Summer of '42

I remember when I first saw this film when I was younger and remembering how great it was, even now watching it I still really love this film.

The score is so gorgeous I had to see it. But it's not what I expected. There's an overdose of sex (all the funny parts come from that--comic relief is needed for a sad movie). It is advertised as "innocent" but SPOILER ALERT Dorothy and Hermie make love when she knows he's underage. And I really needed a break from Oscy's sex obsession. It's fun, but we don't need to talk about it all the time. Could have been better if they were not throwing "rubbers" at you every ten minutes. The whole thing was about bad romance. They should tone it down some.

I was quite young at the time when I first saw "Summer of '42," and at the time, I really didn't know the true meaning behind such a film. But, when I finally saw it last night for the first time since, my whole perception changed. The story of a wide-eyed, 15-year-old boy who spends his summer vacation in New England, Hermie, the main character, embarks on a rather brief journey on discovering the dynamics of growing up and understanding women with his two closest friends. While doing so, Hermie falls for a much older, beautiful woman, other than meeting other girls his age, like his friends. Hermie is so charismatic, yet vulnerable in this role. It is such an incredibly beautiful, well-crafted tale of pure innocence, and one coming into their own as they face adulthood.

What a stunning piece of craftmanship. A masterpiece. Such innocence. Such humanity. Such wisdom. Such truth. Such is the need to touch the soul of another, and such is the need to seek comfort. Yet tenderness risks so much. Oh to be tender again. Yet who could bear it again? I remember what a splash this movie made. I don't really recall that I was told or even understood why, and of course I wasn't taken to see it at that age, at that time, when it was common to keep children ignorant of much they are not today. I'm not sure now that it wasn't the craving of the parents to let themselves drown in the strangeness that is naivety prolonged too long just for the sake of innocence itself rather then some strange desire to protect the children from things they could already begin to feel within themselves but were not allowed to mention or ask about. Though the latter is, even today, what is trumpeted about as the reason for shielding children from things they might not be ready for, I'm beginning to wonder if it isn't really the parents who are just protecting themselves, trying to squeeze out more childhood days from their children for the parents to enjoy before they must finally release their darling children into the fray that tides upon the whims of nature and destiny. One might say it is simply about a couple of 15 year old boys coming of age. But it is more than that. So much more. In fact, without question, it is about the human condition itself. This is a movie about sex, no doubt about that either. But a movie of a kind that I don't think I've ever seen before. Everyone should see this film. Everyone. If you live alone, see it and feel your own soul's needs. If you live with someone, see it together and draw him or her close. Above all, when it is over, you will find yourself remembering and feeling that rarest of all feelings, true tenderness. The young men should have received Oscars, and without question so too should have the woman.

It captures Hermie's thoughts very well. The acting is fabulous and you really feel a great deal of compassion and attachment to the main characters. Except for Oscy, who is a douche sometimes.