Right from beginning to end, ths movie is so filled with just about every character following rules that clearly are so restrictive on their lives. This makes the movie very funny, enjoyable and accessible, yet incredibly profound. The huge exception to this when the character played by Nicholoas Cage tells a confused woman (Cher) something like "Life is not a storybook, that you can look up to see what to do next. Love is about destroying life ... ..."
In the context of the movie, these audacious words, just hit out, with an irresistable invitation to vitality - a vivid contrast to following rules blindly (fusion) without any reference to values. The mother with her more philosophical approach would seem to be a contrast to blind rule following, however this is at the cost of avoiding strong emotions (and whatever actions) at her husbands behaviours.