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Teenage LSD dealer Simon (Devon Sawa) freaks out at a rock concert and winds up in rehab. There, he reflects on his life and butts heads with Kate (Charlayne Woodard), his drug counselor. In flashbacks, his dope-smoking boarding school roommate (Eric Maibus) takes him to his first "show" (the band is never identified, but it's presumably The Grateful Dead) where he meets Trace (Colman Domingo), HIV-positive hedonist Kevin (Henri Lubatti), and lovely blonde stir-fry vendor Jennifer (Tara Reid). Under the influence of pot and acid, Simon falls in love with the tie-dyed lifestyle, the groovy music, and the people. Eventually, unresolved issues send him into a downward spiral of drug abuse, until finally, with Kate's help, he faces buried grief over his dead mother and resentment towards his affluent, controlling father (Bill Smitrovitch).
This colorful, good-hearted indie film benefits from groovy music, an authentic recreation of the culture, and fine performances, particularly from Domingo, Smitrovitch, and Woodard. Most interesting of all is the film's non-judgmental frankness about both the spiritually liberating and self-destructive aspects of psychedelic drug use. John Jacobsen directed this movie from a script by producers (and former Deadheads) John Comerford and Tommy Rosen.
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