It’s the last hurrah of summer as teenagers in a Michigan suburb hit the streets looking for love in David Robert Mitchell’s sweetly earnest debut – think of it as flying ant night for kids, with more complicated mating rituals. Structurally this is a little like ‘American Graffiti’ or ‘Superbad’: a night in the life of four kids. And there’s a lot to like here – not least disarmingly natural performances from the mostly non-professional actors.
Best of all is Amanda Bauer as Claudia, a 14-year-old with an unnerving sense of herself. She kisses another girl’s boyfriend (all’s fair; the girl went with her boy). Rob (Marlon Morton), meanwhile, is looking for a girl he spotted in a supermarket. None of which is hugely original. But its tender observations (among them: that the sweetest moment of your teenage years might be as simple as kissing a girl’s hand) and portrait of fading innocence, are gently winning.