I was a teen in 1961's Hawaii... this story closely follows much of what I experienced there, and I must say that the picture follows reality in an astounding way. Much of the footage even made ME look twice.The social groups, the standards, the ethics, the customs... were all exceptional. Granted, the waves of the "big storm" were exaggerated, but for an overall flavor of teen Hawaii at THAT time, this is an excellent film.