My Bodyguard

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Mike P Very sweet coming of age movie with an excellent cast; even though it falls into very familiar bullying-and-revenge teen movie tropes... Clifford Peach is a put upon new kid who hires class hulk Ricky Linderman to defend him against class bully Melvin Moody, and his goons... And all is good in the world...The two even unexpectedly become friends..That is, until Moody hires his own bodyguard. And then Clifford also finds out a dark secret about Ricky's past which complicates things even further. And overall this is a very tender human interest story; thanks to the touching performances by stars Chris Makepeace and Adam Baldwin...Who, as the class nerd and the class ogre, have great chemistry...And it's all very enjoyable and audience pleasing...(Even though it frequently gets passed over for film festivals and nostalgia viewing in favor of edgier John Hughes fare; who had a lock on the genre during that era). But it's still a great movie...plus it showcases a lot of hot up-and-coming stars, (Matt Dillon, Joan Cusack, Jennifer Beals and Martin Mull); and cool Chicago locations. I highly recommend this. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 12/23/24 Full Review CodyZamboni Z Feel good tale of an unconventional high school friendship. Movie pushes all the right emotional buttons, Lots of famous faces in small roles, especially Jennifer Beals. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 12/19/24 Full Review Brian M One of my favorites from 1980. Watched it on cable many times. The movie deserves more attention. The music is great as well. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 10/06/24 Full Review Audience Member We’ve all had bullies in our lifetime but the size of our hearts matters more than the size of our muscles A very young Chris Makepeace, Matt Dillon, Adam Baldwin, and Joan Cusack in director Tony Bill’s first effort Clifford lives with his grandma and father who manages a hotel, Clifford then enrolls to a new school in the city but it’s not all smooth sailing as he’s constantly picked on by the bully Moody However his solution comes in the form of a bodyguard named Linderman I love the movies universal theme about confronting bullying. The Chicago setting works to the movie's advantage too. It’s clear not all kids live in the same homogenous middle-class structure and things like bullying can occur in every income and property line. This definitely feels like required viewing for middle schoolers plus it still has plenty of parables for adults. This movie ended up being a more intimate character study which is good that it doesn’t follow typical teen kid cliches. It’s themes too remain relevant today as it did back then particularly when it comes to adolescence. I love how it’s very relatable tackling bullying, depression, and more bravely gun violence. It ends pretty satisfyingly even if abruptly. Still so many that have experienced these kinds of emotional growing pains will take away something that still rings true right now. A trio of well acted youths and a pretty emotionally-heft script make this movie worth remembering. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 09/27/23 Full Review MURPH M SOME FILMS GET OVERLOOKED.....AND/OR MISUNDERSTOOD.....My Bodyguard is such a film......I. happened across late tonight when I was working on a project......I needed some background noise.....what I got was a total distraction. A good one. I was surprised when I read the reviews.....It is rare that so many critics get so much wrong. Released in 1980 (when I was 30) I missed it. Maybe I was as cynical as those reviewers in that year but I hope not. The story is a bit of a fairy tale, a fable. Ok, but so what. It is a well done one. The characters feel genuine. The story is very human AND generally believable. It has real heart. I suggest that is worth exploring. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 09/01/23 Full Review Dave H This was one of my most memorable and favorite movies as a child - pre adolescent. It is stuck with me for decades. I just finished watching again at age 53 and still found it very charming and memorable. It definitely had a lasting impression on me and some of the things I went through and around that age. Great nostalgic film- simple but pure and stays with at least me for decades. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/19/23 Full Review Read all reviews

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