The movie Stand By Me is based upon a novel by Steven King. It doesn't have the same eerie feel as some of his other books and is generally a more serious movie. It takes place in the small town of Castle Rock, Oregon. It is the middle of the summer in approximately the early 1960's. The kids are bored and that is the setup for their adventure to go find a dead body in the woods.
The main role of Gordie LaChance is played by Wil Wheaton. He is having trouble in his life at this time because he just lost his brother and his parents are having a very difficult time dealing with it. Chris Chambers was played by River Phoenix. Chris is considered a loser because of his family and everybody thinks he will do nothing in life. Through it all, the group of kids looks up to Chris and he is admired by them. The role of Teddy Duchamp is played by Corey Feldman. Teddy has a difficult time in life largely because his father was very mean to him before getting thrown in an insane asylum. The lack of discipline shows in that Teddy has a serious problem staying in control. He is always going crazy and his behavior presents a problem more than once to the group. Vern Tessio is played by Jerry O'Connel. He is the short little fat kid that remains a constant pest throughout the movie. Together the for kids embark on a trip through the woods that will be a challenging adventure for them all. Over the course of the movie the group has problems with individual group members, they have to work as a team, and leadership roles emerge.
In any group, dealing with difficult group members is vital to the group's success. Stand By Me has three different types of difficult group members that cause problems in their own way.
Vern is probably the most difficult member to deal with. He would be characterized as a blocker. He thwarts the progress of the group, opposes much of what the group attempts to accomplish (Rothwell 145). Throughout the movie