FAQ for
Stand by Me (1986) More at IMDb Pro »

The following FAQ entries may contain spoilers. Only the biggest ones (if any) will be covered with spoiler tags. Spoiler tags are used sparingly in order to make the page more readable.

For detailed information about the amounts and types of (a) sex and nudity, (b) violence and gore, (c) profanity, (d) alcohol, drugs, and smoking, and (e) frightening and intense scenes in this movie, consult the IMDb Parents Guide for this movie. The Parents Guide for Stand by Me can be found at http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092005/parentalguide.

Stand by Me is based on the novella "The Body" by American horror writer Stephen King. It can be found in King's 1982 collection of short stories titled Different Seasons.

Those who have both seen the movie and read the novella say that director Rob Reiner stays fairly close to King's story. Most of the differences are very minor. The biggest difference noted is that, in the book, it is Gordie [Wil Wheaton] who pulls Teddy [Corey Feldman] off the tracks when he is trying to dodge the train, and Chris [River Phoenix] (not Gordie) who is holding the gun at the end. Also in the book, Ace [Kiefer Sutherland] does get revenge on the four kids--that's not mentioned in the movie. The characters' endings are different, too. Chris does get killed in the way that was described in the movie, but the way that Vern and Teddy end up is different. Vern dies in a fire and Teddy dies in a car crash. Ace is the only one who is still around, but is a fat drunk. The scene around the campfire is different, too, in that, Gordie has a dream in the movie that is insightful to the overall story, but the dream isn't in the book. Finally, Gordie's Chico story isn't included in the movie.

Following is a list of the songs from Stand by Me in the order that they were played:

Rockin Robin (1958, by Bobby Day) is played when the boys are sitting in their clubhouse.

Great Balls of Fire (1957, by Jerry Lee Lewis) is played when Ace is playing mailbox baseball.

Let the Good Times Roll (by ?) is played when the boys are sitting in the junkyard.

Book of Love (1958, by The Monotones) is played when Ace and his friends are parked outside of an empty farmhouse.

Lollipop (1958, by the Chordettes) and Everyday (1957, by Buddy Holly and the Crickets) are played while the boys are walking on the railroad tracks on Day 1.

Come Go With Me (1957, by The Del Vikings) and Come Softly to Me (1959, by The Fleetwoods) are played when the boys are sitting around the campfire.

Hushabye (1959, by the Mystics) is played when the boys are walking along the tracks on day 2.

Get a Job (1957, by the Silhouettes) is played when Ace and friends are in the poolhall.

Yakety Yak (1958, by The Coasters) is played when Ace goes head-on with a truck.

Stand by Me (1960, by Ben E. King) is played when the credits roll at the end of the movie.

In addition, the boys themselves sing Sorry (I Ran All the Way Home (1959, by the Impalas) while sitting in their clubhouse and The Ballad of Paladin, the theme song from the 1957-1963 TV series Have Gun - Will Travel while walking along the railroad tracks.

It's during the pie-eating contest when Lardass [Andy Lindberg] stands up. It may help to know that the "vomit" was made from blueberry pie and cottage cheese.

A "goocher" is Vern's word for a dangerous coincidence, such as four coins that are flipped and land on the same side.

No. This is one movie in which King does not appear.

Several people have noted that Stand By Me reminds them of Now and Then (1995), in which four friends gather for the birth of a baby and reminisce about their childhood years together. People have also likened Stand by Me to The Goonies (1985), in which a group of friends who call themselves Goonies find a treasure map and go looking for it. Similar movies that deal somewhat with the coming-of-age theme include Sommersturm (2004), in which two rowing buddies are forced to question their friendship when they meet some girls at summer camp, and Crazy (2000), in which a handicapped boy switches schools and must face growing up. There's also Mean Creek (2004) in which a group of kids intent on exacting revenge on a bully come to see the bad kid in a new light. Finally, people have mentioned another Stephen King movie It (1990) in which a group of losers come together years later to battle their own childhood scars along with a supernatural creature that is threatening the complacent town of Derry, Maine.