The relationship Mary Kay Place has with teenage daughter Laura Dern in this bizarre film will gladden the hearts of mothers and daughters who believe theirs couldn't be worse. Both living their lives on a hair-trigger, they fling insults at each other for little apparent reason, in the manner of long-lost enemies. Vergin-on-the-verge Dern simmers in the summer of a small American town, beset by Mom, indecisive Dad and the goody-goody older sister she used to love. Well, something's gotta happen, right? And it does, in the form of smooth-talking stranger Treat Williams, who lures Laura out of the house and into a ride in his car, after which everything in her life seems okay. There should be some kind of prize to anyone who can guess what the last two reels of the film are all about, although you won't find us taking part: we hadn't a clue. Puzzle pictures are rare in modern times; those you can't be bothered to unravel are even rarer - even though this is sumptuously photographed by James Glennon and contains a very promising performance by Dern.


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