As the title says, this film is very moving, emotionally. So moving in fact, that it stayed with me for days after I saw it for the first time. Personally, I was initially sucked into this movie by the soundtrack. Some of the best songs from the mid-1960's are included in this picture. However, the soundtrack was not the only compelling aspect. This movie tended to be a lot more realistic than your average romantic film.
This movie really allows the audience to ride the emotional roller-coaster right along with Jill (Rosanna Arquette) and Sheik (Vincent Spano), as they experience the peaks and valleys of first love. On top of that, the characters are very easy to relate to because we've all been there at one time or another with our own relationships. Although the movie is set in 1966-67, the underlying theme of the trials and tribulations of first love is something every generation can identify with.
Although the storyline tends to slightly lose some steam after graduation, it gives the audience a chance to see life after high school for both Jill and Sheik, and how both of them deal with post-graduation life both together and separately. Even this part of movie (which I refer to as the second half) had some unexpected twists in store for the audience.
Rosanna Arquette and Vincent Spano both turn in wonderful performances as the two lead characters. I honestly couldn't imagine the film with different actors playing those roles. The only thing I never understood was why the movie itself didn't get the push it so richly deserved, when it was initially released. It could have been a real sleeper hit, had it been promoted properly. However, that shouldn't take away from the overall quality of this film.
