Boy With Green Hair, The

Made in the hopeful post-World War II era that produced such classics of social conscience as Gentlemen's Agreement, Pinky and Home of the Brave, this provocative film is a fable for its time -- and ours. It tells the supernatural-tinged story of an orphan who finds a safe haven in small-town America until the day his hair turns green. Then the townfolk turn against him, frightened by the change they cannot understand. A call for tolerance, an inspiring statement that "different" doesn't mean "threatening," The Boy with Green Hair boasts a fine cast (Robert Ryan, Pat O'Brien, Dean Stockwell), a popular theme song (Nature Boy) and the feature-film debut of director Joseph Losey (The Servant, The Go-Between).

• drama
• family
• science fiction