Sarah T. - Portrait of a Teenage Alcoholic

source: Sarah T. - Portrait of a Teenage Alcoholic

The last film Richard Donner would make before The Omen, Sarah T. - Portrait of a Teenage Alcoholic is a hard-hitting made for TV movie all about how easily teens in the 1970's could become full-fledged alcoholics before they even graduated high school. It's written by Richard and Esther Shapiro, who would go on to create Dynasty. Sarah Travis (Linda Blair!) is fifteen and feels all alone. Her parents are divorced, with her drunk father (Larry Hagman!) being pretty much absent and her mother (Vera Bloom, Animal House) concentrating on her new marriage (William Daniels - the voice of KITT from Knight Rider - plays the stepfather). Sarah feels overshadowed by her older sister Nancy (Laurette Spang-McCook, Cassiopeia from the original Battlestar Galactica) and tries to live with her father, but he can barely take care of himself. As the movie starts, she's already drinking at her mother's parties and is dealing with major feelings of anxiety and feeling out of place. And when her mother sets up a blind date with Ken (Mark Hamill!), she really shows off how much she can handle at a series of parties. While her parents disapprove of the boy, they bond over his horse Daisy and become friends. But Sarah's alcoholism starts to impact others. She gets a maid fired who her mother blames for watering down their booze. And she already started to drink to get through school. Things get much worse when Sarah tells Ken that she's in love with him. He gently tells her that he's not interested - honestly he looks and feels ten years older than her - and when her father rebuffs her again, Sarah goes off the deep end. From getting hammered while babysitting to riding Ken's horse into traffic, our heroine is trapped in a downward spiral. This is a great reminder of how made for TV movies once looked as good or better than theatrical films, particularly if they had a message like this one. Blair is quite good at conveying the tailspin that her character endures, another of her "girl in danger" roles like another great made for TV movie she made, Born Innocent.

I was 14 when this movie was first shown on TV. (The actress, Linda Blair, is a year older than me.) Even though I was not a drinker or a user, I remember feeling like the character of Sarah Travis was the first in movie/TV that I could identify with. I had gone from school to school, and my parents were split up. My Dad was an alcoholic, and I had a hard time fitting in. But like Sarah, I babysat to make pocket money, and I loved music. The Carole King album 'Tapestry' was my favourite album already, which the song 'It's Too Late' is from, (sung by Linda Blair in the movie.) As I lived through the teen years at the same time as this character, and had many similar issues, I feel like for me, the movie was an important one. I have the book again, like I did back then, but I would very much like to see this movie come out in DVD.

They just don't make made-for-tv movies like they did in the '70s! This is one of my favourite tv movies from that era. Linda Blair plays her character flawless, and makes her role believable. Although it hasn't been on TV for over 10 years now, it's a movie that is a memorable one. It follows the trials and tribulations of a girl that just wants to fit in to her new surroundings, family situation, and school. The two scenes that stick out in my mind are: 1. Linda Blair singing "It's too late"(Carole King),2. Her AA councillor mentioning that alcohol gives at the beginning, then starts taking away from your life. I have never forgot that statement! It would be nice if this movie was available on VHS/DVD, because it is one of Linda Blair's best movies

This movie was a vehicle for Linda Blair - but don't let that deter you from checking it out. Linda plays Sarah Travis, who as the movie begins already has a problem with alcohol. Her parents' recent divorce (and her mother's remarriage) and her move to a new school are not helping things. Slowly everything in her life slides right down the hill and into her river of alcohol. Some of the movie is custom-made for Linda Blair - she gets to sing at a party, her boyfriend has his own horses and lets her groom them (Linda LOVED horses, the teen magazines dutifully reported) - but the message of the movie rings clear. Remarkably powerful scene: Linda goes to an AA meeting, and little Bobby (Eric Olsen, then starring in "Apple's Way") steps forward and shares that his alcoholism made him "so damn disgusted with myself" that he knew he had to get help. It's not accurate to say Sarah hits rock bottom. She THINKS she hits rock bottom, and then learns the hardest way possible just how much further she could fall. A powerful movie, HIGHLY recommended.

Contains spoilers Teenage alcoholics - not only a problem of the seventies. An insecure future, divorced families, spending too much time with the wrong 'friends' -drinking to give their lives a 'future' to kill time - to show others that they aren't different - that they're tough - that they're a member of the gang they joined. Sarah (Linda Blair) - fifteen - the youngest child of a divorced family. She has to live with her mother and step-father - her older sister has her own family. Sarah isn't very lucky - she's missing the dad she loves - and he dotes her on her when he's around. When she finds out her mother has arranged a blind date to a party, Sarah is furious. After she realizes it's with Ken (Mark Hamill), seventeen, popular at school, owner of a horse called Daisy and wants to become a veterinarian, she changes her mind. Sarah gets very drunk behind Ken's back. Because he likes Sarah, he feels responsible for all, allowing her parents to blame him for the incident. They spend some time together, and he shows her his horse. Sarah continues drinking, despite Ken wanting her to stop. She attends an AA meeting, but leaves because she feels she isn't an alcoholic. She makes an effort to stop drinking, though. One evening Sarah and Ken are babysitting. She tells him that she wants more - wants him all for herself - while Ken isn't interested in forcing their relationship - he wants it in the way it is. They end up in an argument and Ken leaves her. Sarah is very frustrated and starts drinking again. She gets very drunk and is found in a stupor by the crying child's angry parents. Sarah's mother and her step-father finally realize the extent of her drinking. She tells them that it wasn't Ken - that it was she who was responsible for the alcohol in the house. Sarah pleads to go live with her real father - and her mother agrees. But then Sarah finds out that her idolized father has feet of clay - he doesn't want her because he has his own problems. The world around Sarah collapses. Going on a drinking spree she steals Ken's horse, Daisy. Ken runs after them but can't catch them before they ride into traffic. The horse gets hit by a car and must be destroyed. Sarah survives uninjured. She cries for forgiveness - but Ken coldly walks away - the pain of the loss of his horse that meant so much to him still on his face. He wants nothing more to do with her. Sarah finally realizes only she can help herself and commits for treatment. "I'm an alcoholic." Words that shocked her parents - words that makes them realize that they failed themselves, too. And for Sarah - it's her first step into a future without alcohol. Mark played his role very well. He's warm and gentle - frustrated and devastated - gives a nice and easy performance. He brought realism and believability in his role that he changed a bit. In the original script, Ken was colder - a youth that has only his own future in view. His emotional scene at the end of the film is outstanding. Linda Blair, as usual is outstanding, she begins to have a nice body in this one, the future looks good for the rising star!

New stepfather, new school, new boyfriend (Mark Hamill, pre-Luke Skywalker) proves to be all too much for troubled high schooler Sarah Travis (Linda Blair), who hits the bottle hard. TV-drama goes over the top in places, but is otherwise a sensitive and moving portrait, not too campy. Best scenes have Sarah T. scheming to get her precious booze (she has the liquor store deliver it while "mom" is in the shower), or trying to steal vodka from a corner store. Made in the day when movies attempted to teach younger viewers a life lesson; I don't know if that worked, but "Sarah T." is a pretty realistic depiction of teen angst. Blair is letter-perfect in the lead, conveying all the tangible insecurities of this awkward age. Was there any other teenage actress in the 1970s who was this good at being this tortured?

The legendary Elaine Stritch described her first taste of a whiskey sour as the night that a star was born, and that is obviously true to life as evidenced by the changes in Linda Blair as she gets a taste for booze in this cult TV movie that kids in my school all talked about for days when it first aired. Maybe it was because it was a possession movie of another kind for Blair, more popular at the time than either Jodie or Tatum because she was more identifiable as an adolescent with lots of problems. She was the product of a broken marriage with father Larry Hagman hundreds of miles away and mom Verna Bloom now married to a high paid executive, veteran actor William Daniels. With the adults distracted by their own problems and busy social life, the insecure Blair is vulnerable to the adult beverage, especially when mom arranges for her to go out with cool kid Mark Hamill. The only way Blair can feel comfortable with the A crowd is to get hammered, and this completely changes her personality. Blair suddenly bursts out of her shell, and it's this boost of confidence makes her more self assured and confident, although alcohol creates a false sense of esteem that ends once the hangover starts. But quietly crafty, Blair manipulates the liquor delivery man in leaving booze for her mom and hides it in her closet. Blair is excellent in showing Sara's changes due to booze, and of course, this is a roller-coaster ride for her that could destroy her life before it's even begun. This could have been a typical teen exploitation film, but it only provides a subtle warning to the dangers of teens and booze. It shows how parental neglect can be detrimental to the mental and physical health of a teenager, and both Hagman and Daniels are excellent. Unfortunately, Bloom seems to be from the Elizabeth Taylor school of braying and delivers a rather obnoxious performance that should have been reigned in. Hamill is charming as her love interest with a horse. Hilda Haynes offers Sara fine support as the family maid, the only person in her household whom she can be herself with. A good script and tight direction (memorable even with dated 70's concepts of filmmaking and story telling) turns this into a TV drama that has stood the test of time, especially since this seems to be a problem that won't go away.

Sarah T. (1975) Linda Blair is in deep trouble again. This time she's a teenage lush who can't keep her nose out of the bottle. What's scary about this one is that she's eerily credible as a drunk. The cheese factor of Mark Hamill keeps this picture from earning any real credibility (one scene has Luke Skywalker crying like a woman, watch out Star Wars fans). Well, it was pretty funny watching ol' Skywalker pour on the water works. Other than that (sans Mark Hamill) it's a good film about young alcoholics. Recommended.

Please make this movie available to the public either by vhs or DVD it is one of the most memorable movies I have seen in my life !!!! Linda Blair is Amazing in it. This movie has haunted me for 20 years, I never knew the name of this movie until the internet came along. Now I have been in a mad frenzy to find this movie somewhere. Please, Please make it available. I have to have this movie. It is a Classic.