In Marin County, California, writer George Dunlap and his wife Faith are an unhappy couple who live with their daughters Sherry, Jill, Marianne, and Molly in a farmhouse that George has refurbished.

It later competed for the Palme d'Or at the 1982 Cannes Film Festival, and received two Golden Globe Award nominations for Best Actor – Drama (Finney) and Best Actress – Drama (Keaton).

Shoot the Moon premiered on Februto mostly positive reviews, but was deemed a box-office failure, having grossed only $9.2 million in North America. Principal photography lasted 62 days, in the period from January to April 1981, on location in Marin County. After an unsuccessful pre-production development at Fox, Parker moved the project to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, which provided a budget of $12 million. Parker learned of the script as he was developing Fame (1980), and he later worked with Goldman to rewrite it. He spent several years trying to secure a major film studio to produce it before taking it to 20th Century Fox. Goldman began writing the script in 1971, deriving inspiration from his encounters with dysfunctional couples.

The title of the film alludes to the move of 'shooting the moon' in the card game hearts. Set in Marin County, California, the film follows George (Finney) and Faith Dunlap (Keaton), whose deteriorating marriage, separation and love affairs devastate their four children. It stars Albert Finney, Diane Keaton, Karen Allen, Peter Weller and Dana Hill. Shoot the Moon is a 1982 American drama film directed by Alan Parker, and written by Bo Goldman.

Shoot the Moon by Isa Arsén