(1976) 3 Jason Buchanan It's an absolute shame that director Don Coscarelli's charming sophomore feature -- a pitch-perfect time capsule of suburban youth in the late '70s -- suffered the crippling effects of studio malaise before being all but forgotten after a brief run on cable television in the early '80s. The handful of kids who did see Kenny and Co. during its blink-and-you-missed-it television run (it was never even released on home video stateside) would no doubt attest that it rightly should have been the film that a generation of kids who grew up in the late '70s would later name as the defining cinematic example of that summer of innocence. That generation will now have a rare chance to travel back in time and relive that long-forgotten summer from a fresh perspective thanks to Anchor Bay Home Entertainment's long-belated 2005 DVD release. For anyone who ever fell victim to the neighborhood bully or dared breach the front porch of the neighborhood recluse, Coscarelli's warm tale is sure to strike a familiar chord. While younger audiences weaned on video games and endless hours in front of the tube may find little to relate to in terms of the recreational activities experienced by young Kenny (a perfectly cast Dan McCann in his only screen role) and his friends, the emotional honesty and non-condescending tone of Kenny and Co. is sure to translate to even the most technologically savvy 21st century tweener. The fact that Coscarelli's coming-of-age tale will likely remain as effective for adults seeking a dose of nostalgia as it will for youngsters experiencing the film for the first time is clearly due to the writer/director's skillful handling of such timeless topics as saying goodbye to one's beloved first childhood pet and the familiar tingling that accompanies that first playground crush. In addition to a spot-on "every-kid" performance by McCann in the titular role, future Phantasm stars Mike Baldwin and Reggie Bannister shine in the supporting roles of, respectively, Kenny's mischievous friend Doug and his understanding teacher. Being not too far removed from the age of the protagonists himself at the time of filming, Coscarelli can certainly take pride in the fact that, despite the initial lack of exposure that the film received, Kenny and Co. remains one of the most effective cinematic portrayals of the fleeting summer that marked the pinnacle of youth ever captured on celluloid.

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Kenny and Co. (1976)

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Questionable for Children

genres

Comedy Drama

sub-genres

Coming-of-Age

category

Feature

directed by

Don Coscarelli

countries

USA

released

1976

run time

90 min.

produced by

20th Century Fox

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by Hal Erickson synopsis

Cinematographer/director Don Coscarelli gleefully indulged in calisthenics with the camera in his low-budget Kenny and Company. The story is a simple one, centered on the anguished but not atypical childhood of young Dan McCann. Coscarelli has a marvelous knack of breathing nuance into the most commonplace fears and desires of children. The end result makes one wish we'd seen a lot more of both Dan McCann and Don Coscarelli after the limited release of Kenny and Co.

characteristics

- Only Human

- Suburban

- Suburbia

- Suburbs

- Mischievous Children

- Growing-pains

- Adolescent

- Boy

- Coming-of-age

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