The Restless Years (film)

The Restless Years
Directed by Helmut Käutner
Produced by Ross Hunter
Written by Edward Anhalt
Starring Sandra Dee
John Saxon
Teresa Wright
Luana Patten
Distributed by Universal
Release dates
  • 1958 (1958)
Running time
 86 minutes
Country United States
Language English

The Restless Years is a 1958 American film drama.

It was Sandra Dee's first leading role.[1]

Plot

Melinda Grant is a 16-year-old girl with dreams of leaving her hometown of Libertyville someday and seeing the world. She is raised by a single mother, Elizabeth, a seamstress, and scandalized by the reputation of being illegitimate, although the meek Elizabeth insists that Melinda's father died when she was an infant.

At a school dance, Melinda is taunted by a pair of popular students, Polly and Bruce, but befriended by a boy named Will who tells her that, as the son of a traveling salesman, he's lived in many different towns. She likes the sound of that, whereas Will's ambition is to settle down in one place.

Polly and Bruce try to drive them off the road after Will offers Melinda a ride home. The tension between them grows when Melinda accepts an offer from teacher Miss Robson to audition for Our Town, the school play, then beats out Polly for a leading role.

Will is troubled because his dad, Ed, is constantly angling to meet the other students' parents and make connections to help his sales business. Will's romantic interest in Melinda seems disturbing to her mother Elizabeth, although she sews Melinda a costume for the play. Polly tries to blackmail Melinda into giving up the role on opening night, then rushes on stage and blurts to the audience that Melinda and Will are lovers. Will then fights with Bruce and other parents want him arrested. Will urges his father Ed to stand up and defend him.

Ed decides to take his whole family and leave town. Elizabeth finally acknowledges to Melinda that the baby's father left town without marrying her. She now fears Melinda will be similarly seduced and abandoned, but Will assures Melinda that he will be back.

Cast

See also

References

  1. ↑ The Restless Years at Sandra Dee Fans


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