Stand By Me (23.10.23)

A Nostalgic Fall From Innocence (The Bus 4.9)

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The Stop

Stand By Me (1986) is a coming-of-age drama directed by Rob Reiner and starring Wil Wheaton, River Phoenix, Corey Feldman, Jerry O’Connell and Kiefer Sutherland. Based on Stephen King’s novella ‘The Body’, the film received both critical and commercial success on its release, and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. Telling the story of the ‘evolution of a writer, his relationship with his three closest friends and a situation that formed his talent - and morbid fascination,’ the film is considered one of the most influential of the 1980s - and regularly finds itself on lists of the best films of all times.¹

Brief Synopsis:

In 1985, while reading a newspaper article about a fatal stabbing, writer Gordon ‘Gordie’ Lachance is reminded about an incident in the summer of 1959 when he was 12 in Castle Rock, Oregon. He was grieving the death of his older brother, Denny, and feeling invisible and ignored by his grief-stricken parents. One day he and his three friends learn that the body of a missing boy, Ray Brower, had been found - somewhere - in the woods along the rail track. Looking for adventure and the chance to prove themselves, Gordie, Chris, Teddy and Vern embark on a journey to find the body and become heroes.

As they venture deep into the woods, they encounter physical challenges - a dog chase, a near-miss by a train, a leech-infested pond, and a violent gang of older teens who want to discover the body themselves - but the emotional challenges are the real point of the story. All four boys are dealing with issues that come to the surface on their overnight trek, and the circumstances of their adventure forces them to confront their own fears and insecurities.

Gordie is struggling to come to terms with the loss of his brother, but is also trying to find his place in the world, and he is unsure of his future. He wants to be a writer, but his parents - particularly his father - dismisses this desire and want him to do something ‘real’ with his life - like his brother would have done. Chris - who comes from a notorious family of low-level criminals - is wrestling with his inner demons, including anger and resentment towards his family’s reputation and the way it impacts others’ perceptions of him. He feels trapped in Castle Rock and knows that there is no way he’ll ever get out. Teddy is insecure and consumed by feelings of inadequacy. He’s desperate to go into the army, but he’s partially deaf and has poor eyesight. He’s also frightened of his abusive, mentally ill father, but at the same time hero-worships the former soldier. Vern - overweight and constantly worrying about bullies and getting into trouble - is battling a crippling cowardice.

The closer they get to finding the body, the more they learn about themselves and each other, and begin to appreciate the importance of friendship and loyalty. When they finally discover the body, however, the situation becomes real. Seeing the body - a boy their own age - laying dead by the tracks, literally knocked out of his sneakers, they are confronted with the harsh reality of death. They decide that exploiting Brower's death to become heroes would be wrong, and instead report their discovery by making an anonymous phone call.

Back in 1985, Gordie is completing his memoir of the experience. We learn that once they entered junior high that September, Vern and Teddy separated from him and Chris. Vern married just out of high school and became a forklift operator, and Teddy ended up serving jail time and working odd jobs. Defying expectations, Chris had taken college prep courses alongside Gordie and had become a lawyer, though the two had eventually drifted apart. And we also learn that Chris was the subject of the newspaper article - always the peacemaker, he had been stabbed to death while attempting to stop a fight in a restaurant.

Stand By Me (1986) Trailer

The Detour

Today’s Detour is to ‘Glove’, a short (5:29) animated film based on a true event - the loss of an astronaut’s glove while orbiting earth. It’s a rather profound exploration of space and human existence and what - after we are long gone - will remain of us. Hopefully it won’t just be rubbish, but at the moment ….

'Glove'

The Recommendation

Today’s Recommendation is Stephen King’s Different Seasons (1982). A collection of four novellas, the stories are more literary than the horror fiction for which he had become famous by the time of its publication. King’s publishers had held these four back from previous release due to the success of his horror novels and stories and the lack of a market for novellas. King and his editor decided to release them as ‘something different.’²

The first, ‘Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption,’ is the story of Andy Dufresne, wrongfully convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison. Told from the perspective of Red - an inmate with whom Andy forms a strong bond - it is an at times brutal prison tale about resilience, justice, ingenuity, friendship, hopefulness and - eventually - escape. The second novella, ‘Apt Pupil,’ is a dark, disturbing story about an all-American teenage boy, Todd Bowden, who’s fascination with the Holocaust leads him to discover that his elderly neighbour is actually a former concentration camp commandant in hiding. Todd blackmails the old man into telling him increasingly detailed stories about his crimes, forcing him to dress in a Nazi uniform, and even making him go to school as his grandfather when Todd’s grades begin to slip. Eventually, however, what began as theory becomes real and the two become intertwined in numerous murders - and absolutely nothing turns out well in the end.

The third novella, ‘The Body,’ is the source of today’s Stop, Stand By Me, and the fourth, ‘The Breathing Method’, is the only supernatural/horror story of the group. The story is told by a doctor who, as part of an unusual men’s club who’s members occasionally tell each other strange stories, recounts an episode from early in his career. In the 1930s he met Sandra - an unmarried pregnant woman who was determined - no matter what - to give birth to her illegitimate child. Deciding to help her, against many social norms, he taught Sandra an unconventional breathing method he’d developed to help her through childbirth. Everything seems to be going well, but on the winter night she goes into labour her taxi crashes on the way to the hospital and she is decapitated. When the doctor arrives at the scene, he realises she is somehow still alive - her lungs are still pumping air and her head, feet away, continues working the breathing method until the baby is finally born.

You can find Different Seasons in your local used or new bookstore, in charity shops or - of course - the library.

The Sounds

Today’s playlist is a selection of five tracks from the Stand By Me soundtrack: ‘Everyday’ (Buddy Holly and the Crickets, 1957), ‘Let the Good Times Roll’ (Shirley & Lee, 1956), ‘Lollipop’ (The Chordettes, 1958), ‘Yakety Yak’ (The Coasters, 1959) and ‘Stand By Me’ (Ben E. King, 1961). Enjoy!

The Thought

Today’s Thought is from Stand By Me. Having just summarised what had happened to his three friends in the years since their adventure, and lamenting that - despite not having seen Chris in a decade, he will miss him forever - the present-day Gordie closes his memoir with the line:³

‘I never had any friends later on like the ones I had when I was twelve. Jesus, does anyone?’

If you have a thought on this Thought - or any part of today’s issue - please leave a comment below:

And that’s the end of this Stop - I hope you enjoyed the diversion!

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Until the next Stop …

1. This is one of my favourite movies of the 80s - and probably of all time. It captures the age between childhood and adulthood perfectly. The subtitle of the novella is ‘Fall from Innocence’, and that is exactly what the film is about - but told in a brilliantly nostalgic way. Yes, it’s Stephen King - but it’s not horror and there’s not a hint of the supernatural around. Rob Reiner (who started his career as ‘Meathead’ in the CBS sitcom ‘All in the Family’) also directed This is Spinal Tap (1984), The Princess Bride (1987), When Harry Met Sally (1989) and A Few Good Men (1992), among many others. For more about him, see: Rob Reiner (Britannica). Sources for today’s Stop include Stand By Me (Rotten Tomatoes) and Stand By Me (Wikipedia).

2. I read this sometime in the mid-80s, certainly before Stand By Me was released. At the time I was definitely into my Stephen King phase and this book - and in particular ‘Apt Pupil’ and ‘The Body’ - was particularly vivid. It’s interesting that three of the novellas (not ‘The Breathing Method’) became well-received films, with The Shawshank Redemption being nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture in 1994.

3. Which is a truism if there ever was one. When I read this line and later heard it in the film, I found it devastating. I’ve had (and have) strong friendships, but nothing like the ones I had at that age.