War of the Buttons (Full Frame)

VHS, PG, 90 minutes, WARNER

No stones in slingshots. No skirmishes too late in the day. They're rules of war for the youngsters of two neighboring Irish villages. And here's another rule: if you spit-shake on something you better follow through. Kids will be kids; but sometimes they, in their own fanciful ways, will be adults. "What's unique and marvelous about War Of The Buttons," says Oscar-winning "Chariots Of Fire" screenwriter Colin Welland, "is that it's not an adult's view of childhood at all, but a child's view of adulthood." Welland joins fellow "Chariots Of Fire" Academy Award-winner David Puttnam for a winning tale in which buttons are the spoils of a would-be war. The rival teens are screen newcomers, but you wouldn't know it from their seasoned performances. And if you don't know why Ireland is the Emerald Isle, this scenic film is breathtaking proof. You may laugh or cry over this delightful charmer. After all, sooner or later we're all veterans of a war called growing up.