Endless Love (1981)

Martin Hewitt falls in love with his friend James Spader’s younger sister Brooke Shields. When her normally free-spirited parents decide they should cool off for a bit, Martin engages in increasingly desperate measures so the two can spend time together. There are some interesting ideas about the intensity of young love here , but those get overwhelmed by some really questionable choices. The parental figures range from inept in the case of Martin’s to Shirley Knight and Don Murray’s truly bizarre jealousy of their young daughter’s sex life. The hyper-sexualization of teenaged Brooke Shields is off-putting though not as extreme as what is shown in Blue Lagoon or what I’ve read about Pretty Baby.

Oscar Nomination: Best Music, Original Song