The
coming-of-age drama Stand by Me was released 40 years ago today.
Technically, its $52.3 million domestic box-office gross would not put it in blockbuster
territory, but it earned a tidy profit because of its low $8 million, enabling Rob
Reiner to make more and bigger films.
After
viewing the finished product, King told Reiner it was the best adaptation
of any of his films to that time. Audiences today are likely to respond with
the same powerful emotion that the novelist did.
Though the
main plot of the movie is set in 1959, its themes are universal: loss of
innocence, family neglect, and, most poignantly, the transience of childhood
friendships.
Even
Facebook goes only so far in retaining early bonds: distance—in geography, stations
in life, and, sadly these days, politics—serves as an aching reminder of all we
have lost over the years.
But we
have those friends when we need them the most, as we are sometimes thrown into
confusion in growing up as we discover the world and start to discover ourselves.
The quartet at the heart of this film are, then, just stand-ins for ourselves.
For an
especially enthusiastic take on the film, see this 2017 guest post by Jessica Prescott on the blog “Hamlette’s Soliloquy.”
