMDb score of 6.8 and a MetaScore of 68.