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    About This Item

    Unique ID Code: 0000012640
    Added by: DVD Reviewer
    Added on: 14/1/2001 17:43
    View Changes

    Stand By Me (UK)

    9 / 10
    4 votes cast
    Rate this item
    Inline Image

    You think Mighty Mouse could beat up Superman?
    Certificate: 15
    Running Time: 85 mins
    Retail Price: £19.99
    Release Date:

    Synopsis:
    In a small woodsy Oregon town, a group of friends - sensitive Gordie, tough-guy Chris, and flamboyant Teddy are in search of a missing teenager`s body. Wanting to be heroes in each others` and their hometown`s eyes, they set out on an unforgettable two-day trek that turns into an odyssey of self-discovery.

    They sneak smokes, tell tall tales, and band together when the going gets tough. When they encounter the town`s knife-wielding hoods who are also after the body, the boys discover a strength they never knew they had.

    Stand By Me is a rare and special film about friendship and the experiences of growing up. Filmed with humour and suspense, it is based on the Stephen King novella `The Body`.

    Special Features:
    Interactive Menus
    Scene Access
    Feature length commentary by Director Rob Reiner
    Featurette: `Walking the Tracks:The Summer Of Stand By Me`
    Filmographies
    Isolated Score
    Music Video: Ben E. King - `Stand By Me`

    Video Tracks:
    Widescreen Anamorphic 1.85:1

    Audio Tracks:
    Dolby Digital Mono English

    Subtitle Tracks:
    French
    Hebrew
    Icelandic
    Polish
    Czech
    Italian
    Hindi
    Swedish
    Finnish
    Turkish
    English
    Spanish
    German
    Portuguese
    Greek
    Hungarian
    Dutch
    Arabic
    Danish
    Norwegian
    Bulgarian

    Directed By:
    Rob Reiner

    Written By:



    Starring:
    Kiefer Sutherland
    Corey Feldman
    River Phoenix
    Wil Wheaton

    Casting By:
    Jane Jenkins
    Janet Hirshenson

    Soundtrack By:
    Jack Nitzsche

    Director of Photography:
    Thomas Del Ruth

    Editor:
    Robert Leighton

    Costume Designer:
    Sue Moore

    Production Designer:
    J. Dennis Washington

    Producer:
    Andrew Scheinman
    Raynold Gideon
    Bruce A. Evans

    Distributor:
    Columbia / Tristar

    Your Opinions and Comments

    9 / 10
    This was (and still is) the most influential movie I`ve ever seen. I first watched it at the age of 15 and it made such a huge impact on me. 12 years later, and after watching it at least a dozen time, the impact remains.
    The movie tells the story of four kids going on a two-day trip to look for the body of a missing kid. The movie has it all - funny moments, dangerous moments and sad moments (brilliantly acted). Add to this the best of the late 50`s rock&roll tunes and you get "Stand By Me", a true pearl.
    The acting is superb. The young actors do an incredible job and that is admirable since they are so young and inexperienced. The late River Phoenix excels in particular.
    You can notice his qualities as an actor even at the tender age of 15, when the movie was shot.
    The video transfer is awesome. You cannot tell this movie is almost 16 years old now.
    There are no compression signs at all and the images are very crisp. Most of the colors in the movie are de-saturated a bit and this what makes the movie look so real.
    The DD 2.0 soundtrack is ok. I wish it was DD 5.1 (for the effects in the forest, the train, the gunshots etc.), but the stereo soundtrack is quite satisfying. The music in the movie is great no matter how many channels it is played through. The movie also includes dubbed versions in 4 or 5 other European languages.
    The menus are static and simple. I think it is appropriate for this kind of a movie.
    The extras include a great commentary by the director (it`s amazing how this movie reflects both his childhood and the writer`s childhood), an amazing featurette with interviews and behind the scenes looks (including a tribute to the late River Phoenix), a music video ("Stand By Me" - both the original and the newer version with Phoenix and Wheaton singing along with Ben E. King) and an isolated track of the music. All in all, the extras are very good.
    Bottom line - sigh - everything I say about this movie would be an understatement. It is THE most nostalgic movie I`ve ever seen and by far the best growing-up story ever told. This is simply a must see (and buy, as soon as the DD 5.1 version is published). If the last line in the script doesn`t make you wonder - nothing ever will. Don`t miss it.
    posted by Zvi Josef on 14/1/2001 21:01
    9 / 10
    Stand By Me "Last Summer"

    "When I saw that there`s gonna be Stand By Me Special Edition
    to Region 2 dvd I couldn`t believe my eyes.The Stand By Me Quest
    had ended" 28llimaH-[at]moc.liamtoh

    It was late 80`s when I saw this movie and it felt great
    at first sight. Stand By Me has got it`s own special
    "uniq" kinda feeling, which cannot be easily forgotten,
    so this movie lives forever in our minds. The story is
    based to the Stephen Kings novel called "the body" and
    with Rob Reiner`s directing the story comes alive. It`s a
    story about four kids, called Chris (River Phoenix), Gordie
    (Wil Wheaton), Vern (Jerry O`Connell) and Teddy played
    by Corey Feldman. They`ll decide to search the body of
    some young kid and on their journey, they`ll gotta face the
    reality of the real world. Stand By Me is one of the best
    movies/drama` ever, because of it`s brilliant storytelling and
    amazing realism, which reminds me about my youth, even
    I didn`t live in the 50`s.The story reminds also about those nice
    adventure feelings, that we used to have when "we" were kids.
    All those threehouses and things in the nature are warm feelings
    from the past.I bet that nowdays kids won`t build any threehouses,
    all they just do is collect Pokemon cards or play playstations
    games "25" hours in a day. So, the movie is great, what about the
    transfer?Video quality is presented in 1.85:1 widescreen and it looks
    as good as it`s possible.It`s got soft colors with sharp picture so it
    kicks the vhs version big time.Even the audio is Dolby 2.0 or 1.0 it sounds (thanx Zvi Josef)
    better than ever, because you can finally hear those songs clearly.
    "(compared to vhs, the sound is superb)".The Stand By Me disc includes
    also isolated music score (Jack Nitzsche was a great composer and he
    doned great job with movies like One Flew Over The Cuckoo`s Nest, Starman
    and The Jewel Of The Nile, but sadly he died last year "if i recall right"),
    Talent Files, Valueable Ben E.King Music Video, where
    River Phoenix and Wil Wheaton are singing with King (very enjoyable).
    Disc also includes audio commentary by Reiner, but it was a big disappointment,
    because he had many big "pauses" and when he said something it went like this
    "I like this scene, we used to do that when we were kids" or
    "that reminds me about my own childhood".So he didn`t tell anything valueable
    or very secret, even I could make a better commentary of Stand By Me.
    Then there`s excellent new "Walking the tracks" "the summer of stand by"
    documentary, where you can see interviews with the great cast like Feldman,
    O`Connell, Wheaton, Sutherland, Dreyfuss, director Rob Reiner.
    The best documentary I have seen to this date, very emotional,
    fun and sad to watch. Specially when there`s no interview with
    River Phoenix (my favourite actor with Mark Hamill), because he`s
    gone to better place, after having overload of drugs during Halloween
    1993 "if I recall right". Phoenix acted in movies like Mosquito Coast,
    Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade and he was the original
    actor of Interview With The Vampire, which gives more value
    to that movie. River Phoenix really was the best actor during that
    time and I`ll never forger him (He`s brother Leaf Phoenix is best known
    from the movie Gladiator).
    posted by Hamill82 on 19/1/2001 11:14
    8 / 10
    I live for this film. Possibly the greatest adaptation of a Stephen King novel ever. It has everything: great acting, great script, great direction and some truly tear shedding scenes. If you aren`t moved by Gordie`s speech, or Chris laying out his future, and if you aren`t crying at the last line in the film, you are without a soul.
    posted by Gangster No 1 on 7/4/2002 02:06
    10 / 10
    This movie is one of my all time favourites. It is based on a book by Stephen King named The Body. It is about four friends named Gordie,Chris,Teddy and Vern who go to search for the body of a dead boy their own age. They start walking along the railway tacks but along the way there are several things like a bad gang in the town are also wanting to locate the body. Others like when they come to the river they have to cross the railway bridge which is 100 feet above ground and nearly end up getting struck by a train! The rest of the movie is great with a lot of funny parts like Gordie`s story! I would give this movie 10/10. The DVD is great as well with a load of special features like a Director`s commentary and featurette. Any fan of Stephen King should buy this DVD because it is one fantastic movie.
    posted by LFC_Lad on 7/6/2003 22:37