A Summer Without Boys (TV Movie 1973) Poster

(1973 TV Movie)

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6/10
would like this issued in DVD
jb-30720 July 2012
It has been 11 years since bksand wrote: "If there is someone out there who could help, I would greatly appreciate it. I was an extra in this TV movie as a child. I would like to get a copy of this if there is one available. Or I would like to know when it will be airing again.

Thank you!"

I also would like to see a copy but cannot find it on DVD or even VHS, so I am looking for a copy. Kay Lenz in particular is a favorite of mine. I want to see all of her movies.

Has anyone received any positive feedback in all these years? It seems enough time has passed for this film to be re-issued.

How can we get the holders of the film rights to release the old shows once again. Another great old old movie is "Heaven Only Knows" also known as "Montana Mike" with Robert Cummings starring as the angel who came to earth to help the gambling saloon keeper, Brian Donlevy, save his soul. The opening scene is coming into the Montana town with its name over the main street - the name of the town is "Paradise."
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7/10
Mother vs. daughter in what should have been a summer of bonding.
mark.waltz28 April 2021
Warning: Spoilers
A fabulous World War II environment is the highlight of this TV drama that stars Barbara Bain and Kay Lenz as mother and daughter finding conflict while they are out of summer camp. There are hardly any men there because of the war, and Lenz begins to hang out with a group of sailors on leave. When her mother becomes friendly with camp counselor Michael Moriarty, Lenz is jealous, especially after finding out that her father is going into active duty.

The troubled Lenz gets herself into some very difficult situations, and nearly ends up in more trouble when sailor Bruno Kirby takes things a little too far, causing her to nearly lose her virginity in a very painful way. It's a very emotional scene, one step short of rape, and fortunately Kirby redeems himself in the last moment. You really feel the pain for this girl who wants to be a woman but isn't really ready to go all the way, and it is an honest, horrifying scene.

Then there's Debralee Scott, a rambunctious girl who wants to go to Hollywood to be the next Rita Hayworth (but is closer to Eve Arden), always looking for a good time no matter the consequences. The sweet Mildred Dunnock is really terrific as a kind old lady who seems to have had nothing but tragedy in her life yet always manages to find a smile, even through her tears. That's the kind of performance that brings awards, and she'll really melt your heart. This is the type of film that after you've seen it, you'll realize it's better than what you thought while watching it.
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6/10
I don't think folks actually had sex in the 1940s....
planktonrules12 February 2017
"A Summer Without Boys" is a made for TV movie that is set during WWII. When the story begins, Ellen (Barbara Bain) brings her daughter Ruth (Kay Lenz) to a summer camp--the sort that families used to frequent in the Adirondacks and Catskills. Ellen knows her marriage is coming to an end but has not told Ruth...and also secretly hopes things will all work out with her husband. She repeatedly talks about when her husband is coming up to visit them, but the more she says this, the more it seems like a remote possibility at best. When things come to a head, Ruth is very vulnerable. What's to happen with this pair?

The acting in this film is reasonably good, though a few times it did come off as a bit over the top. The story is modestly interesting. Nothing terrible nor anything particularly outstanding either--just a decent made for TV film.
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I want it!
bksand20 March 2001
If there is someone out there who could help, I would greatly appreciate it. I was an extra in this TV movie as a child. I would like to get a copy of this if there is one available. Or I would like to know when it will be airing again. Thank you!
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1/10
So this is real life?
alan-lohf20 February 2013
When this film came up on the TV guide, I checked IMDb to see if it might be worth watching. It had a score of 7.1, which sounded promising. I feel compelled to write a review of this film to help others avoid making the same mistake. This film is abysmal! Does it reflect genuine life experiences? Well, my cv doesn't include being handyman at a holiday lodge but perhaps it should. Apparently I could expect to be pursued by an attractive woman in her early forties ... and her daughter! I don't remember that being explained in the careers brochure. Apart from that, the storyline is a collection of hideously predictable clichés. So, the 'plot' is drivel, is the acting any better? Is the Pope a Catholic? The performances are stilted and stereotyped, of the standard one might reasonably expect from a local dramatic production. If you have the choice of watching this film or having your spleen removed without an anaesthetic, take option B.
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5/10
Summer Without Boys
BandSAboutMovies28 December 2021
Warning: Spoilers
Ellen Hailey (Barbara Bain) is going through a divorce, so she takes her daughter Ruth (Kay Lenz) to a summer lodge sort of like Dirty Dancing, except they both want to get horizontal with the handyman (Michael Moriarty) who has a bad leg that keeps him out of the war. Man, divorce and world wars and Michael Moriarty pounding it out with a mother and daughter? Loving it.

This was directed by Jeannot Szwarc, who made Jaws 2 and Bug, so they're not all bad. Then again, he also made Code Name: Diamond Head, Supergirl and Santa Claus: The Movie, so maybe they are.

You know, sometimes I just let these TV movies roll all day and pretend that it's the early 80s and I'm home sick from school and that I'm allowed to watch as many TV movies as I want which I do believe is the perfect day.

Then I have to do some work because life isn't as good anymore.
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9/10
It's tawdry but it's fun (and pretty clean since made for TV)
TheSmutPeddler15 December 2000
I've always dug Barbara Bain from her "Mission Impossible" days to the present, so I was sure to tune in when "A Summer Without Boys" was on TV waaaaaay back in 1973. I can still remember some scenes vividly. Kay Lenz does a great turn as the inhibited daughter, but the real scene stealer in this one is Debralee Scott who gets Kay to go out with some sailors for a "fun time" during which they play strip poker (or spin the bottle...whutever) and Debralee has to take off her top (she manages to wiggle out of her bra and pull it out from underneath her top which keeps her from having to expose her breasts but that pisses off the sailors who are counting on a "good time" which they invariably don't get. Debralee seems to always come off as genuine in her roles as typically "cheap" girls, though I expect she's really a pretty nice person in real life and far above the "white trash" sorts of standards her roles frequently demanded. If this ever turns up on TV again, tape it and let me know -- I'd like to see it again!
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