Endless Love (1981)

A high-school student's love for a 15-year-old girl is thwarted by parental disapproval, circumstance, and accident; he burns down her family's house and is committed to a psychiatric hospital.

Director:

Franco Zeffirelli

Writers:

Scott Spencer (based on the novel by), Judith Rascoe (screenplay by)

Stars:

Brooke Shields, Martin Hewitt, Shirley Knight

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 3 wins & 15 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Brooke Shields	...	Jade
Martin Hewitt	...	David
Shirley Knight	...	Ann
Don Murray	...	Hugh
Richard Kiley	...	Arthur
Beatrice Straight	...	Rose
James Spader	...	Keith (as Jimmy Spader)
Ian Ziering	...	Sammy
Robert Moore	...	Dr. Miller
Penelope Milford	...	Ingrid
Jan Miner	...	Mrs. Switzer
Salem Ludwig	...	Mr. Switzer
Leon B. Stevens	...	Judge
Vida Wright	...	Sonia
Jeffrey Marcus	...	Leonard (as Jeff Marcus)

Storyline

David and Jade are high-school sweethearts and happy in love. But when Jades grades starts to drop her father forbid the young couple to see each other. Mad with frustration and desire David tries to reverse the decision, with catastrophic results.

---

Plot Keywords:

premarital sex | sex scene | breasts | teenage girl | sexual awakening | 

---

Taglines:

If love existed in the world the way it does in the mind, it would last forever.

---

Genres:

Drama | Romance

---

Certificate:

R

Did You Know?

Trivia

The MPAA awarded the initial cut of the movie an X rating. Franco Zeffirelli subsequently made several cuts in the love scenes between Brooke Shields and Martin Hewitt to achieve a lower rating. The movie was resubmitted to the MPAA five times before they awarded this an R rating.

---

Goofs

At night, as David is starting the fire, when the wind in the trees is shown, day-for-night filming fails to hide that the sunny blue sky can clearly be seen through the foliage.

---

Quotes

Ann Butterfield: [to David] I think that night... that night that I came down and saw you with Jade and then made love to my husband... I was making love to you.

---

Connections

Referenced in Glastonbury 2015: Day 3: Part 1 (2015)

---

Soundtracks

Heart of Glass
Performed by Blondie
Written by Debbie Harry / Chris Stein
Rare Blue Music (ASCAP)
Blondie courtesy of Chrysalis Records

User Reviews

Just strange...

I will have to read the novel this is based on because, overall the effect of the story in unrealistic, and frankly, strange.

Yes, Brooke Shields looks lovely. Her sometime boyfriend is apparently obsessive. We see the usual nebulous references to psychiatry, which was a prevalent plot twist during this time period. When a story plot could not gel, the psychiatric angle would be thrown in to the story (Think: "Prom Night", "Halloween" or "Lipstick").

Don Murray as the ever concerned but clueless father, once again. Disjointed families, divorce and early 80's drama. Not the worst, but certainly could have been better. The hospital and diagnosis of the obsessive boyfriend were completely surreal. 4/10

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 July 1981 (USA)

Also Known As:

Endless Love

Filming Locations:

Kaufman Astoria Studios - 3412 36th Street, Astoria, Queens, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$4,163,623, 19 July 1981

Gross USA:

$31,184,024

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$32,492,674

Company Credits

Production Co:

PolyGram Filmed Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

116 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1