The Careless Years

Directed by Arthur Hiller, The Careless Years follows teen couple Jerry (Dean Stockwell) and Miley (Natalie Trundy) as they attempt to keep their relationship going in the face of several obstacles (including their respective parents’ complete disapproval). First-time filmmaker Hiller delivers a one-note drama that grows less and less interesting as time progresses, with the less-than-subtle bent of John Howard Lawson and Mitch Lindemann’s screenplay paving the way for a repetitive midsection that contains little in the way of variety or subplots. (The movie is, by and large, solely about Jerry’s increasingly desperate efforts at having sex with Miley.) And although the picture runs just 70 minutes, The Careless Years has undoubtedly worn out its welcome long before it arrives at its curiously upbeat finale – which is a shame, certainly, given that both Stockwell and Trundy are generally much better than the movie tends to deserve. (Stockwell’s James Deanesque performance is certainly something to behold, ultimately.)

** out of ****