People can talk about its impact at its release, hailing back to a more naive America. But having not experienced the 70's let alone the 50's I don't have these reference points. What hits me is the youthfulness of the whole thing. That nearly all the characters are kids. The adults are mere secondary characters; exactly how it seems when were growing up. We don't care about what our parents are doing, what our parents friends are doing, about the owner of the local arcade. What we care about is the little world filled with kids. Older kids. Younger kids. The kids working at the local burger joint. <br /><br />The film seems to aim at displaying the world Curt will be leaving, what they have experienced as opposed to what they will experience in the future. In growing up. Maybe it's a sign of the times but where I live and the world I grew up in life outside of the schoolyard was painfully filled with adults. Once 3:30 hit we were once again thrown into society where adults were everywhere and what adults said went. So while 'American Graffiti' strives to illuminate Curtis' decision on whether to take that adventure and ship off to college, to engage in that world where he is in control the irony is that he already inhabits that wonderful place. And this wonderful place where the boys cruise in their muscle cars; the police officers efforts are futile and a disc jockey named 'Wolf man' is thoroughly loved across the board is completely foreign to me. But that's the charm. And that's why I loved it.