[6]

Christopher Collet plays a tenth-grader whose divorced mother brings a drug-dealing boyfriend home in this drama from Michael Apted (Nell, Gorillas in the Mist). The movie is pretty solid for its first two-thirds, ratcheting up the tension and creating a good deal of empathy for Collet and his little brother, played by the late Corey Haim (his film debut). The last act is a bit of a let-down, tied up with a relatively pat ending that feels forced and highly unlikely. I guess you could say the movie boxes itself into a corner. Peter Weller is scary as the volatile boyfriend while Teri Garr does her best with the thankless Mom role — that anyone could watch this movie and not blame the mother for everything would greatly surprise me. Look for early appearances by future stars Sarah Jessica Parker and Robert Downey Jr as friends of Collet’s character.