Yearnings and Burnings in 1987’s ‘Nice Girls’

For Young April Flowers, dating is a minefield where one false move can spell disaster in a quirky 1987 comedy called “Nice Girls Don’t Explode.”

It appears that April (Michelle Meyrink) has the uncontrollable ability to start fires with her mind whenever she becomes sexually aroused, and after several disastrous nights out on the town, she concludes that the only men she’ll ever see more than once are firefighters.

Although April longs to live a normal social life, her overprotective mother constantly reminds her that she is anything but normal. For instance, when mom (Barbara Harris) tells her to bring “protection” on a date, she means a fire extinguisher.

After yet another date’s car explodes like the Hindenburg, April is ready to give up, but then her long-lost childhood boyfriend and international Ping-Pong champion, Andy (William O’Leary), re-enters her life. Only he believes there’s another explanation for all the fires and is willing to risk becoming a charcoal briquette to find out if he’s right.

Wallace Shawn turns in a wonderful performance as “Ellen,” a frustrated male arsonist with no friends, who also falls for little Miss Firestarter. Harris is also exceptional, portraying April’s mother as a cheery June Cleaver type hiding a self-serving dark side.

Although it’s a parable about sexual repression and the trials of adolescence, “Nice Girls Don’t Explode” doesn’t take itself too seriously and is a comedy tamer than the subject matter might suggest.

“Nice Girls Don’t Explode” (1987), directed by Chuck Martinez. 92 minutes. Rated PG.