The Good Son (1993)

A young boy stays with his aunt and uncle and befriends his cousin, a boy of the same age who begins showing increasing signs of violent and psychopathic behavior.

Director:

Joseph Ruben

Writer:

Ian McEwan

Stars:

Macaulay Culkin, Elijah Wood, Wendy Crewson

1 win & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Macaulay Culkin	...	Henry
Elijah Wood	...	Mark
Wendy Crewson	...	Susan
David Morse	...	Jack
Daniel Hugh Kelly	...	Wallace
Jacqueline Brookes	...	Alice
Quinn Culkin	...	Connie
Ashley Crow	...	Janice
Guy Strauss	...	Arizona Doctor
Keith Brava	...	Doctor in Blackport
Jerem Goodwin	...	Factory Worker
Andria Hall	...	Woman Reporter
Bobby Huber	...	Axe Man
Mark Stefanich	...	Ice Man
Susan Hopper	...	Woman at Rescue

Storyline

Following his mother's death, Mark is sent to Maine to visit his aunt and uncle while his father goes on a business trip to Tokyo. Mark meets his cousin, Henry, and the two quickly form a friendship. However, Henry begins to show signs of violent behavior that worry Mark.

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Plot Keywords:

psychopath | evil child | killing a dog | fratricide | loss of mother | 

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Taglines:

Evil has many faces

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Genres:

Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for acts of violence and terror involving a disturbed child

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

24 September 1993 (USA)

Also Known As:

El ángel malvado

Filming Locations:

2 Boardman Avenue, Manchester-by-the-Sea, Massachusetts, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$17,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$44,594,000

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$60,417,219

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox

Technical Specs

Runtime:

87 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Two actors in this film appear in Stephen King adapted films. Daniel Hugh Kelly appeared in Cujo (1983). David Morse appeared in The Langoliers (1995) and The Green Mile (1999).

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Goofs

Mark's grip on Henry's mother's arm at the end.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Man: [Mark plays soccer with his teammates as they cheer Mark's name] Get the ball!
Mark: Pass it to me!
Boy: Shoot it! Hit it in! Hit it in!
Mark: [Mark scores the goal] Yes! Yes!
Boy: Good goal! Good game.

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Alternate Versions

The 1995 UK video version was cut by 33 secs by the BBFC to edit shots of 2 young boys dropping a lifelike human dummy into a stream of traffic to cause a motorway pile-up, as this was considered a dangerous imitable technique. The cuts were waived for the 2002 version.

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Connections

Referenced in Nostalgia Critic: The Most HATED Nutcracker Movie Ever Made (2018)

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Soundtracks

Treehouse
Music composed by Elmer Bernstein

User Reviews

Bad Reviews Indicate Really Frighting Concepts and not Bad Movie

I was actually really surprised at the ratings of the film, so I looked at many of the reviews before putting mine down. Maybe I was missing some pretty horrible aspects to the movie. So I watched the movie again and I read the reviews. I think one of the interesting things was that people rated this movie really low because they didn't like the concept of an evil child or they added, there was no WHY concept to the reasons why the character did the things he did.

I think I was mostly surprised at the "Why" concept. Did people really not understand that this kid felt really powerful controlling the fate of others? It was quite clear that the mean kid did not like being undermined. It was in my opinion very well introduced. At first, his enjoyment in his actions were very minor due to his first time. It seemed to me that the first time he performed his bad deeds to his brother, he might have actually been scarred or stunned. Because for a while when little Frodo enters the scene, nothing has actually happened to indicate he is a terrible child. Its not until his mother treats Frodo like her own child that Macually starts to use his will to force things the way he wants. I see similarities with how kids these days press their parents into getting what they want.

I think its important to recognize the scene where little Frodo goes to the therapist and asks her about why someone could be bad for no reason, just because he likes to be bad. I think this is where people kind of go, "yeah, this movie is flawed, there's no such thing." But remember, little Frodo wasn't looking down the staircase at his mother hugging another son. Its all about perspective. It can be concluded that the bad son is probably the spoiled child, and acts up in extreme ways to get what he wants because it worked before. We have two polar characters. One character is completely helpless and his fate is controlled by the other characters in this movie, where there is Culkin, whom has deep control of his life and his wants.

On another note, kids doing horrible things to animals or killing other kids is not a unheard of concept. In fact, there is evidence to suggest that there are certain mentalities that cannot be explained but diagnosed with mental disorders. People in our age have been brainwashed into thinking that kids are completely innocent in the world. Which is funny when you reflect how many times in your younger life you have laughed at someone and probably made them feel really bad, even though you didn't want to. As kids we actually hurt others more than we'd like to admit, we just choose not to admit it.