Lonely Hearts

Norman Kaye is turning 50, and has lived with his mother, taking care of her. She has recently passed, and he decides it is past time to have a life, outside of his piano tuning job, and his shoplifting hobby. He meets Wendy Hughes through a lonely hearts service.

DVD info from Amazon.

Widescreen anamorphic, 1.85:1
no meaningful features

Wendy is 40ish, has just finally left home, although her parents still won't let go. She has been seeing a therapist, who, among other things, is trying to convince her that being a 40 year old virgin isn't that odd, and sex is nothing to fear. There are several bumps along the road to their happiness, including the night she decides on a sleep-over, provided there is no sex. He gets carried away and tries anyway, which nearly ends the relationship for good.

The photography outside is very scenic and appealing. The inside sets are well decorated, but often dark.

The Critics Vote

Maltin 3/4

The People Vote ...

With their votes ... IMDB summary: IMDb voters score it 7.8

IMDb guideline: 7.5 usually indicates a level of excellence, about like three and a half stars from the critics. 6.0 usually indicates lukewarm watchability, about like two and a half stars from the critics. The fives are generally not worthwhile unless they are really your kind of material, about like two stars from the critics. Films under five are generally awful even if you like that kind of film, equivalent to about one and a half stars from the critics or less, depending on just how far below five the rating is.

My own guideline: A means the movie is so good it will appeal to you even if you hate the genre. B means the movie is not good enough to win you over if you hate the genre, but is good enough to do so if you have an open mind about this type of film. C means it will only appeal to genre addicts, and has no crossover appeal. D means you'll hate it even if you like the genre. E means that you'll hate it even if you love the genre. F means that the film is not only unappealing across-the-board, but technically inept as well.

Based on this description, this film is a C+. I enjoyed seeing this improbable romance between two middle-aged people discovering love for the first time, but it is probably not special enough to win over those who do not like romantic comedies.