Tim and John fell in love while teenagers at their all-boys high school. John was captain of the football team, Tim an aspiring actor playing a minor part in Romeo and Juliet. Their romance endured for 15 years to laugh in the face of everything life threw at it - the separations, the discrimination, the temptations, the jealousies and the losses - until the only problem that love can't solve, tried to destroy them.
Sluggishly formulaic, this is a disappointingly superficial interpretation of an important book.
A 1970s schoolboy flirtation blossoms into a tragic love affair in this unabashedly mainstream romance movie.
The lead actors are a little old to convince as teenagers but grow into their roles while the soundtrack from Blondie to Rufus Wainwright invites nostalgia. There will not be a dry eye in the cinema.
General release. Check local listings for show times.