Summer of the Cicadas...

It's the summer of the cicadas. My Facebook feed is full of complaints about them. Personally, I am enjoying them-the noise just doesn't really bother me. But I seem to be in the minority.

Lucas is the most perfect summer-of-the-cicadas movie ever. I can't get over how many times I have mentioned this to people lately only to be met by a blank stare. I assumed that most people my age had seen Lucas. But apparently no.

Corey Haim is the title character. This is 1986, pre-the two Coreys days. This is young, geeky Corey Haim, illustrating to the world that he really did have mounds of talent, making his death all the more sad. Lucas is a geek, a 14 year old who skipped 2 grades and who loves bugs. Over the summer-the summer of the cicadas-he meets Maggie, played by Kerry Green, who is new to town and lonely. She strikes up an awkward friendship with Lucas. When school starts, Maggie becomes a cheerleader and becomes friends with Cappy, played by Charlie Sheen. Cappy is popular but nice-he genuinely likes Lucas-but of course, given the choice between a bug loving 14 year old and a popular football player, Maggie is falling for Cappy. (Despite the fact that his name is Cappy-seriously, he sounds like an 80 year old man.)

This movie is full of nuanced, completely believable portrayals of bullying and well intentioned teachers who aren't in the least helpful, and just teenage life in the early 1980s. It's a beautiful movie. The performances are stellar. Corey Haim is pitch perfect as a tiny, picked on kid who absolutely refuses to lay down and play dead. This is my all-time favorite Charlie Sheen performance. A few years ago, when Charlie seemed to be having a nervous breakdown in front of millions of people, I kept thinking of this humble performance at the beginning of his career. I do worry endlessly over people that I often do not really know. I have no idea if Charlie Sheen was ever in the least like this portrayal. But it existed on the screen, and I hope that eventually when all is said and done, this performance will be weighed in with his over the top exploits and excessively negative attitude towards women, particularly his wives.

Kerry Green is also most awesome in this movie. Kerry Green had the perfect career, I think. She starred in these classic movies-The Goonies and Summer Rental-and then she just disappeared, never having to go through the awkward transition to more "adult" roles and shedding her girl-next-door image.

Tom Hodges is also at his best, playing one of Lucas' tormentors. (Jeremy Piven is the other.) I had such a crush on Tom Hodges when he was Rich on the The Hogan Family. His role is pivotal here. He really deserved a much bigger career than he was granted.

And lastly, there is Winona Ryder. Lucas was her movie debut. Isn't it amazing to think how big Winona was, how huge a star, how she was a first consideration for so many iconic 1990s roles, and now she is barely a blip on the map? It's kind of like Jennifer Grey on a much larger scale. But here is her beginning, showing all of the talented, slightly weird and somehow off girl role that would propel her to stardom two years later in Beetlejuice.

The girls and I have talked about how when the cicadas come back they will be 28 and 25. Adults, maybe with families of their own. So I am treasuring this summer of the cicadas with my girls who still call me "Mommy" and curl up to watch whatever movie I decree they will enjoy.