20 Best Cult Movies Of The 1980s

If The Goonies stands as perhaps the best example of escapism for kids made in the 1980s, Stand By Me sits on the other side of the tracks. This is a film which is rooted in the cold, hard reality of growing up, the kind of coming-of-age movie which shatters the innocence of childhood and serves as a wake up call to the real world.

Adapted from the short story by Stephen King (and quite possibly the best King adaptation committed to film), Stand By Me was directed by Rob Reiner, a filmmaker perhaps best known for comedies (more on those later) but here demonstrating a remarkable understanding of restraint and subtlety of tone. He shows the story of four boys who discover a dead body while exploring off the beaten track with a sensitivity few coming-of-age films manage to match.

Just as Richard Donner was lucky to have such a great ensemble cast of children for The Goonies, so too does Reiner manage to get exceptional performances out of his young cast, which includes Will Wheaton, River Phoenix, Corey Feldman and Kiefer Sutherland. The setting might be the 80s, but Stand By Me's exploration of themes of youth and responsibility is timeless.