Kind-hearted social worker Jack Palmer feels guilty about not spending enough time with his wife due to the pressures of his job taking care of four developmentally disabled men: obsessive-compulsive Norman, bipolar Arnold, childlike Lucien, and schizophrenic Barry. When Jack announces his decision to leave his job, his four charges react quite unexpectedly to the news.
The Boys Next Door is a 1996 American made-for-television drama film based on a play by Tom Griffin which was published in 1983 under the title Damaged Hearts, Broken Flowers and again in 1988 under the title The Boys Next Door. The movie was produced by Hallmark Entertainment as a Hallmark Hall of Fame film.