Verdict
Summary
Having gone largely unnoticed when it was originally theatrically released (I caught it in theaters, however), the touching coming of age drama The Cure has some significant poignancy to it thanks to sensitive writing and good casting, and director Peter Horton (who might be best known for his acting credits) did a commendable job in handling this delicate material.
Plot:
Two boys – one with AIDS – form a lasting friendship over the summer break.
Review:
Erik (Brad Renfro) is a bullied kid who’s neighbors with a frail eleven year-old boy named Dexter (Joseph Mazzello) who has AIDS from a bad blood transfusion. At first, Erik’s response to that is to call the kid gay and contagious like all the other kids, but he quickly corrects his ways and befriends the whip-smart boy and they become fast friends. Thinking he can find a cure for AIDS before Dexter eventually succumbs to the disease, he leads them both into a Tom and Huck-style runaway adventure down the river where they hitch a ride to New Orleans where Erik is sure there’s a doctor who has found the cure (he read a cover story in the National Enquirer about it), but the trip is ill-fated, however very much a bonding experience for the two kids who’ve never done something so daring … or stupid. Eventually, the boys land back home where Dexter’s longsuffering mother (played by Annabella Sciorra) welcomes them back with open arms; Erik’s mom is much more the abusive, hands off type of absentee parent who would rather send him off to summer camp than have him getting into trouble. With Dexter’s time coming to a close, the two boys bond as well as they can in the most meaningful summer of their young lives.
Having gone largely unnoticed when it was originally theatrically released (I caught it in theaters, however), the touching coming of age drama The Cure has some significant poignancy to it thanks to sensitive writing and good casting, and director Peter Horton (who might be best known for his acting credits) did a commendable job in handling this delicate material. Renfro and Mazzello worked really well opposite each other, and while the film has a bit of a saccharine quality (it could’ve been a T.V. movie, easily), the film does have some cinematic qualities that elevate it, such as a fine score by Dave Grusin.
Mill Creek’s recent Blu-ray release offers the film in high definition, but doesn’t come with any bonus features. The slipcover is done in a faux VHS-type illusion, and strangely the slipcover lists two ratings for the film: “R” and “PG-13.” It’s PG-13, by the way.
