Man it's been a long time since I did one of these. But before I tell you how different these two are I want to tell you guys a couple of things first.
Why The Delay?
So if you read my review for Fantastic Four #5 aka the first part of my Road to Avengers: Doomsday, then you're well aware this should've been uploaded on Monday, Jan 26th. Well Mother Nature decided people needed to suffer with a huge snowstorm. So I had to shovel about I don't know six to eight inches of snow for Sunday twice. Yeah I really had to stay of track of the snow this time around because it wasn't letting up on Sunday, it just kept pouring and pouring. Then by Monday I thought the today was the day but no. I still had more snow shovel. Only this time it was worst because my arms weren't hurting from Sunday form shoveling pounds upon pounds of snow. So on Monday I did more shoveling and decided it'd best to move it to Tuesday. That way on Monday I take sometime to shovel what would thankfully be the last time and also just give my self so rest. But regardless I still feel sorry I didn't deliver yesterday.
Dedication to Rob Reiner & His Wife Michele Singer Reiner
As many of you probably already know but for those of you that don't, on Dec 14th, 2025, news broke that Rob Reiner (the man who directed Stand By Me among many other classic films) and his wife Michele were killed and I think a day or two later it was reported the man responsible for their deaths was their own son Nick. Now I know I joked about Rob's politics for my reviews of This is Spinal Tap, but regardless how I felt about Rob and his politics, him and his wife didn't deserve to die like that. They should've been allowed to pass away peacefully instead murdered. So I dedicate this post to these two. I hope more than anything they're resting in peace.
Let's start off with the tones of these two stories. The book, or as it's truly called a novella, is much more darker. The body's decomposing state is described in more graphic details, the language is much more harsher, and the novella has deeper explorations of child abuse, class issues, and dread about wasted lives. The movie greatly tones down the more darker and grosser elements. And while it has its own emotional weight, the movie focuses more on humor, friendship, and nostalgia.
Then there's Gordie's reflection at the end. In the novella, Gordie's monologue is very sad. His first-person narration reflects on memory, loss, fate, and how their adventure either shaped his friends or failed them. But for the movie, Gordie's monologue is not only told from a voiceover narration, but it's more bittersweet which makes the story feel warmer.
We also have two different narratives. In Stand By Me, Gordie is the main focus. We see his grief over a dead family member, his invisibility at home, and his talent as a writer. So for the movie it's all about Gordie and his coming-of-age tale. In The Body, the narrative is more about Chris. And he's played as a tragic figure. He was the smart kid who had a lot of promise, but was sadly held back an abusive family and environment. Because of these elements, Chris' story is all about wasted potential.
Both the movie and novella has Gordie telling his friends the story of Lard-Ass. However, in the novella Gordie tells two stories. The Lard-Ass story and an additional darker story called "Stud City". The movie doesn't feature the "Stud City" story as a way to maintain pacing.
Now let's switch off to the villains or I should villain of the story, Ace. More specifically his group. In The Body Ace's gang have their own small roles and mentions. With Stand By Me Ace's gang is cut down a bit with characters such as "Eyeball" playing some sort of part in the story.
Continuing on with Ace and his crew, during the final standoff it was changed to who pulls the knife. In the novella, it was Jackie Mudgett who pulls the knife. But in the movie, it's Ace who pulls it. This changed was more than likely made to make Ace look more like a threat.
Speaking of who weapons and who has them, we also have a change of who pulled out a gun. For The Body it's Chris who pulls the gun on Ace and his gang as a way to protect the body and force Ace and co. to back. But for Stand By Me, It's Gordie who does it. That way we can see his personal growth and empowerment.
I should also mention there was also a small detail that was changed. The weather in the novella was pouring rain which added to the story's darker and grim atmosphere. But in the movie the skies are always clear and sunny.
OKAY FAIR WARING! BUT I'M GONNA GET INTO A MASSIVE SPOILER FOR BOTH THE BOOK AND MOVIE'S ENDINGS. SO IF YOU DON'T WANT TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS, IT'D BE BEST IF YOU QUICKLY SCORLL TO THE END!
Alright, so the fate of little gang of misfits is massively different. In The Body the fates go like this...
-Chris Chambers grows out of his "bad kid" reputation and becomes an outstanding college and law school student. But he's later stabbed to death when trying to break up a fight at a fast-food restaurant.
-Teddy Duchamp was driving under the influence and in doing so crashes his car and not only does he die but so does his fellow passengers.
-Vern Tessio is killed in a house fire after a party.
-Gordie is the sole survivor and while he's a successful writer he struggles with survivor's guilt.
Meanwhile in Stand By Me the fates go like this...
-Chris still sheds his bad reputation but he goes on to be a lawyer, but sadly he's still stabbed to death.
-Teddy attempts to join the military but he's disqualified because of his poor eyesight and his ear injury. He later spends time in jail and works a series of odd jobs around Castle Rock.
-Vern later goes on to marry out of high school, has four children, and gets a job as a forklift operator.
-Gordie later gets over the grief of his dead brother, becomes a successful writer, gets married, and has kids.
That's all for now. Come back on Thursday, Jan 29th, for the first part of Looking Back at the Films of 2025. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day.
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