Edge of Seventeen (1999) (NR)

synopsis

The year is 1984. The music is Boy George and the Bronski Beat. Eric and his best friend, Maggie, are on the edge of seventeen and donning matching polyester uniforms for their summer amusement-park cafeteria jobs in small-town Sandusky, Ohio. They learn the fine art of dishing up rib-chick combos and tater logs from their brassy boss, Angie. Maggie develops a special twinkle in her eye for Eric. Everything hums along until Eric see Rod, a gorgeous hunk with dreamy blue eyes, bussing tables. No one knows Eric is gay. Not Maggie. Not his mother. Not even Eric himself, really. In this refreshingly honest and exceptionally crafted first feature, the conflicts and confusions of teenage sexuality are a perfect match for the equally conflicted and confused 1980s. With a distinct sense of place and amazing performances by Chris Stafford, Tina Holmes, and Lea DeLaria, Edge of Seventeen is a remarkable achievement: a coming-of-age story that is sentimental without being cutsie, a powerful portrait of a family dealing with undesirable change, and an uncompromising depiction of the complexities of sexual experience, ranging from the heady romance of a first kiss to the messy realities of adult sex. A musical score by Tom Bailey of the Thompson Twins completes the film's dead-on portrait of the mideighties, complete with eyeliner, two-toned hair, and skinny ties. Edge of Seventeen is a must-see for all of us who survived the fashion disaster known as "the eighties."