Film Blog - "Stand By Me"

Plot

The plot in the movie is almost exactly the same with a couple of minor exceptions. The movies still starts with talk of a dead body that they are going to see which intrigues the viewer to keep watching. The movies does follow the story very closely though. There were a couple differences between “The Body” and “Stand by Me” too. In “The Body”, I felt like Gordie and Denny (his deceased brother) did not have a close relationship, but their relationship in “Stand by Me” was completely different. Their close relationship was emphasized by a few scenes that did not appear in the short story. The movie showed Denny sticking up for his brother and caring about him when their parents did not. Denny was interested in Gordie's life by saying at the dinner table, "So Gordie, how are your writings going?" Their parents would have never been this interested in Gordie's life. Also, Denny gave Gordie his New York Yankees hat which he wears throughout the movie. For me, this relationship completely took a 180 degree turn from the short story to the movie. Also, the store clerk in the movie did not try to rip off Gordie like he did in the movie. Lastly, in the book, Gordie is the one who pushes Teddy off of the railroad tracks and Chris is the character who pulls out the gun to scare off their older brothers’ gang. In the movie this is flipped around. I think this was done to show that Gordie is the one with the intellectual ability to act when it really counts.


Point of View

The movie is still in the format of one of Gordie LaChance’s flashbacks. Also, Gordie still narrates throughout the movie, but not quite as much. This way the viewer sees the story as a whole and they don’t get into Gordie’s head as much. This also means that not as much background information is given about the boys and their families, especially Gordie’s family. The viewer can’t connect as well with the characters and Gordie in the movie because there are not as many descriptions of the boys’ feelings as there were in the book. The movie also cuts out the whole story of Stud City. I am guessing that if they were to have put this in the movie it would have been rated R for other things rather than language. I think it was a good idea to not put this story in the movie, but the viewer does not get to understand the writing abilities and imagination of this twelve year-old. The viewer will not understand this passion nearly as much as the reader of “The Body” would.

Characterization

Since Gordie does not narrate nearly as much in the movie, indirect narration is the most common way to characterize the characters in “Stand by Me.” Gordie still tells of Teddy and his father’s relationship, but besides that Gordie does not give a lot of direct characterization as he does in the short story. The boy’s characters are revealed throughout their journey. When the boys are walking along the railroad, they split up into two groups, Gordie/Chris and Teddy/Vern. Here we see the mature vs. the immature. Chris and Gordie have an intellectual conversation of moving onto junior high and Chris lectures Gordie on pursuing his love for writing and actually making something of himself and not being “dragged down by his friends.” It is clear that Chris thinks his destiny is already written and he is going to end up like his unaccomplished brother and family. Then, we see the group of boys acting their age (Vern and Teddy). They are having an important conversation about if “Mighty Mouse could beat up Superman.” Also, when the boys camp out, they have one boy stay up on look out after they hear noises. The way the boys act all alone in the woods says a lot about them. Vern is scared and just at the slightest cricket. Teddy talks to himself to break the silence. I believe that this speaks to his loneliness. Chris is not really scared at all. Lastly, the scene of teddy standing up for his dad happens the same was in the movie as it does the short story. After this incident, Teddy cries. Chris and Gordie both cry at other points in the story too. I believe this speaks of their true age no matter how old they are trying to be. These tears also represent the struggles these boys are faced with at such a young age. All in all, the actions and situations these characters are put in bring out their characters fully.

Setting

The setting in the short story and the book is different. “The Body” takes place in 1960 in a town called Castle Rock in Maine. The movie, “Stand by Me,” takes place in 1959 in the same named city (Castle Rock) but in Oregon. This city of Castle Rock is very small in both the short story and the movie. Also, the lack of parental supervision is seen in both versions of this story. The parents of these children are not very involved in their lives and don’t really mind that their children are camping and missing for two days. I understand that the boys told lies to make it work, but if this is such a small, old town, one would think that the parents would see each other often and communicate. The boys are not really cared much about by their parents and everyone assumes they will just turn out like their “looney” parents and older siblings so the boys just fall into this trap. Maybe if the society would give these boys a chance, things would be different.

Theme

Like the short story, “The Body,” the movie is also based on the growing up of a group of boys. It is a “coming of age” movie that is all about the friendship of a gang of young twelve year-old boys. Although they are not perfect and engage in dangerous pursuits, at heart the boys are good kids and loyal friends. The story focuses on the struggles of the adolescent years. The boys grow up over the course of two days. They stick together through leaches, trains, intimidating dogs, and the older gang of boys (who they are expected to turn into). Just like in the short story, they take responsibility for themselves, get through their differences, fight their problems and develop into young men.