Run time: 100 mins

A timeless romantic drama that blends youthful passion with quietly devastating emotion.

Set across college campuses and early adult life, the story follows Oliver (Ryan O’Neal), a privileged Harvard student, and Jenny (Ali MacGraw), a sharp, independent music student from a very different background. Their unlikely connection deepens into a sincere, playful romance, but family expectations and life’s unpredictability begin to shape their future in ways neither can control.

Looking back, director Arthur Hiller’s restrained approach feels key to the film’s lasting impact, allowing its emotional core to shine through intimate, everyday moments rather than grand gestures. Its honesty struck a chord with audiences at the time, helping it become one of the defining romances of its era, bolstered by critical acclaim, major award recognition and a hugely influential score.

O’Neal and MacGraw created a screen pairing that people connected with immediately. Their natural chemistry and unaffected performances helped shape the film’s legacy, grounding its most famous lines in something that felt genuine and relatable.

Still affecting decades on, it remains a sincere, emotionally resonant look at love, loss and growing up.