 The film 's initial reception was mixed . After an advance screening on December 31 , 1978 , Variety magazine praised it , saying that " despite " the " uneasy blend of nostalgia and violence " , The Wanderers " is a well @-@ made and impressive film " . The <unk> were also complimented for their script , which was described as " accurately " capturing the " urban angst " of growing up in the early 1960s . Janet Maslin , of the New York Times criticized the film in her 1979 review , saying " the movie never attempts to tell a single story " and instead " settles for a string of boisterous vignettes , which are heaped carelessly atop one another without any consistent scheme " . 
