88 Having just watched Molly go through her first period, and the solemnity with which this event was treated, I was really surprised at how honest and open "As Boys Grow" was for its time. While the acting or the naivete of the boys may seem a bit unrealistic now, the film still gets high marks for its frankness and completeness. Remarkable arteitle 2002-09-19 00:00:00 2002-09-19 00:00:00 5 794 Gonzo sex ed film starts out in the most uncomfortable way possible. Don't you think the coach is a little TOO chummy with the boys? His talking to the audience about "filling out" just makes for some high weirdness. Plus, having some of the pre-teen boys shirtless makes it worse. After the first 10 minutes though, it turns into a pretty standard sex ed film. Worth watching then for the first 10. Yeah, but why? Spuzz 2002-12-31 22:48:39 2002-12-31 22:48:39 3 1195 This film was way ahead of its time. It deals with sex in a very open and honest way without shying away from the more sensitive topics. I was particularly impressed with the way it talked about masturbation, considering how old the film is. While the acting isn't brilliant (but I think that adds to its charm) this is an interesting and, at times, quite amusing film. Watch out for the dialogue about wet dreams! very open and honest for its time benjiboy 2003-02-03 04:17:16 2003-02-03 04:17:16 4 1356 Living in this day and age of pedifiles, I was waiting for the coach to start hitting on one of the boys. But there's no such nonsense here. The Coach does a great job as a surrogate father teaching the boys on his team about human reproduction and male sexuality. This film would have come in very handy a few years ago when I gave my son "the talk." The information is presented in a very straight forward, non-judgemental way. Despite a little campiness, this film can still be a valid tool to teach kids about sex. Worth watching, especially for parents. Straight talk about sex rcfuzz 2003-02-18 16:46:05 2003-02-18 16:46:05 5 2330 When I first downloaded this video, man was I ready for some really dated, antiquated view of sexuality replete with warnings, admonishments and condemnations. However, I was in for quite a surprise. Instead the video is surprisingly honest and informative. Presentation is straightforward, and it addresses taboo topics such as masturbation in a positive light -- a topic on which a US surgeon general lost her job in the mid 1990's when she commented upon it and a topic not even mentioned when I had sex eduation in the early 90's. It loses a star because the boys are simply too naive for their ages (12-15 or so), some of the conversations sound stilted, nd because, at times, the coach DOES seem a little too chummy with the boys. All in all though an excellent ephemeral film for downloading. Even modern sex education could certainly borrow a page from its book. Extremely liberal for the time period mjwise 2003-05-22 11:07:51 2003-05-22 11:07:51 4 2632 How stupid are these kids! 14 years old and they don't know how to masturbate? By that age they should have been wacking off to their mom's fashion mags for at least 2 years! I was waiting for Coach to whip it out and demonstrate, now that would have been educational! "C'mon boys, let's all stand in a circle and see who can elaculate first!" Gee Coach! carnabyfudge 2003-06-14 08:52:20 2003-06-14 08:52:20 2 5795 This 50s sex-ed film is very straightforward and informative about puberty and sex. It even covers––are you ready for this––how the sperm gets into the uterus! Thus, it was probably never shown in the vast majority of American classrooms. A friendly high school track coach answers any and all questions about sex and stuff that members of his team fire at him, even bringing along helpful, though not inappropriate, visual aids to some practices. He never even hints that sex is evil, does not mention any horrible diseases the guys could get from it, and tells them that masturbation is "normal at your age" and will not lead to blindness or sterility. Therefore, it is pretty safe to assume that he was fired at some point by some of the boys' parents. Such healthy and informative sex education has never been tolerated in the schools, not even today, making this film a real curiosity. Ratings: Camp/Humor Value: ****. Weirdness: *****. Historical Interest: *****. Overall Rating: ****. As Boys Grow Christine Hennig 2003-08-23 19:32:05 2003-08-23 19:32:05 4 25902 I love the scene where the coach is explaining about how a man ejaculates after he has an erection and a shy student raises his hand to ask "that doesnt happen everytime does it?". Boys have penis's MediaWhore 2004-11-28 19:14:45 2004-11-28 19:14:45 5 31819 I like how the guy mowing the lawn says, "Hey, you know what? Last night I had a wet dream!" This film was pretty radical for the 50s, telling the kids masturbation was normal. All these kids deserve Academy Awards for keeping a straight face. Pretty progressive GoCelluloid 2005-02-13 04:15:10 2005-02-13 04:15:10 4 I found myself smiling at the end of this film, the innocence of kids, still more interested in sports and simple fun than in "doing it". Sweet, but not cloying. Pity about the acting, but really, could any of us have managed as well at that age, considering the subject matter? I would never have been able to get most of those lines out! I wish they had used this film for "sex ed" when I was in school. It would have certainly cleared up a few things when I was that age. We got the egg-fertilization-with-incomprehensible-diagram class (what? mention masturbation in a Texas school, are you crazy?). Like the diagrams in this film, but without the clear, concise explanation. Based on those, I ended up with the conviction that women had their ovaries outside their bodies, like testicles, only higher. That's probably why I went gay, actually. That and the fact that I was ridiculed mercilessly because I had a full chest-full of hair and all the related pubescent accoutrement at age 12, which made me a freak to all the other 12 year old boys (I was an early bloomer - bald spot started at 14, too). But enough about my puberty... Can you imagine what would happen in today's schools to the teacher who showed this film to a class without showing it to every child's parents beforehand and getting written authorizations, notorized and filed with the state first? I can hear the storms of controversy now - "You told my kid WHAT??? I'll sue this school for every penny it's got!!" "What's the idea of telling my boy that masturbation is normal, you pervert?" Did I mention that prolonged exposure to humans has made me cynical? I've noticed that they have that effect on people. Was I ever that young and innocent? 5 randomc 2005-09-11 00:50:28 2005-09-11 00:50:28 I'm from Texas. I had no idea how them babies got made. Seriously though, the previous reviewer for some reason didn't get the same education in Texas that I got. I was raised in Houston so maybe things are different out in the country. We learned all about masturbation. We got a double dose of sex ed via both health class and biology. In biology we got to see a graphic video of a woman giving birth, the whole gooey mess, the baby's head coming out, the cutting of the woohoo with a scalpel, gushing fluid, yikes. Anyway, this is such a well made film it could probably still be used today. It has some unintentionally funny parts as well. The coach just seems to carry charts of the female reproductive organs where ever he goes. He's handy. Also, the "Hi! I'm so-and-so" at the beginning is reminiscent of Troy McClure. Very Informative 4 spacekraken 2005-12-20 01:23:42 2005-12-20 01:23:42 Kids back then used to look forward to diff stuff (hince the reason why they didn't do crap back then) The teacher is strange. But then again so were these films! 5/5 for laughter and listening with friends while doing an MST3K style review. Time..keeps flowing like a river 5 Binfordman 2006-03-16 22:46:09 2006-03-16 22:46:09 We never had a nice laid back movie like this to watch in sex ed class, just a weird book to read. Much better in a movie. Never had the movie, just a book 5 Trio33 2006-03-25 13:31:58 2006-03-25 13:31:58 That the High School coach is the mentor of sex education for these kids. Seems that the children's parents should be responsible for this task, but this was produced in a period where parents just didn't talk about such things to their kids, and the PTA's probably insisted that the coach be a third party or surrogate parent. In this day and age, knowing what we now know about people who's professions bring them into close contact with children, this film would more than likely still remain the most trusted source of carnal knowledge. Interesting To Note 4 BigDAS 2006-05-05 21:55:35 2006-05-05 21:55:35 (Hope that this FINALLY gets me a printed review!) When they said PENIS....I knew the ref from the coach (no pun intended..ref,coach) was coming..but NOT my laughing OUT LOUD! DEFINITELY progessive for 1957! Steve Carras 2007-10-22 06:32:59 2007-10-22 06:32:59 5 Sure, you almost have to laugh at the unlikely situations and forced dialogue in As Boys Grow (“Say, you know something? I had a wet dream last night…”), but the core of what this film offers is exactly what sex education ought to be. It is absolutely factual and accurate, not vague, evasive or preachy. Conspicuous in its absence, of course, is any mention of even the existence of birth control or sexually transmitted disease – thereby sparing the audience the usual brain dead make believe about abstinence. Instead, it hammers home two points which really should be stressed: there’s no set timetable for puberty, and there’s no “normal” body type. The missing birth control and STD components aside, this would be an effective sex education tool in schools today. I don’t mean a film like this, I mean this film. Think about it. Instead of being put to sleep, students would be busting up laughing at it – meanwhile the accurate information would fly in under the radar. Better Sex Ed Through Unintentional Humor Jeff3K 2008-04-05 22:18:57 2008-04-05 22:18:57 3 I Was Told In Jr. High That I Would Go Blind For Constant Weenie Whippin'.......So I Quit & Got A Blind Girl To Do "IT" For Me!.....Mama Did'nt Raise No Fool! Bump In The Night! doowopbob 2008-09-13 14:47:11 2008-09-13 14:47:11 5 I was 15 in 1957, when this film was made. I was a student at the newest public high school in my city, and it had the most advanced, up to date curriculum available at the time except for any form of sex education. Being in the "bible belt" part of the country, sexuality as subject matter in schools was strictly taboo. All that having been said, for years I was haunted with the fear of blindness or mental incapacity due to frequent masturbation. That fear and other phobias based on my sexuality could have been prevented from ever occurring had open discussions about male/female sexuality been permitted in public schools of that era. Lost in the Fifties Dudley Duright 2009-01-18 19:56:01 2009-01-18 19:56:01 5 I remember seeing a film similar to this about 1968 called From Boy To Man. Of course the boys saw it separate from the girls (who got to see a Disney film sponsored by Kotex-seriously!). Anyhoo, THIS film goes further to describe sexual activity ie masturbation and intercourse than our film ever did. It's sad how things have regressed IMO. Didn't one of Clinton's Surgeon Generals have to resign because in the wake of AIDS she suggested masturbation was safer? That's sad. Really sad. But then teachers in some schools in my state were forced by law to put stickers on science books stating that evolution was just a theory. How we seem to have stepped back in time. Bet our parents never thought America would be more uptight in 2010 than it was in this honest, very innocent film. PS: But Why WAS 'Coach' just carrying around charts of the female reproductive system at 'just the right moment?" Hmmm... (LOL) Amazingly Frank, sadly even for today thundrmi 2009-08-13 22:02:04 2009-08-13 22:02:04 4 "As Boys Grow" is a very good 1957 educational film for the early teen years.. It still holds up after so many years. The script is informative and intelligently written. Informative and well done ERD. 2009-08-15 00:06:01 2009-08-15 00:06:01 5 20 4.30