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Amazon.co.uk Review
A sleeper hit when released in 1986, Stand by Me is based on Stephen King's novella "The Body" (from the book Different Seasons); but it's more about the joys and pains of boyhood friendship than a morbid fascination with corpses. It's about four boys ages 12 and 13 (Wil Wheaton, River Phoenix, Corey Feldman, Jerry O'Connell) who take an overnight hike through the woods near their Oregon town to find the body of a boy who's been missing for days. Their journey includes a variety of scary adventures (including a ferocious junkyard dog, a swamp full of leeches and a treacherous leap from a train trestle), but it's also a time for personal revelations, quiet interludes and the raucous comradeship of best friends. Set in the 1950s, the movie indulges an overabundance of anachronistic profanity and a kind of idealistic, golden-toned nostalgia (it's told in flashback as a story written by Wheaton's character as an adult, played by Richard Dreyfuss). But it's delightfully entertaining from start to finish, thanks to the rapport among its young cast members and the timeless, universal themes of friendship, family and the building of character and self-esteem. Kiefer Sutherland makes a memorable teenage villain and look closely for John Cusack in a flashback scene as Wheaton's now-deceased and dearly missed brother. A genuine crowd-pleaser, this heartfelt movie led director Rob Reiner to even greater success with his next film, The Princess Bride. --Jeff Shannon
Special Features
1.85 Wide Screen
16:9 Anamorphic Wide Screen
DVD 5
French\German\Italian\Spanish
English
Region 2
Dolby Digital Mono English French German Italian Spanish
Dolby Digital Mono
Feature Length Commentary By Director Rob Reiner
Featurette
Filmographies
Isolated Score
Menu Music
Music Video Ben E King stand By Me
Arabic\Bulgarian\Czech\Danish\Dutch\English\Finnish\French\German\Greek\Hebrew\Hindi\Hungarian\Icelandic\Italian\Norwegian\Polish\Portuguese\Spanish\Swedish\Turkish
16:9 Anamorphic Wide Screen
DVD 5
French\German\Italian\Spanish
English
Region 2
Dolby Digital Mono English French German Italian Spanish
Dolby Digital Mono
Feature Length Commentary By Director Rob Reiner
Featurette
Filmographies
Isolated Score
Menu Music
Music Video Ben E King stand By Me
Arabic\Bulgarian\Czech\Danish\Dutch\English\Finnish\French\German\Greek\Hebrew\Hindi\Hungarian\Icelandic\Italian\Norwegian\Polish\Portuguese\Spanish\Swedish\Turkish
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Lollypop, lollypop...,
By
This review is from: Stand by Me [DVD] [2000] (DVD)
This is such a classic movie (and an excellent novella by Stephen King too!) The cast are perfect, from Wil Wheaton's sensitive Gordy, to Jerry O'Connell as the loveable Verne, plus River Phoenix giving us a glimpse of what could have been...Keifer Sutherland also stars as the main antagonist, Ace Merrill. The story begins with four friends starting off on a journey to find a body, and it gradually evolves into something much more that that, I think the phrase 'coming of age' is appropriate. Plot wise I wouldn't say anything really happens, but we do get to experience the four boys hopes and dreams and the bond of childhood friendship, the way everything changes as you get older. I think that's why I love this movie so much, it's similar to my experiences (minus the dead body, obviously!) and most people will find some way to relate. I would advise you to check this movie out; it may surprise you!
24 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A quiet classic,
By
This review is from: Stand by Me [DVD] [2000] (DVD)
Adapted from the Steven King novella, The Body, Stand by me is set in 1950s Maine( well, it is Steven King) and follows four young freinds as they they set out on a hike in search of the dead body of a child of their own age, killed by a train. The film opens with Richard Dreyfuss seated in his car, the the grown up version of his character, Gordon Lachance, now a proffesional writer. The elder Lachance acts as narrator for the story, reminicing on the events of that trip , his relationship with his freinds, paticularly Chris, played by River Pheonix, and how the search for a dead body became more than just a trip out of morbid fascination but a search for themselves, their own personal hopes and dreams, pains and sorrows and their escape into each other. The movie differs from the book in certain areas, as it must, paticularly in the relationship between Gordy and his deceased older brother( John Cusack ), and the ending is slightly less sombre. The magic of this film is the exploration of childhood that everyone can relate to, and sets this film apart from many a sickly hollywood coming of age drama. Boasting an irresistible soundtrack of old rock an roll classics, this film is responsible for bringing the Ben E. King song of the title back to life. Nostalgic but not sickly, funny and sad, this film lures your childhood memories out of their hiding place and plays them before your eyes. Compellingly acted by its child stars, this film is made all the more powerful when watched now, knowing the real life fate River Pheonix. A must see.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
I was twelve, going on thirteen...,
By
This review is from: Stand By Me [Blu-ray] [1986][Region Free] (Blu-ray)
Based on a novella entitled "The Body" from Stephen King's anthology Different Seasons, this adaptation loses none of its power and charm on Blu-ray.
In the summer of 1959, four teenagers set off on an expedition. Their objective is to locate the corpse of a missing boy and thereby gain some degree of local fame. What none of them realises is that by the end of their two-day trek, they will have done a lot of growing up. Director Rob Reiner struck cinematic gold when he cast the four leads. Rarely has such a relatively young cast combined to exactly the right effect. Wil Wheaton's and River Phoenix's characters carry much of the emotional burden: both lacking in confidence but sharing a formidable bond of friendship. By contrast Corey Feldman and Jerry O'Connell provide the comic relief but each has deeper moments to shine. All of them demonstrate a mature acting ability. The picture on this Blu-ray is perfectly clean and bright, enhanced by a veneer of grain and some slight soft focus. The original mono soundtrack is accompanied by a subtle DTS-HD 5.1 option with only the music being given a greater spatial feel. This is especially effective in the opening moments when the slower, orchestral arrangement of the title song leads into Richard Dreyfuss' contemplative narration. Bonus features include Reiner's audio commentary and the documentary from the 2000 DVD release together with an engrossing new picture-in-picture retrospective from Reiner, Wheaton and Feldman. Celebrating its 25th anniversary, this is a film that hasn't dated one bit. It effortlessly captures the camaraderie, joie de vivre, pain and loss of innocence that are encompassed by childhood. You can never relive it but if you ever feel the need to revisit it, Stand by Me will awaken those memories in an instant.
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