Stand by Me: parents' guide

Punches, a switchblade threat from older teens, and a pistol the boys handle carelessly and fire. Gang members carve their gang's name into each other's arms with a blade. A dead boy's twisted, bloody body is shown, and leech removal draws blood.

Constant swearing from the 12-year-olds: Plugged In counted about 10 f-words and 25 s-words, plus 'goddamn,' 'asshole' and 'pussy,' slurs for gay people and people with intellectual disabilities, and cruel fat jokes.

No sex, and reviewers note no nudity. The boys talk crudely about masturbation, breasts, 'getting laid' and dirty magazines, and a leech latching onto a boy's genitals is played for gross-out horror.

The boys smoke cigarettes. Older teens drink beer and play chicken with a car while drinking, and several fathers are described as heavy drinkers.

Real peril: the boys barely escape a train on a trestle, emerge from a pond covered in leeches, and face a junkyard dog and a knife-wielding gang. Seeing the dead boy and a funeral flashback for a beloved brother can upset sensitive kids.