This was a movie that tried pushing boundaries about young adult sexuality versus traditional behavior set in the 1920s around the time of the stock market crash. For these characters it seemed easy to tap nto the money flowing out of the Kansas rock formations and focus on that as your life goal, except for the young couple at the center of things who were clearly in love and feeling the pressure of all that would entail. There were rebellious teens to scare Deanie and Bud into avoiding the pitfall of breaking the social order, and yet they each end up pursuing what they promised they would not, at the cost of their relationship. As their lives go down separate paths they come to a new understanding by the end about what the personal stakes are for their lives, while not putting aside the feelings that used to be at the center of their existence together. Some of the scenes are a little far-fetched by modern standards, but they're still fun to see. The acting was first-rate too with an understanding of how to convey nuance visually while the script has the character saying things of a different sort. Natalie Wood is young and beautiful of course in this and it's always sad to consider what became of her after her big successes of this time.