Product Description

Coming of age drama set in a New England beach community during World War II.
Genre: Feature Film-Drama
Rating: PG
Release Date: 5-FEB-2002
Media Type: DVD

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1805 in DVD
• Brand: Warner Brothers
• Released on: 2002-02-05
• Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Formats: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English, French
• Subtitled in: English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Japanese, Georgian, Chinese, Thai
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 103 minutes

Amazon.com
Herman Raucher's autobiographical (or first person, anyway) coming-of-age tale is set, as the title suggests, among sand dunes and departing GIs. Hermie (Gary Grimes) and his two buddies Oscar (Jerry Hauser) and the nerdy Benjie (Oliver Conant) are spending the summer doing the things preadolescents do: hanging out, eating ice cream, stealing "dirty" books from their parents, and trying unsuccessfully to act manly around the gawky girls they take to the movies. Then Hermie spoils everything by really falling in love, this time with the adorable older woman Dorothy, played by Jennifer O'Neill. Dorothy's husband conveniently leaves for duty overseas, and then, even more conveniently, becomes one of those "we regret" telegrams. Dorothy, desperate for comfort and sweetness, turns to Hermie--and surely makes his summer. The setting and the date give this movie a double helping of nostalgia for anyone who was once an adolescent boy desperately trying to get rid of both his callowness and his virginity. But the slow pace and dreamy atmosphere, courtesy of Robert Mulligan's direction and Michael Legrand's famous score, may give it less appeal to anyone who is still in that situation. --Richard Farr

Customer Reviews

Summer of '42 is a timeless, haunting love story........
It is the summer after Pearl Harbor. The world is at war, and America is sending her best, strongest and healthiest men to fight overseas. Meanwhile, those too young, old, or physically disabled to serve stay behind, as well as wives and sweethearts. Among these are Hermie, Oscy, and Benjie (Gary Grimes, Jerry Houser and Oliver Conant). Together, this "terrible trio" raids the Coast Guard station, frolics on the beach on Packett Island, and sneaks looks at "dirty pictures" from a medical book.

But even as the three friends goof around on lazy summer days, the war's effects will soon touch the more serious and sensitive 15-year-old Hermie. He finds himself falling in love with the beautiful Dorothy (Jennifer O'Neill), who is seven years older and married. He worships her from afar, enduring both his friends' merciless teasing and his own confusion about his feelings.

But when Dorothy's husband Pete goes overseas to enter the fray, Hermie befriends Dorothy, helping her with chores such as carrying her groceries to her house on the beach and placing boxes in the attic.

At the same time, the more rambunctious Oscy (and Hermie's best friend) is trying very hard to pick up girls and lose his virginity, and he makes it his mission in life to help Hermie do the same. So he copies information from a medical book that Benjie says "belongs to the house" where he spends the summer. Oscy also attempts to set up a date for the "terrible trio" at the movies, but that almost falls apart when Benjie and the third girl don't want to go. I don't want to give away what happens next, but it's pretty funny.

But the heart of the movie revolves, as many reviewers have said, around Hermie's love for Dorothy, and how he comes to manhood unexpectedly when Dorothy finds out that her husband has been killed in action. It's a beautiful, discreet and bittersweet sequence, and will leave the viewer with indelible memories of a haunting, timeless experience.

I like Summer of '42 because it is sweet and gentle, hilarious at times, and always very touching. Michel Legrand's Oscar-winning score is simple yet evocative, and Herman Raucher's screenplay was later adapted by the writer into a best selling novel. I recommend this film to young and old alike as a fine example of what a coming-of-age movie should be like.

A Haunting Coming of Age Love Story
I saw this movie for the first time with my fiancee (now my wife) when it was released in 1972 and thoroughly enjoyed it then. I've watched it many times since and bought a VHS copy and am currently awaiting a DVD release. Unfortunately, my kids (raised with the more fast-paced films of the 80's & 90's) think the movie's a bore but I continue to enjoy it. The '40's era atmosphere of the film is perfectly accompanied by the beautiful soundtrack and is enhanced by the atmospheric cinematography and acting of all those involved. The blend of comedy and drama remind us all of what we went through as teens, regardless of the era. I was confused by Dorothy's rationale for the love-scene at the time I first saw the movie but I've come to understand it over the years as I've matured. The climactic love-scene, while controversial at the time of release, still strikes me as one of the most touching, sensitive and poignant scenes ever filmed.

Poignant and Unforgettable
Emotional, poignant, sad, funny...this movie has all the ingredients of an unforgettable tale.

Every male adult can surely identify with Hermie as he grapples with the rapid and difficult changes in his young life as he navigates the thin line separating adolescence from adulthood. We see his easygoing, innocent and fun-filled existence suddenly bloom into one involving an awakening and burgeoning awareness of his sexuality. And we have Dorothy, a young and beautiful woman awaiting her husband's return from war only to learn of his death.

Combine these two kindred spirits - a boy waking up to his sexual urges and a sad, lonely woman who has just lost a husband - and we have the centerpiece of a great and sensitive story. Theirs is a journey of innocence and awakening, quite similar to that in Bobby Goldsboro's 'Summer'. Then factor in Michel Legrand's brilliant musical score and we have a giant movie classic.

Summer of '42 aptly defines what a good movie should be.