This 1959 picture starts with a disclaimer stating, "Teenage marriage is one of today's most controversial subjects. The producers do not attempt to present a solution or take sides..."
The producers also take no sides, or seemingly have an issue, with a 24 year old man marrying a 17 year old girl.
Instead, they take the controversial topic and turn it into a pulpy melodrama aimed at the teenage drive-in theatre audience of the times.
Some of the film's elements border on the surreal. Take the beatnik coffee shop that doubles as a flamenco lounge. Or one of the establishment's customers who tunes out the live music, and the world around him, by hearing music from his transistor radio through ear "buds." Or, how about the 17-year old constantly cuddling her stuffed toy dog to symbolize her youth. On her wedding night the camera tilts down from her kissing her husband to her hand dropping the pooch and lingers on her wedding ring.)
Then, there's the psychotic ex-boyfriend. He can't stand that he never got to first base with the now newlywed and resorts to criminal behavior. One could say his actions symbolize the challenges the young couple faces, but, based on director Burt Topper's other work, I doubt the thought ever entered his mind.
The bride is played by Anita Sands who photographs beautifully. Her career, though, was short-lived as she retired from acting at the age of 23 and later became an astrologer to Hollywood stars.
The film is a curiosity for those interested in looking into Hollywood's handling of teen marriage in the 1950s and fans of the work of American International Pictures - the studio that built a mini-empire by focusing on films for young people.
