mjjason
09-17-2007, 11:47 AM
***Spoiler alert*** if you haven't seen the film then you may not want to read on
I haven't seen any posts on this film so I thought I would start one. In my opinion this is a very underrated film and very often overlooked. What I find most compelling about the film is how my understanding of the film changes as I grow older and learn more about life.
When I first saw Radio Flyer I was around 12 and I had a brother who was 8, around the same age as Bobby and Mike (the two main kids in the film). So I completely bought into all the fun, imaginations, and adventures that Bobby and Mike had. I truly believed that at the end of the film Mike and Bobby succeeded building a flying contraption that would help Bobby escape his abusive, drunk Step-father. I was young and naive at the time and I fell for the feel good ending.
However, about 3 or 4 years ago I watched the movie again and I was shocked at what I perceived the ending to actually mean. No longer 12 years old and full of boyhood imagination I saw a deeper darker meaning to the ending. It was a complete shock so I went on the web and sure enough plenty of other people shared my opinion at what the ending really meant.
It was a surprise to me as I don't now of any other film that has that type of ending. Where depending on how old you are or how you see the world we see the ending differently. If you are hopefull and do not wish to think of the negatives of the world than you see Bobby escape his step fathers reach, but If you are weathered down and more of a realist than you see something completely different.
That multi-layered meaning to the film made me love it more. Does anyone know of any other film that has this kind of structure?
I haven't seen any posts on this film so I thought I would start one. In my opinion this is a very underrated film and very often overlooked. What I find most compelling about the film is how my understanding of the film changes as I grow older and learn more about life.
When I first saw Radio Flyer I was around 12 and I had a brother who was 8, around the same age as Bobby and Mike (the two main kids in the film). So I completely bought into all the fun, imaginations, and adventures that Bobby and Mike had. I truly believed that at the end of the film Mike and Bobby succeeded building a flying contraption that would help Bobby escape his abusive, drunk Step-father. I was young and naive at the time and I fell for the feel good ending.
However, about 3 or 4 years ago I watched the movie again and I was shocked at what I perceived the ending to actually mean. No longer 12 years old and full of boyhood imagination I saw a deeper darker meaning to the ending. It was a complete shock so I went on the web and sure enough plenty of other people shared my opinion at what the ending really meant.
It was a surprise to me as I don't now of any other film that has that type of ending. Where depending on how old you are or how you see the world we see the ending differently. If you are hopefull and do not wish to think of the negatives of the world than you see Bobby escape his step fathers reach, but If you are weathered down and more of a realist than you see something completely different.
That multi-layered meaning to the film made me love it more. Does anyone know of any other film that has this kind of structure?