Edge of Seventeen, directed by David Moreton, is a coming-of-age story about a teenager who gradually discovers that he is gay and has to adjust to a lifestyle where the rules are learned the hard way. During summer break 1984 between his junior and senior year, seventeen-year-old Eric (played by Chris Stafford, who is the spitting image of Ricky Nelson at the same age) is raising money for his college tuition as a food handler at a fast food ribs joint in a Sandusky, Ohio, amusement park. A virgin, he is courted by a girlfriend Maggie (played by Tina Holmes), but many coworkers at the restaurant are gay, having been hired by the manager Angie (played by Lea DeLaria), a butch dyke. After the summer ends, Rod (played by Andersen Gabrych) succeeds in seducing Eric, who falls in love. Rod, however, returns to Ohio State University to continue his schooling. Eric then seeks another lover, but learns that gay life for attractive young men is entrepreneurial—entailing a succession of tricks, mostly found at the gay bar in town, where he is greeted initially by Angie, who provides his some support and wisdom. Since Eric associates sex with love, he becomes confused. Maggie rejects Eric after he sleeps with her but plays too passive a role. Eric then comes out to his mother (played by Stephanie McVay) and gains family acceptance. Although Edge of Seventeen resembles the British coming-of-age Get Real, there is an American Graffiti (1973) aspect to the film, as 1984 was the last year before a tidal wave inundated the gay world, namely, the revelation that Rock Hudson had died of AIDS. The characterizations are superb, but gay filmviewers who were tricking around in the early 1980s will find the story nostalgic (except for the single reference to the use of a condom). The premise of the film, that self-discovery about one’s sexual identity is difficult for all, was better handled in Get Real, which incorporates the more contemporary gay bashing theme. Edge of Seventeen might be an excellent film to show at meetings of Parents of Gays and Lesbians (Pflag) in 1984, but the post-AIDS Get Real and Relax . . . It’s Just Sex have more relevance to today, and the latter deals with the problems of gays who have been out for years. Still, Edge of Seventeen, in general release during 1999, won the Audience Award as the Best Feature Film in both the L.A. Outfest and the San Francisco International Lesbian & Gay Film Festival, and L.A. Outfest Grand Jury Awards went to actor Chris Stafford and screenwriter Todd Stephens. MH