Sarah T. – Portrait of a Teenage Alcoholic

Plot

The film opens with a mock TV commercial for "Coury's" beer, depicting young adults laughing and playing games while drinking. This segues into a voice-over presenting statistics on alcoholism before the teleplay begins. Sarah Travis, a 15-year-old girl, feels isolated and inadequate. Her parents are divorced, and she has minimal contact with her unemployed, alcoholic biologic father Jerry.

She lives with her mother Jean Hodges and stepfather Matt, who do not notice her loneliness. The family has recently moved to an upscale suburb, where Sarah feels overwhelmed and overshadowed by her older sister Nancy. She wishes to live with her biologic father. At school, she botches a glee club audition due to nervousness and leaves upset.

At a party celebrating her stepfather's promotion, adults ask her personal questions and offer her drinks, which her mother forbids. Sarah picks up an abandoned drink and gulps it down, revealing she is an experienced drinker. Later, at a party for older teens hosted by her new friend Ken Newkirk, she drinks and associates happiness with drinking. She sings at the party, surprising everyone with a great performance, then secretly drinks bottle after bottle and becomes happily drunk.

Ken drives her home, and her parents blame him for her condition. Her mother is more concerned with appearances than Sarah's welfare. Ken invites Sarah to ride his horse Daisy, and she becomes more popular at school. At home, her mother fires the housekeeper Margaret for raiding the liquor cabinet, but Sarah had been watering down the scotch to hide her drinking.

Sarah continues attending parties with Ken and drinks heavily. Ken becomes concerned and calls out her drinking, but she laughs it off in denial.