Eight Days a Week (1997)

User Rating:

6.0/10   

Director:

Michael Davis

Writer:

Michael Davis (writer)

Release Date:

26 February 1999 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Tagline:

Love has never been THIS hard...

Plot:

Peter loves his next door neighbour Erica and, on the advice of his grandfather, decides to camp out on her front lawn for the entire summer...

Plot Keywords:

Sex | Friend | Obsession | Masturbation | Wetting Pants

Awards:

3 wins

Cast

Joshua Schaefer	...	Peter
Keri Russell	...	Erica
R.D. Robb	...	Matt
Mark L. Taylor	...	Peter's Father (as Mark Taylor)
Marcia Shapiro	...	Marge, Peter's Mother
Johnny Green	...	Nick
Buck Kartalian	...	Nonno, Marge's Dad
Catherine Hicks	...	Ms. Lewis
Patrick Thomas O'Brien	...	Erica's Father (as Patrick O'Brien)
Darleen Carr	...	Erica's mother
Biff Manard	...	The Sad Man
Annie O'Donnell	...	Sad Man's Wife
Ernestine Mercer	...	Crazy Lady
Bill Hollis	...	Mr. Hatfield
Jean St. James	...	Ms. McCoy (as Jean Pflieger)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong sexual content and related dialogue.

Runtime:

92 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White | Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Australia:MA | USA:R

Company:

Underdog Productions

Trivia:

The film gets its name from the Beatle song "Eight Days A Week".

Goofs:

Continuity: Erica douses Peter with water from the sprinkler, but in the very next shot, he is completely dry.

Quotes:

[last lines]
Peter: My grandfather was right. I now know in my heart of hearts that people are supposed to make love. It is their main purpose in life. All those other activities - playing the violin, washing dishes, reading novels, drinking wine - are just ways of passing time, until you can make love again.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Siskel & Ebert & the Movies: (1999-03-06)" (1999)

A little gem

Michael Davis hits the nail right on the head when it comes to the complexities of the teen mind, mainly focusing on lust (on the lighter side), sexual frustration and determination.

It takes place during the last free summer of a likable teen (a great Josh Schaffer). Inspired from a tale his grandpa Nono tells him, he sets out to win the affection of his life-long crush Erica (Keri Russell)by spending every minute of his summer on her front lawn. His task is not easy, as he must confront her bully boyfriend Nick (Johnny Green) and earn some respect from his father.

There is rather brilliant writing and direction by Michael Davis with characters who are all complex in their own way and great acting to match them (R.D. Robb steals the show in an ingenious performance).

There are some misfired jokes such as scenes involving an overly religious girl who plays with nun dolls (not offensive, just not very funny).

Nonetheless, 8 DAYS A WEEK is a little gem from Davis who unfortunately didn't match success with 2000's 100 GIRLS.