[8]

Writer Alan Ormsby and director Tony Bill create a compelling coming-of-age story that avoids two of the greatest pitfalls of the genre: it doesn’t talk down to its subjects and it doesn’t wallow in sentimentality. Chris Makepeace and Adam Baldwin give fine performances as the ‘new kid’ and the ‘mysterious loaner,’ respectively. Their unlikely friendship develops believably and becomes the heart of the movie. The film is about bullying and standing up for yourself. Most films geared toward young people swing ‘politically correct,’ but My Bodyguard offers a more realistic conclusion where the kids DO resort to fighting, and DO win their self-respect with violence. I applaud the audacity and the truthfulness. Matt Dillon plays the main bully in one of his earliest film roles. You’ll also see a young Joan Cusack as one of the students. Martin Mull, Ruth Gordon, and John Houseman give endearing supporting turns.