To coincide with our KID POWER! screening of Waris Hussein’s Melody (1971)- probably the ultimate ‘puppy love’ film – next Saturday March 21 at The Royal Cinema in Toronto (tix HERE), Australian film historian and author Lee Gambin (Massacred by Mother Nature; the upcoming We Can Be Who We Are: Movie Musicals of the 1970s) takes a look back at more essential kids-in-love movies.

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Although child-centric movies about the power of friendship have flourished throughout the years, motion pictures dealing with children forming loving bonds (or what they perceive as love) with fellow children is something that mix levitra and cialis the movies rarely look at. But when movies get the purity, innocence and tenderness of “puppy love” right, the results can be incredibly enchanting, touching, poignant and deeply moving. Here are ten movies that explore “puppy love” (in no particular order):

1. HAND IN HAND (1961) UK

Similar in tone and in theme to the eerie and somewhat unnerving Whistle Down The Wind (released the same year, where young children from an English farming community believe that they have Jesus Christ himself hiding out in a local barn), Hand in Hand presents two children fixated and influenced by religion that ultimately find solace in their shared love for each other rather than God. In this elegant but incredibly maudlin film, Michael (Phillip Needs) and Rachel (Loretta Parry) cheap viagra with fast delivery struggle to understand the complexities of Christianity and Judaism from naïve and innocent perspectives. When the Christian Michael learns that “Jews killed Christ” he confronts his Jewish friend Rachel who proclaims “I don’t even know Jesus!” These two misfits are bullied at school and form a bond complete with a blood pact, and when they come to the conclusion that God, in fact, would want them to be friends even though they are from different religious backgrounds, they set sail on a trip to Africa where disaster strikes. While the film is quite assertively a message movie (suggesting that the purity and sincerity of children can blur religious differences), it does present the romance of the children in a frank and oddly “adult” manner.

2. SONG OF THE SOUTH (1947) USA

Controversial in its seemingly idyllic presentation of black slavery, Disney’s undeniably innovative and beautiful live action/animated masterpiece Song of the South is a true testament to the majestic artistry and soulful richness of the Golden Age of child-centric levitra 20mg side effects cinema. Little Johnny (Bobby Driscoll) comes from a wealthy background and after being enlightened by the likes of the Christ-figure Uncle Remus (James Baskett) he becomes smitten by the impoverished and incredibly sweet Ginny (Luana Patten). These two children, from incredibly different worlds, form a loving bond that is showcased in a touching moment where Ginny’s love and devotion to her puppy and her puppy’s safety from her thuggish and abusive brothers drives her to give the dog to Johnny. In exchange for the precious pooch, Johnny gives Ginny a frilly fringe his mother has forced him to wear. Johnny and Ginny’s connection is cemented in pure love and tenderness, but their dedication extends outside of their one-on-one interactions. Joining them is the black son of slaves Toby (Glenn Leedy) who is as much part of the fabric as his two white counterparts. These three children, completely devoted to one another and in love with the stories of their mentor Uncle Remus, come to represent a personal revolution in all its whimsical glory.

3. BUGSY MALONE (1976) USA

The idea of a musical completely cast with children is one thing, but putting these children in a gangster film with all the trimmings – corruption, crime, and violence on the cusp of the Great Depression – results in a bizarre and captivating movie musical. Though the film is besieged by an alluring darkness, the developing relationship between Blousey and Bugsy sits at the core of the film’s heart. Of all the characters, Florrie Dugger’s Blousey is the most well-developed and the most complicated: she’s a singer, but also an anchor for the chaos that erupts around her. In the titular role, Scott Baio oozes with child-star confidence and solid professionalism, as Bugsy tries to leave his shady past behind but is ultimately called upon to bring justice to a city besieged by corruption, alienation and fury. In the closing moments, the entire cast of children, covered in cream pies and whipped cream (the “bullets” of their metaphoric “splurge” guns) sing and dance together and state that “they could have been anything that they wanted to be”. These pint-sized gangsters and gangster molls have made up their own rules within the context of an urban crime thriller, and with a healthy dose of self-deprecation and wry humour, Bugsy Malone is a perfect American self-referential tribute.

4. STEPHEN KING’S IT (1990) USA

Stephen King loves children. He understands children. And most importantly, he understands and loves children who are outsiders. The films base on his stories are loaded with these ostracized and alien youngsters such as the tormented telekinetic Carrie White (Carrie (1976)), the put-upon Arnie Cunningham (Christine (1983)) and Charlie MacGee (Firestarter (1984)), a little girl hunted down by a shady government body because of her incredible pyrokinetic powers. Featuring some brilliant child acting and direction by Tommy Lee Wallace (Halloween III (1982), Fright Night 2 (1988)), Stephen King’s It is an intelligent construction of childhood romance. In this case, the children are not monsters or destructive, instead they are contributors to a community born out of necessity. The Loser’s Club is a group of alienated youngsters all “cursed” by difference, but also drawn together because of it. One stutters, one is Jewish, one is poor, one is asthmatic and effete and so forth. But they form a bond that keeps them safe from Pennywise (Tim Curry), a monstrous clown that devours children in their home town of Derry, Maine. Inside the group is a delicately conceived love triangle where Beverly (Emily Perkins), the sole female club member, is in “puppy love” with writer-to-be Bill (Jonathan Brandis), while the sensitive but heavy set Ben (Brandon Crane) secretly longs for her. Ben sends Beverly secret love notes with flowery poetry but she thinks that the creative Bill is the author.

5. MY GIRL (1991) USA

Macaulay Culkin was the kid actor of the 1990s, thanks to Christopher Columbus’ blockbuster yuletide comedy Home Alone (1990). To cash in on the precocious lad’s box office appeal, the quietly quirky and surprisingly pensive My Girl was quickly ushered into malls the following year. This coming-of-age drama co-stars the talented Anna Chlumsky as Vada, the daughter of a funeral director who shares a loving relationship with sickly Thomas (Culkin), an unpopular boy allergic to everything. Vada’s obsession with death and preoccupation with mortality grounds the film but also paints it up in bizarre colours; here is a kid that is complicated and moody – Vada would be right at home in a ‘70s TV special rather than a typical saccharine ‘90s “feel good” film, which My Girl surprisingly (and thankfully) is not. Vada and Thomas’s devotion to one another is palpable and sweet, and when Thomas is killed by a swarm of bees (a great injection of eco-horror in a “puppy love” flick which this writer just eats up!) we totally feel Vada’s pain and anguish. Loneliness and awkwardness sit at the top of My Girl’s thematic construct, and the performance from Chlumsky just brings it home.

6. THIS SPECIAL FRIENDSHIP (Les amitiés particulières) (1964) France

The story of two little boys passionately and very naturally falling in love can come across as incredibly unnerving for some audiences, simply because the way in which the film unfolds with its blunt, warts ’n’ all take on pre-pubescent love. But the film’s artistry and moodiness is outstanding, representing French new-wave cinema at its most uncompromising and rich. Gorgeously lit and whimsical in its approach, the film captures the desperate longing and obsession that permeates childhood first love. Georges (Francis Lacombrade) and Alexandre’s (Didier Haudepin) romance is based on the writing of Roger Peyrifitte, a controversial French writer, who infuses the work with a profound commentary on the hypocrisies of religion and the conservative values of the upper classes.

7. BAMBI (1942) USA

Disney’s masterpiece about the Prince of the Forest is told episodically throughout the changing of seasons. Young Bambi (voiced as a youngster by Donnie Dunnegan) is born in Spring, meets fellow woodland critters in Summer, learns to scrounge for food in Winter, understands all about the dangers of “Man” in the Fall and then meets pretty faun Faline (voiced initially by Cammie King) come the following Spring. Bambi is awkward, shy and completely perplexed by Faline’s dainty beauty, but she persists and flirts with him, bringing us into the next stage of the young prince’s life – courtship and the frivolity of young love. The two fauns chase and tease each other and somehow come to understand their future union as the years go by. Disney’s The Lion King (1994) would continue this narrative element of plotting the two romantic leads as youngsters in the early moments of the film to set them up for a destined adult romance as the movie progresses. Bambi presents it’s “puppy love” as a set-up, which is something that films like The Blue Lagoon (1980) also established years later.

8. GINGER MEGGS (1982) Australia

Based on the extremely popular Australian comics by Jimmy Bancks, this musical film adaptation is loaded with a mean-spiritedness where adults are threatening ogres and kids are ruthless opportunists waiting to strike you when you’re down. Countering this grim realism is a broad art direction that is bright, energetic and reflective of the cartoony strip. Ginger, the heroic protagonist played by the spritely Paul Daneil, is a rough lil’ larrikin, but he is also completely smitten by the charming and polite Minnie Peters (Shelley Armsworth) who’s only wish is that Ginger stop fighting. The charm of their earnest childhood romance is dwarfed in importance by the roughhousing that goes on throughout, but it is there, and is important.

9. LET THE RIGHT ONE IN (2008) Sweden

Child vampires are super alluring. It’s like Peter Pan all over again where you never have to grow up – but of course, instead of Tinkerbell’s fairy dust, it’s bloodlust care of damnation. Pint-sized bloodsuckers pop up in some fantastic fare such as Salems’ Lot (1979) and Near Dark (1987) and later, in Interview With The Vampire (1994) and Sweden’s deliciously titled Let the Right One In, where the child vamp becomes the wish fulfilment for a lonely boy hungry for acceptance and affection. Oskar (Kare Hedebrant), a sensitive bullied boy forms a friendship with the mysterious Eli (Lina Leandersson) who only comes out at night, has a keeper that “feeds” her and, most importantly, can deal with his tormentors. Poignant, elegant and pond-like in its approach, this atmospheric and tender story of children and blood pacts is a successful entry in the monster-with-compassion line of horror.

10. CASPER (1995) USA

Christina Ricci wowed audiences and critics alike as Wednesday Addams in the surprisingly good filmic treatment of legendary TV show The Addams Family. Some years later, Ricci took on a more conventional role in Casper, based on the classic comic book about the world’s friendliest ghost. Here, Casper (voiced by Malachi Pearson) is a deceased young boy who longs for a genuine family. Ricci’s character is also a lonely soul, and the duo become a team ultimately sharing a kiss and creating their own sense of “family”.

About the author:

Lee Gambin

Lee Gambin is a writer for Fangoria magazine and published author of a study on ecologically themed horror movies called “Massacred by Mother Nature: Exploring the Natural Horror Film”. Lee also writes for numerous other film related magazines and journals, playwright and screenwriter. His plays “The King of Bangor” and “Oh The Horror!” were produced on stage in Melbourne city. He also ran his own independent theatre company which ran successfully from 2000-2012 and runs a film society in Melbourne called Cinemaniacs. He has worked for film festivals such as the Melbourne International Film Festival, Monster Fest and more. Lee also lectures at universities, discussing horror films and musicals at institutions such as Swinburne University, VUT and RMIT. Lee is currently working on a book all about 1970s movie musicals called “We Can Be Who We Are: Movie Musicals of the 1970” and a book all about Joe Dante’s horror film “The Howling” for Centipede Press as part of the academic line Studies in the Horror Film.