THE CARELESS YEARS (1957)

 Acclaimed director Arthur Hiller made his feature film debut with THE CARELESS YEARS. Not a bad little film, although at times it resembles one of those educational movies we Baby Boomer types had to sit through in the 1950's and 1960's. Movies with titles like: How Going Steady Can Ruin Your Life Before You Even Know What Hit You. Or, Making Out:: How It Leads To Lust, Sin, And Unending Social Degradation. And no, I'm not kidding. (OK, maybe a little.)

Jerry Vernon (Dean Stockwell) and Emily Meredith (Natalie Trundy) are two decent teenagers who meet at a party and start dating. In no time at all sexual attraction rears its ugly head and the kids are all over each other. Racked with guilt and confusion, Emily talks to her mother (Barbara Billingsley), who in turn talks to Emily's father (John Stevenson). Dad's solution to the problem is to move the family across the country in order to preserve his daughter's virginity and prevent her from ruining her life. Meanwhile, Jerry also talks to his parents (John Larch and Virginia Christine). His blue collar father has been saving money for Jerry's college education and urges his son to be sensible and not to ruin HIS life. But Jerry has decided he and Emily should get married, even though they are both seventeen and still in high school. Jerry withdraws the money his father had been saving for him and rents a cheap apartment for he and Emily to live in after they run off to Mexico for a quick wedding. After a dramatic confrontation between Jerry and his father, the two teens manage to come to their senses and call off the wedding, to their parent's relief.

Dean Stockwell and Natalie Trundy

Many teen-oriented films of the period dealt with the same issues, and there is a strong sense of deja vu here. But the film does have some strong points. Dean Stockwell, with his lean and hungry appearance, looks like he could have been James Dean's younger brother. He brings quite a bit of emotional and physical energy to his portrayal of a young guy suffering from hormonal overload. The adults in the cast are also very effective. John Larch as Mr. Vernon is a standout. His powerful, sensitive performance is a perfect match for Stockwell's. His sincere attempts to reason with his son, and the confrontation between the two after Jerry withdraws the college money, are the best moments in the film.

Dean Stockwell and John Larch

Natalie Trundy, however, is the film's biggest drawback. Sixteen years old, and making her first film appearance, Miss Trundy's poor acting is what makes the film seem at times like an educational documentary. She displays the same level of controlled emotion in practically all of her scenes, whether getting hot and heavy with the boyfriend or arguing with her parents. As a result, she seems to hover over the proceedings like a spiritual being who can't be soiled by intimate relations with imperfect humans. While everyone else around her is in turmoil, she walks through the movie with a detached, placid look on her face. Maybe that's how lust affects some people. 

Barbara Billingsley would join the cast of the TV classic LEAVE IT TO BEAVER in 1957. For the next six years she would play the mother of two sons for whom the subject of lust simply never came up.