Well. I saw this in '77 when it came out, and really hated it then...but it's 25 years later, I'm an older and wiser otter, it's one of Mr. Otter's favorite movies, and it's a classic. So I thought I'd give it another try. And I still really hate it.

Yes, it's an authentic slice of life, time and place, beginning of the disco era, and god knows I could sing along with every single doggone one of the BeeGees songs on the soundtrack...I can still remember thinking that Barry Gibb was the cutest guy in the world!

But I really don't care about the lives of these idiotic yobbos...even the contrast between them and Travolta, who is looking for a better road in life and is (maybe) smart and motivated enough to find it, left me saying: who cares? American Graffiti is a much better coming of age story...for one thing, it DOESN'T have John Travolta, who is almost an anti-honey, in it, and for another, the range of characters, and therefore the contrast between them and the differences in their lives and choices, is greater and makes for a more interesting movie.

But this IS a classic. So rent it, watch it once and then try to get the endless disco music out of your head forever.