Even in its day, "The Young Lovers" was deemed out of step with challenges faced by students on American campuses. The film seeks to be sincere in its approach to such stark matters as out-of-wedlock pregnancies and the wrenching experience of young people becoming adults. The film is worth seeing, if only as a historical artifact.
There were some fine performances, especially Sharon Hugueny in the role of Pam, the young woman who is impregnated by her lover Eddie Slocum (Peter Fonda). There is also Eddie's fun-loving friend Tarragoo (Nick Adams) and the girl-next-door Debbie (Deborah Walley) who must also make tough decisions with yet another unplanned pregnancy.
Pam's character is the only one in the film who truly changes over the course of two hours. By the end, she seems to have matured to the degree that she is willing to take her place in a society that still frowns on births not consecrated by marriage. Hugueny brought warmth and depth of feeling to the role.
There was also some stunning footage of a clean college campus, classrooms with instructors in full command, and a beautiful, peaceful amphitheater where Pam and Eddie went for intimate conversations. It was unfortunate only that the Eddie's history professor did not mention birth control along with his lectures on ancient Rome!
"The Young Lovers" is an interesting glimpse into the mores of the early 1960s that were beginning to give way to a new social order. It is difficult to imagine the likes of Tarragoo, Debbie, Eddie, and Pam today. But we still can empathize with their plight of these young people, as they struggled to come to terms with difficult real-life decisions.
There were some fine performances, especially Sharon Hugueny in the role of Pam, the young woman who is impregnated by her lover Eddie Slocum (Peter Fonda). There is also Eddie's fun-loving friend Tarragoo (Nick Adams) and the girl-next-door Debbie (Deborah Walley) who must also make tough decisions with yet another unplanned pregnancy.
Pam's character is the only one in the film who truly changes over the course of two hours. By the end, she seems to have matured to the degree that she is willing to take her place in a society that still frowns on births not consecrated by marriage. Hugueny brought warmth and depth of feeling to the role.
There was also some stunning footage of a clean college campus, classrooms with instructors in full command, and a beautiful, peaceful amphitheater where Pam and Eddie went for intimate conversations. It was unfortunate only that the Eddie's history professor did not mention birth control along with his lectures on ancient Rome!
"The Young Lovers" is an interesting glimpse into the mores of the early 1960s that were beginning to give way to a new social order. It is difficult to imagine the likes of Tarragoo, Debbie, Eddie, and Pam today. But we still can empathize with their plight of these young people, as they struggled to come to terms with difficult real-life decisions.