Stand by Me (Special Edition)

For the past twenty years, several directors have tried to take on novels by Stephen King.  It seems like most of the time these directors fail and make films terribly bad.  Every once in a while a King adaptation comes along that’s even better than the novel which it’s based on.  Case in point is Rob Reiner’s Stand By Me.

The film tells the story of four friends who are nothing alike.  You’ve got Gordie (Wil Wheaton) who is a smart kid who is overlooked by his parents because of his older brothers death.  You have the tough guy Chris (River Phoenix) who everyone looks at as trash because of his family.  You got Teddy (Corey Feldman) who seems to be a disaster ready to happen due to the abuse he received from his father.  Then there’s the over-weight Vern (Jerry O’Connell) who really just seems to be there.

Each of the guys is twelve years old and none of them really know what life is all about.  They spend their days in their tree house playing cards, smoking cigarettes and talking dirty.  One day Very gets an idea that could make each of them famous and set them out in the small town that they live in.  A guy there age disappeared and his body hasn’t been found yet, but Vern seems to know the whereabouts.  Together, the four friends take off on foot hoping to find the body.  Along the way they will face their fears of the world and the fears of themselves. 

Stand by Me is without a doubt the best coming of age film ever created.  Any guy watching this film will certainly be able to relate to the boys on screen.  The film will take the viewers mind back to when they were twelve and will have the viewer reliving the time he spent with his friends.  The movie is very brave and straightforward in its subject matter.

One of the biggest keys to the film is its performances from the child actors.  Wheaton is perfect in the role as the soft spoken and sensitive Gordie.  Wheaton brings certain wisdom to the role, which brings the character more to life.  Corey Feldman as Teddy is very chilling showing off the effects of child abuse with rage.  Jerry O’Connell gives a wonderful performance (something he hasn’t done since) as the scaredy-cat Vern.  Vern is so stupid and childish that you can’t help but love him one minute and then want to punch him the next.  The real standout performance in the film comes from River Phoenix.  His performance is probably the most demanding of the four because Phoenix has to show off the “tough guy” and he has to show off his weak side.

Kiefer Sutherland is also very menacing as the local bully Ace.  Another key element to the film is Richard Dreyfuss who turns in one of the best narrating jobs in any film ever made.  Dreyfuss’s voice is just right for the film because it has the perfect blend of laughter and sadness.  He narrates the film as if it were his own life he was going over.

At the front of this film is of course director Rob Reiner.  His direction is right on the spot.  Reiner takes his time telling this story but never makes it slow or boring.  Reiner’s previous work had been comedy stuff and he has the perfect way to blend in drama with laughs.  In my opinion there should never be another coming of age film made because no matter who you are or where you grew up, Stand By Me is a film you will be able to relate to.  The film is loving and heartbreaking at the same time.  The ending where Chris just disappears from the screen is even more haunting due to the untimely death of River Phoenix.  Every emotion a person can feel will certainly flow in this film, which is one of the best ever made.

VIDEO---The movie is shown widescreen (1.85:1) and is enhanced for 16x9.  The picture quality is certainly a lot better than the regular version of this DVD, which was released a few years ago.  The colors are rich and strong without any scratches on the print.  Some of the daytime scenes contain a small amount of grain, but nothing to really distract from the film.

AUDIO---The sound is Dolby Digital Mono and does the job just fine.  Although a new 5.1 would have been nice, the Mono track does bring the oldies soundtrack more flavor.  The spoken word and music score are crystal clear.

EXTRAS---You get a couple bonus trailers, including one for The Karate Kid yet you don’t get one for this film.  You get the normal production notes, which are small but a nice read.  You also get a “Stand By Me” music video, which is nice to have.  You get the normal talent files and there is an isolated music score.  You also get a wonderful featurette called, “Walking the Tracks: The Summer of Stand By Me”, which features interviews with Reiner, King, Dreyfuss and all of the kids except for Phoenix.  There is also a very touching memory of River Phoenix in this featurette.  Finally, you get an audio commentary with director Rob Reiner, which is very disappointing to say the least.  Reiner is usually very fun to listen to in interviews and on-screen but that isn’t the case here.  There are several moments of silence and whenever Reiner does talk he usually just says, “Oh, that song was one of my childhood favorites so I put it into the film”.  The commentary would have been a lot better if Columbia had added the kids into the track.

OVERALL---In my opinion this is one of the greatest films ever made.  Columbia/Tri Star has given us a very good special edition that fans should love.  The video is very sharp and the audio is fine.  The documentary is worth the retail price alone.

MOVIE

5/5

VIDEO

4.5/5

AUDIO

3.5/5

EXTRAS

3/5

OVERALL

4/5

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