Try Seventeen (2002) — AI Story Visualization

Plot Analysis Summary

A seventeen-year-old tries to navigate independence, family truth, and romantic feelings while forming a complicated bond with Jane.

Story Structure — 4 Plot Phases

A Young Outsider Arrives

Jones arrives at college because of his grandfather's will and uses his inheritance to rent an apartment. Older students mock and threaten him as he tries to establish a new life.

Key Events

• Jones Arrives at College — Jones attends college because his grandfather's will required it. Characters: Jones Location: College
• Inheritance Rents an Apartment — Jones uses his inheritance to rent an apartment. Characters: Jones Location: Apartment
• Older Students Mock Jones — Older students mock and threaten Jones for looking too young. Characters: Jones Location: College

Jane and the Awkward Kiss

Jones meets Jane during her acting rehearsal, and their closeness begins with an awkward request for a kiss. Jane learns his age, advises him not to rush into intimacy, and receives his apology.

Key Events

• Jones Meets Jane — Jones meets Jane while she rehearses a romantic scene. Characters: Jones, Jane Location: School
• The Awkward Kiss — Jane asks Jones to kiss her, then learns he is only seventeen. Characters: Jones, Jane Location: School
• Jane Advises Jones — Jane advises Jones to fall in love before rushing into adult intimacy. Characters: Jones, Jane Location: School
• Jones Apologizes — Jones apologizes to Jane for the kiss. Characters: Jones, Jane Location: School

Old Wounds and New Trust

Jane tells Jones about her conflicted history with Steve, while Jones listens and later visits her in the hospital after she is injured. Their conversation about letters leads Jones to disclose that he never knew his father.

Key Events

• Jane Discusses Steve — Jane tells Jones about her painful, complicated past with Steve. Characters: Jones, Jane, Steve Location: Unspecified
• Jane Describes Freedom — Jane says being with Steve makes her feel free despite his having hurt her. Characters: Jones, Jane, Steve Location: Unspecified
• Jane Is Injured — Jane is injured and ends up in the hospital. Characters: Jane Location: Unspecified
• Jones Visits the Hospital — Jones visits Jane after her injury. Characters: Jones, Jane Location: Hospital
• Jane Requests a Letter — Jane asks Jones to write her a letter; he explains his letters are private and unsent. Characters: Jones, Jane Location: Hospital
• Jones Reveals His Secret — Jones says he never knew his father and had believed romantic stories about him. Characters: Jones Location: Unspecified

Truth and Unresolved Affection

Blanche tells Jones that his father left and never returned, replacing the stories Jones had believed. Jones's feelings for Jane deepen, but she warns that their closeness cannot become what he hopes; a nighttime drive ends without a clear resolution.

Key Events

• Blanche Tells the Truth — Blanche tells Jones his father left when he was very young and never returned. Characters: Jones, Blanche Location: Unspecified
• Jones Imagines Rescuing Jane — Jones's feelings deepen as he imagines rescuing Jane from her troubles. Characters: Jones, Jane Location: Unspecified
• Jane Sets a Boundary — Jane says they are too much alike and their closeness cannot become what Jones hopes. Characters: Jones, Jane Location: Unspecified
• Apartment Life Expands — Jones's encounters with Brad and Lisa contribute to his increasingly busy apartment life. Characters: Jones, Brad, Lisa Location: Apartment
• Nighttime Drive Confession — Jones tells Jane during a nighttime drive that he thinks she may be the most beautiful woman in the world. Characters: Jones, Jane Location: Car
• Unresolved Interruption — Someone calls out that they cannot do something, leaving the immediate outcome unclear. Characters: Jones, Jane Location: Car

Story Breakdown

• College and Independence — Jones arrives at college under the terms of his grandfather's will and begins establishing a life of his own.
  • Grandfather's Will — Jones attends college because his grandfather's will required it.
  • Apartment Rental — Jones uses his inheritance to rent an apartment.
• A Hostile Welcome — Jones faces judgment from older students as he tries to settle into his new surroundings.
  • Mocked for Youth — Older students mock Jones because he looks too young.
  • Threats at School — The older students also threaten him.
• Jane and Jones — Jones and Jane become close after meeting during her acting rehearsal, but their expectations differ.
  • Rehearsal Meeting — Jones meets Jane while she rehearses a romantic scene.
  • Awkward Kiss — Jane learns Jones is seventeen after asking him to kiss her, and he later apologizes.
• Jane's Past with Steve — Jane describes a relationship that offered a sense of freedom but also caused her pain.
  • Complicated History — Jones learns that Steve once seemed to offer Jane what she wanted but ultimately hurt her.
  • Conflicted Freedom — Jane says being with Steve makes her feel free even as she struggles with what he did.
• Hospital and Letters — Jones supports Jane after her injury, and their hospital conversation turns toward his private writing.
  • Hospital Visit — Jones visits Jane after she is injured.
  • Unsent Letters — Jane asks for a letter, and Jones explains that his letters are private and unsent.
• The Absent Father — Jones's understanding of his family changes when Blanche tells him what happened to his father.
  • Jones's Belief — Jones says he never knew his father and had believed romantic stories about him.
  • Blanche's Revelation — Blanche tells him his father left when he was very young and never returned.
• Unresolved Affection — Jones hopes to rescue Jane and expresses his feelings, while Jane makes clear that she cannot offer the relationship he wants.
  • Jane Sets Boundaries — Jane says they are too much alike and their closeness cannot become what Jones hopes.
  • Nighttime Confession — During a drive, Jones tells Jane he thinks she may be the most beautiful woman in the world, and the outcome remains unclear.

Directed by

Jeffrey Porter

Key Cast

• Elijah Wood — Jones
• Franka Potente — Jane
• Mandy Moore — Lisa
• Debbie Harry — Ma Mabley
• Elizabeth Perkins — Blanche