All twelve year olds are fun-loving and carefree; venturous and brave. The friends you have are irreplaceable and you’ll never meet anyone quite like them, so when four twelve year old friends set off to find a missing boy, will they discover more than just the boy’s body? The 1986 movie Stand By Me is the epic tale of the adventure of a lifetime. Based on the novella “The Body” by Stephen King and directed by Rob Reiner (“Spinal Tap: The Final Tour” and “Misery”) this movie shows four boys finding out who they truly are.
The journey starts when Vern Tessio (Jerry O’Connell) enters the tree house containing Gordie Lachance (Wil Wheaton), Chris Chambers (River Phoenix) and Teddy Duchamp (Corey Feldman) and tells them of a conversation he overheard about a dead body down near a river. The four boys then decide to go find the missing person in hopes of having their five minutes fame. They each tell their parents that they are going to another’s house for a couple of nights but instead, follow the railway to the river. Along the way the past of their messed up families and lives is unraveled. Teddy’s father was victim to fits of rage. He once held Teddy’s ear to a stove and nearly burnt it off. Teddy himself wasn’t quite right either. Chris came from a bad family, and everyone expected him to end up bad as well. Gordie was completely ignored by his parents ever since his older brother had died, and even before that, his father had always frowned upon his passion for writing over football like his brother. Vern was the only one who had a partially sane family, and even his brother was involved in a rebellious gang. Whilst undergoing the 30 mile trip, Gordie persuades Chris that he’s not destined to be worthless, despite everyone else’s belief. After two days on their own and with only one small meal, they eventually find the body, which is when Gordie realises that they shouldn’t use someone’s death as their five minutes of fame. Seeing the dead body triggers the emotions he had stored up within him when his brother had died and he realises that he misses him a lot more than he thought. Chris and his heart-to-heart is interrupted by the gang that Vern’s brother is involved in and when the leader, Ace (Kiefer Sutherland), pulls a knife on them, Gordie draws strength from his hate for Ace and his longing to protect the dead boy and pulls out Chris’ dads gun. Stunned by Gordies determination, Ace and his gang back off and Gordie and his friends make their way back home to await the summer’s end and the beginning of the new school year.
Stand By Me is an inspirational movie of self-growth, gaining independency and discovering one’s true self. All children between the age of eleven and fifteen should see this to learn the true meaning of friendship and self-strength. It touches on peer pressure but shows us that over the years, teens haven’t really changed, technology has.
I love this movie because it is like nothing I have ever seen. Out of the hundreds of movies I have viewed, this one really is the most inspirational and independent film.