As in so many retrospective rite-of-passage movies, the film's view of the past is the smoothed-out double vision of a grown-up reliving his own adolescence but with an adult perspective that discerns structure and meaning in events. The film's lovely performances embody this double vision”.
The film's perspective on the past is a distorted, double vision of an adult reminiscing about his youth, but with an adult viewpoint that identifies patterns and significance in events. The actors' performances are a reflection of this double vision.