Figure skater Alexis Winston (Lynn-Holly Johnson) and hockey player Nick Peterson (Robby Benson) are hometown sweethearts in rural Iowa. She has natural talents but her father (Tom Skerritt) refuses to let her go. With former skater friend Beulah Smith (Colleen Dewhurst)'s help, she attends the regional competition where her inspired skate catches the attention of coach Deborah Mackland (Jennifer Warren) despite Lexie's advanced age of 16. As she climbs the skating world, she drifts further away from her roots until a tragedy threatens to take away her gift.
Mackland's complaint about the triple is silly but working behind the scenes makes sense. The skating is relatively realistic since Johnson was a pretty good skater. That does bring into focus of the casting of Lexie. She has to be both a good skater and a good actress. Johnson falls a bit short on both ends. She's also twenty. 16 is too old to be trained. By being twenty, she looks way too old and the outrage for being too old at 16 is diluted. As for Nick breaking up with Lexie, it needs to be more than a kiss at the podium. He should catch them kissing behind the stadium before the competition. It needs to be a passionate kiss rather than a kiss which could be excused. He needs to have an overwhelming cause to be heartbroken. That would lead directly into her accident. Also, Brian should be a social climber who abandons her after the medical tests. That would leave the way wide open for Nick's return. One can feel the acting power rev up with the return of Skerritt and Dewhurst. The second half is the better half. Her handicap makes the movie almost magical and elevates it beyond a simple sports movie. There are a few missteps and Johnson's acting has its limits. However, it's a touching melodrama and there's that iconic theme.
Mackland's complaint about the triple is silly but working behind the scenes makes sense. The skating is relatively realistic since Johnson was a pretty good skater. That does bring into focus of the casting of Lexie. She has to be both a good skater and a good actress. Johnson falls a bit short on both ends. She's also twenty. 16 is too old to be trained. By being twenty, she looks way too old and the outrage for being too old at 16 is diluted. As for Nick breaking up with Lexie, it needs to be more than a kiss at the podium. He should catch them kissing behind the stadium before the competition. It needs to be a passionate kiss rather than a kiss which could be excused. He needs to have an overwhelming cause to be heartbroken. That would lead directly into her accident. Also, Brian should be a social climber who abandons her after the medical tests. That would leave the way wide open for Nick's return. One can feel the acting power rev up with the return of Skerritt and Dewhurst. The second half is the better half. Her handicap makes the movie almost magical and elevates it beyond a simple sports movie. There are a few missteps and Johnson's acting has its limits. However, it's a touching melodrama and there's that iconic theme.