Synopsis
Clifford Peach, an easygoing teenager, is finding less than easy to fit in at his new high school, where a tough-talking bully terrorizes his classmates and extorts their lunch money. Refusing to pay up, Clifford enlist the aid of an overgrown misfit whose mere presence intimidates students and teachers alike. But their "business relationship" soon turns personal as Clifford and the troubled loner forge a winning alliance against their intimidators - and a very special friendship with each other.
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Cast
- Chris MakepeaceClifford Peache
- Adam BaldwinRicky Linderman
- Matt DillonMelvin Moody
- Paul QuandtCarson
- Hank SalasMike
- Joan CusackShelley
- Dean R. MillerHightower
- Tim ReynaKoontz
- Richard BradleyDubrow
- Denise BaskeLeilani
Recommendations
- 88
Chicago Sun-Times
There is a terrifying moment in adolescence when suddenly some of the kids are twice as big as the rest of the kids. It is terrifying for everybody: For the kids who are suddenly tall and gangling, and for the kids who are still small and are getting beat up all the time. My Bodyguard places that moment in a Chicago high school and gives us a kid who tries to think his way out of it. - 88
Chicago Tribune
An engaging yarn about a wealthy kid who learns to fight his way out of trouble in a rough Chicago public school. He also learns not to believe in labels placed on people. [19 Dec 1980, p.10] - 80
TV Guide Magazine
This is a heartwarming film, superbly directed by ex-actor Tony Bill. Makepeace is excellent as the slight protagonist, and Baldwin is perfect as the brooding, misunderstood mammoth. Dave Grusin's score adds immeasurably to the tone. - 80
Variety
In his directorial debut, Tony Bill assembles a truly remarkable cast of youngsters with little or no previous acting experience. Chris Makepeace is superb as the slightly built kid coming anew to a Chicago high school dominated by extortionist gang leader Matt Dillon, also terrific in his part. - 80
Washington Post
My Bodyguard is a fresh, pointed, unpretentious, funny and poignant picture that, like Breaking Away, is also about growing up. Director Tony Bill's claim for it, that "it isn't corny, it isn't violent, and it isn't trendy," is true and significant. [15 Aug 1980, p.15] - 75
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)
In My Bodyguard the warfare is entirely internecine, and the movie, for all its shortcomings, is an exceptionally perceptive (and funny) study of the terror that can be visited upon an innocent victim. [23 Aug 1980] - 70
The New York Times
My Bodyguared is a sweet little movie about characters who really seem to be people, and that sort of verisimilitude is rarer than it ought to be nowadays. - 60
The A.V. Club
It’s all riveting enough, the kind of youth film that still has parables for adults and moves along at a quick and witty clip for kids—never a prat fall into sticky sweetness. My Bodyguard offers a charming take on what could have been a generic after-school-special tale, and couldn’t have picked a better backdrop to do it in.
