'' Moonstruck '' is a 1987 American romantic comedy film directed by Norman Jewison and written by John Patrick Shanley . It is about a widowed , 37-year-old , Italian-American woman who falls in love with her fiancé 's estranged , hot-tempered younger brother . The film was released on December 16 , 1987 in New York City , and then nationally on January 15 , 1988 . It was nominated for six Oscars at the 60th Academy Awards , winning for Best Original Screenplay , Best Actress ( Cher ) , and Best Supporting Actress ( Olympia Dukakis ) . Thirty-seven-year-old Loretta Castorini , an Italian-American widow , lives in Brooklyn Heights , New York , with her family : father Cosmo ; mother Rose ; and paternal grandfather . Her boyfriend , Johnny Cammareri , proposes to her before leaving for Sicily to be with his dying mother ; Loretta is insistent that they carefully follow tradition as she believes her first marriage was cursed by her failure to do so , resulting in her husband 's death after two years . Johnny asks Loretta to invite his estranged younger brother Ronny to the wedding . Loretta returns home and informs her parents of the engagement . Cosmo dislikes Johnny and is reluctant to pay for the " real " wedding that Loretta insists on , while Rose is pleased that Loretta likes Johnny but does not love him ; she believes that one can easily be hurt by a partner whom one loves
60th Academy Awards
60th Academy Awards
Moonstruck