The Cure (1995)

Director:

Peter Horton

Writer (WGA):

Robert Kuhn (written by)

Release Date:

21 April 1995 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Two boys found a way to make one summer last a lifetime.

Plot:

Dexter, age 11, who has AIDS, and his next door neighbor Eric, a little older and much bigger, become best friends...

Plot Keywords:

AIDS | Friendship | River | Tragedy | Boat

Awards:

2 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Brad Renfro	...	Erik
Aeryk Egan	...	Tyler
Delphine French	...	Tyler's Girlfriend
Mona Powell	...	Tyler's Girlfriend
Andrew Broder	...	Tyler's Buddy
Jeremy Howard	...	Tyler's Buddy #2
Joseph Mazzello	...	Dexter
Annabella Sciorra	...	Linda
Diana Scarwid	...	Gail
Rosemary Corman	...	Elderly Woman in Street
Mychael T. Rambo	...	Garbageman #1 (as T. Mychael Rambo)
David Alan Smith	...	Garbageman #2
Delia Jurek	...	Angry Woman
Fran Korba	...	Elderly Women in Market
John Carroll Lynch	...	Skipper #1 (as John Lynch)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for emotional thematic elements, and for language.

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS

Certification:

USA:PG-13 (certificate #33731) | Australia:PG | UK:12 | South Korea:12 | Germany:6 (bw) | Spain:7 | Canada:PG (Nova Scotia/Ontario)

Filming Locations:

Divine Redeemer Hospital - 724 19th Avenue N., South St. Paul, Minnesota, USA

Company:

Island World

Trivia:

The opening credits feature the track 'My Great Escape' by Marc Cohn. However, this track was not released on any medium other than the movie itself.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Erik and Dexter find Pony's stash of money, it's full of twenties. The next day, when Erik steals it, it's full of ones.

Quotes:

Dr. Jenson: So, I hear your road to the Nobel Prize hit a few potholes?
Erik: More like the Grand Canyon.

Movie Connections:

Features 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

Soundtrack:

My Great Escape

Even in tragic circumstance, this film shows there can be happiness

The subject of children being terminally ill is difficult and saddening but 'The Cure' successfully portrays the idea that it doesn't have to be all doom and gloom and, if anything, children need to have hope and delight in their lives if they are to find peace before the end. It is also a film of remarkable bonds of friendship and the innocence of childhood.

The film sees Erik, a dysfunctional adolescent boy with a distant mother, moving into a new area where their next-door neighbour is eleven-year-old Dexter, who contracted AIDS through a blood transfusion. After his initial fears and ignorance over AIDS are allayed, Erik befriends Dexter and their almost fraternal friendship sees them embark on a journey down the Mississippi to where they have heard about a New Orleans doctor who claims to have found a cure for the disease.

The talent from the two young leads of Brad Renfro and Joseph Mazzello, who play Erik and Dexter respectively, is exceptional. Brad was able to portray Erik's harder edge without comprising the subtle childish innocence inherent to the character while Joseph depicts the sense of vulnerability to Dexter's character but injects the right amount of boyish enthusiasm and zeal to highlight that his illness doesn't mean he still isn't a child who wants to run and play like any other eleven-year-old boy. The pair's interactions create a feel in the audience that these are two boys who are genuinely close and they carry the film well. Annabella Sciorra also delivers a touching performance as Dexter's mother Linda, who adores her son and delights in seeing him thrive with this new friendship to Erik and eventually becomes a surrogate mother-figure to the other boy.

Set against an excellent soundtrack, 'The Cure' is a very bittersweet film that manages to flawlessly weave the story of boyhood friendship that survives unflinchingly in the midst of prejudice and terminal illness without resorting to sappiness or unnecessary saccharine sweet scenes. A very interesting reflection in the film is that is it the adults who have the problem with Dexter's AIDS status whereas the children, even the 'bullies', come to accept him as they would any other. What is also very touching is how, despite Erik's streetwise nature, he is the more naive one in his determination to cure Dexter while the younger boy has this haunting sense that he knows his fate but is swept away by his best friend's enthusiasm for a cure.

I highly recommend 'The Cure' for it is rare to find a film that is simultaneously sad and uplifting.