Stand by Me

I first saw Stand by Me a long, long time ago, before I’d even read the original short story by King (I didn’t notice that I knew the story until the separate scenes of the movie started to unfold in front of me) and I really liked it. Now, god knows how many years later, almost nothing has changed. Maybe just that I savored it more and enjoyed seeing the young Kiefer “Jack Bauer" Sutherland in the role of Ace. The young actors put on amazing performances, most of all River Phoenix, who is no longer with us. This really is one of the best adaptations of a King book. (05/04/2008)

My bookcase is decently stocked with Stephen King's work, so it’s no surprise to me that he can write more than just horror stories. I even feel that his great strength is mostly in how engagingly he can write about common things. For example, when I first read “It” I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the passages where the boys (and Beverly) were building a dam in the Barrens and fighting against Henry and his gang. This novella is similar. Fortunately, its great atmosphere was transferred to the film, which is almost unheard of in film adaptations of King's novels. I had a great time. Even though some moments leave a little to be desired after all these years, I stick to my original rating. (25/10/2017)

The 1950s to the fullest, as well as King's proprieties, but the central four boys have no chemistry with each other, nor does Reiner's narration. This adventure has a simple plot but discourages via the narrative lapse that subjectively stretches the runtime to twice its length. This is because there are a dozen more problems the boys worry about before they start liking girls, but instead of a teenage epiphany, we get an endless camera romp without passion or drama. (19/03/2017)

A bunch of youngsters who, a couple of years later, became normal actors, got together here in a pretty solid form and experienced a very extraordinarily ordinary adventure, which I will probably never forget. A great movie adventure done in the American way that reminded me of my childhood, which only adds to it. Nobody makes these ordinary children’s adventures anymore… a pity. (28/04/2016)

Beautiful. I love the premise and I'm delighted that it managed to come to life so well thanks to all the boys and Rob Reiner. I was wondering how the ending could have moved me so much when almost nothing actually happens in it... And it's probably that I was just moved by the whole film, and merely saving it for the end. (20/07/2020)