The Careless Years

The Careless Years is a 1957 film from United Artists directed by Arthur Hiller and produced by Edward Lewis. The film was the directorial debut for Hiller.[1] The film stars Dean Stockwell and Natalie Trundy in an early film appearance.

The Careless Years
Film Poster
Directed byArthur Hiller
John E. Burch (assistant)
Produced byEdward Lewis
Written byJohn Howard Lawson
Mitch Lindemann
StarringDean Stockwell
Natalie Trundy
John Larch
Barbara Billingsley
John Stevenson
Maureen Cassidy
Mason Alan Dinehart
Virginia Christine
Guy Boyd
Leo Grillo
Music byLeith Stevens
CinematographySam Leavitt
Edited byLeon Barsha
Production
company
Distributed byUnited Artists
Release date
  • September 2, 1957 (1957-09-02) (United States)
Running time
70 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Plot

Two high school seniors from different social groups go on a date. He begins to fall for her when she resists his amorous advances and decides they should get married immediately. Both sets of parents object to the sudden nature of the proposal. He talks her into going to Mexico to get married, but they finally decide it is best to wait until they are older.

Main cast
Actor Role
Dean StockwellJerry Vernon
Natalie TrundyEmily 'Miley' Meredith
John LarchSam Vernon
Barbara BillingsleyHelen Meredith
John StevensonCharles Meredith
Virginia ChristineMathilda Vernon

Production

The film was originally called The Young Lovers. The female lead went to Natalie Trundy, who was then 16 and had only made one film. Bryna Productions signed her to a five year contract.[2] The male lead went to former child actor Dean Stockwell, who was also signed to a five year contract.[3]

It was the first feature as director for Arthur Hiller. Hiller recalls he was offered the job, he "read the script, and I liked it a lot, but I had reservations. And I thought, "Do I tell him [the producer] about my reservations? Or do I pretend I really just love it? I don't want to lose the job," you know. And finally I went about it honestly and just told them just what my feelings were. And he said, "Those are my feelings, and I'm doing a rewrite, just on those items"."[4]

Critical reception

Bosley Crowther of The New York Times did not care for the movie.

The pace is slow, the writing uninspired and the approach to the issue is often naïve and repetitious.[5]

See also

References
  1. "Trivia for The Careless Years (1957)". IMDb. Retrieved October 9, 2009.
  2. MISS KERR SIGNED FOR FILM MUSICAL New York Times 22 Dec 1956: 14.
  3. SUSAN HAYWARD TO STAR FOR FOX New York Times 26 Dec 1956: 34.
  4. "Interview with Arthur Hiller Part 2". DGA.
  5. Crowther, Bosley (1957-11-28). "Original New York Times review". Movies.nytimes.com. Retrieved 2012-04-10.
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