Practically forgotten today, this teen movie from my early teenage years is a sweet, affectionate look at the importance of school spirit and a view of the early education of political wanna-bee's. Lee Purcell's Christine Alexander is the typical do-it-all teenage girl, president of practically club she's in, head cheerleader and extremely ambitious. She's running for Student Council President, a seemingly shoo-in to win, that is until the underdog steps up to the plate. That's Tim McIntire, the kid you don't know, but...., that is until fellow student and political organizer Bruno Kirby finds him checking in late for school and realizes that he's the perfect late entry candidate to toss Christine, whom he once dated, to the curb. Kirby's cute younger sister (Didi Conn, as adorable as she was in "Grease") has a huge crush on him, and encourages McIntire all the way. Purcell, who had ruthlessly exposed the previous candidate for falsifying school documentation, has no ammo this time around, so as they face the end of their junior year, Purcell must campaign honestly. But that doesn't stop Kirby from doing all he can to get McIntire elected, something that the honest young man will have to face as a moral dilemma in a moving finale.
Never released on VHS or DVD, this is one of those nice little surprises to find if you had not seen it. Having gone to the movies practically every weekend in the summer and fall of 1978, I had seen this one, searched for it for years, and could only find the enjoyable soundtrack album. Great opening credits over the title song (featuring some clever lyrics and a Beach Boys style beat) leads to the introduction of all the major characters, reminding me of several people I knew back in those days. I had one quibble with realism, showing Purcell and several other girls in their cheerleading outfits long after the sports seasons having cheerleaders had ended. While Purcell's character is overly ambitious and determined to be a leader everywhere she goes, she's actually quite low key and not at all your stereotypical bitchy teenage girl, possibly crafty underneath in getting what she wants, but not somebody you'd find it easy to hate. Kirby seems slightly too old for his part, but does well in allowing you to overlook that, and McIntire is somebody whom everybody would be proud to call an older brother or best friend. Various other stereotypes are low-key, so there's nothing to quibble about in that area.
A minor subplot has Kirby's black friend (and school basketball hero) Tom Carter romancing the pretty Petronia Paley who has singing ambitions and keeps him at a distance when mingling with those who can help her. Paley, who would go onto major parts on "Another World" and "Guiding Light", was a decade older than her character, but she manages to pull off being a teenager miraculously. She gets to perform a Supreme's type song, while Purcell as part of her election promotion does a brief version of "Frankie & Johnny" that shows some pretty impressive dance moves. McIntire's domino follow-up is pretty cool, and while it seems outlandish now, made a big impression on me back when I was a teenager. This film is very similar to the more recent "Election" where Reese Witherspoon's over achiever character pulled way more scheming stunts to win her high school class presidency, making Purcell practically a saint when compared to her.
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