Stephen King’s Film with Highest Tomatometer Ever Was Too Much for Him: ‘I Was Moved to Tears’
And the writer's reaction is more than understandable – there’s a small chance you won’t shed a tear during this movie’s end credits.
While we all yearn for the 80s watching Stranger Things, in the 80s Stephen King cherished the memory of the 50s and his own childhood in dirty jeans and torn sneakers.
The holidays are coming to an end, but there is still time for one last adventure: somewhere over the bridge lies the body of a neighbor's boy. If you are the first to discover the body, you can become the hero of the whole neighborhood. And four boys are already on their way.
Stand By Me is one of King's most intimate and personal stories. It was not originally advertised as a film adaptation – the creators feared that the author's reputation in the horror genre would give people the wrong impression.
Fortunately, time has corrected this association, and now Rob Reiner's film is recognized as one of the best King adaptations.
The synopsis of the movie sounds like the beginning of a creepy plot, but in fact we have a deeply moving story that evokes the days of youth when friends were your whole world.
Stand By Me Was Too Touching Even for King
The film adaptation was so moving that it brought King himself to tears:
“It was moving. I think I scared the sh*t out of Rob Reiner. […] When the movie was over, I hugged him because I was moved to tears.”
Stand By Me Is an Undeniable King Classic
Stephen King's nostalgic and sentimental tale of childhood in 1950s Castle Rock, was named after the title of Ben E. King's ballad. The film's cult status is due less to its Oscar and Golden Globe nominations than to the charisma of young River Phoenix and his four childhood friends.
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The strong script also made Stand By Me a powerful tool for cultural influence. For example, the very Tarantino-like dialogue about American pop culture was featured here long before Tarantino's debut and clearly influenced him.
The movie was filmed in Brownsville, Oregon, and its popularity turned the town into a tourist destination. Since 2007, the town has officially celebrated Stand By Me Day on July 23.
Technically, the highest-rated King film is 1976's Carrie, with a 93% Rotten Tomatoes score from critics, while Stand By Me's rating is slightly lower at 92%. However, if we also take into account audience ratings, Stand By Me comes out on top with 94%, while Carrie's audience rating is only 77%.
And Stand By Me deserves every bit of praise it's ever gotten. There are few more heartbreaking final quotes than this one:
"I never had any friends later on like the ones I had when I was twelve. Jesus, does anyone?"
Source: IndieWire