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What sets this film apart is the lack of pandering and condescension with any of the subject matter. No one going into the movie will be surprised that the film is firmly against racism, as the book is, but the point is never hammered home; subtlety wins the day here. What little bombast there is comes mostly in the courtroom proceedings, though Atticus' final plea to the jury ("Believe Tom Robinson!") is both rousing and immensely sad, thanks in part to the reality that legal justice and moral rectitude won't be on the same side with this divisive case. To Kill A Mockingbird is, in many ways, the quintessential coming-of-age film, even if the more memorable aspects of the movie come from the courtroom or from the quiet debut of the great Robert Duvall, as Boo Radley. From the fully realized town of Maycomb to the life lessons Scout learns to the episodic nature of the film, everything comes together with this classic.

Stand By Me

Watching "Stand By Me" is always fun, if you end up watching it with someone who has no idea that Stephen King, modern master of twisted horror, is the creative mind behind the short story this 1986 dramedy is based on, "The Body." Sure, the title of that story seems ominous, but the material within is anything but. The movie, directed by Rob Reiner, is set in the late 1950s, as a group of four friends make a trek through the forests of Oregon to see a dead body laying near some railroad tracks. The foursome are Gordie (Will Wheaton, pre-Star Trek), a quiet boy who feels the loss of his big brother more than the rest of his family; Chris (the late River Phoenix), a smart but conflicted kid who comes from the wrong side of the tracks; Vern (Jerry O'Connell, I swear), a fat kid who's scared of his own shadow; and Teddy (Corey Feldman), a nerdy kid who thinks his physically abusive dad is a war hero. During the trip, the four boys argue, fight, laugh, and cry; eventually, they see the body, but their lives don't change dramatically. The four leads are excellent, especially Phoenix, whose natural charisma and stardom was apparent even at this early stage. Though it's hard to feel nostalgia for the 1950s if you weren't alive at the time, Reiner and the cast do a great job of making you feel like these guys did; the curiosity of the unknown, an adventurous spirit, the camaraderie of good friends all make Stand By Me a great coming-of-age movie.

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