A charming film about a couple of adolescent girls caught up in a crush on a concert pianist played by a rather restrained Peter Sellers for a change. This is a rare film that focuses on the kids rather than the adults who seem to have made a mess out of their own lives. The director George Roy Hill did an excellent job handling the girls played by Merrie Spaeth (who grew up to become a Republican party hack) and Tippy Walker (who ended up involved in a year long affair with the 44 year George Roy Hill during her senior year in high school).
The rest of the cast is pretty darn good. Paula Prentiss a comedian who I guess had a decent career, is a married woman contemplating an affair with Sellers. Phyllis Thaxter plays Spaeth's divorced mother. Tom Bosley and Angela Lansbury are the parents of Tippy Walker who have a very troubled marriage. Lansbury was at this point in her career where she played a lot of bitchy and at times nasty women. She's essentially the villain in this film.
It would be interesting to know how Peter Sellers ended up in this film. For a big "ham" like him it's basically a supporting role. But even in a smaller part he's still a master of accents, he's definitely got the NYC sound down.
The film appears to have been mostly filmed in New York City. It does seem to have a feeling for what it's like to be an adolescent girl growing up with some very flawed parents. The film was written by Nora Johnson the daughter of veteran screenwriter Nunnally Johnson who contributed to the screenplay. Dare I say Nora Johnson's female perspective probably contributed to the tone of this enjoyable film.
The film runs 106 minutes.
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