Boys (1996) User Reviews (34)

Boys will be boys

[jotix100 · 6/10 · 15 July 2006]

This flawed film came out of nowhere the other night. We don't know if it ever was released commercially, but it appears to have gone straight to video. As much as we wanted it to be better, "Boys" suffers from a screen play that doesn't fully expand on its characters and leaves us wishing and waiting for more.

Stacy Cochran, who adapted the short story by James Salter, sets her story in what appears to be a prep school in New England. This is a school for privileged kids sent by their families to get an education. By having attended this institution will probably ensure the rich boys access to prestige colleges and universities later on.

Into this quiet background another darker story happens involving the rich, careless and perhaps promiscuous Patty Vare, who has had a terrible experience when a baseball player takes her on a night ride that is leading to sex, when the car plunges into a river. Patty, who is questioned by the police, is seen riding her horse as the memory of the previous night comes haunting her memory. In attempting a jump over a fence, she and the horse fall and she is hurt.

Enter John Baker, a student from the school, who is alerted by another student about the young woman he has found in a field nearby. John decides to take her into his dorm against house rules. They end up going away, ending in the county fair in a night that ends up in a romantic note, but Patty. realizing she wants not to implicate John, disappears. John's parents come to the school and they are helpless to put any sense into his head. That morning Patty and John meet again in the police station. It's clear they have found one another and no one will separate them.

The two main roles, Patty and John, are given excellent readings by Winona Ryder and Lukas Haas. Both show great chemistry in their scenes together. Unfortunately, other characters don't fare that well. There is Fenton, who helps Patty escape, whose presence is never justified well. As played by James LeGros, he is an enigma. His girlfriend, Jilly, is acted by Catherine Keener in a role where she is totally wasted. Chris Cooper and Jessica Harper play John's angry parents.

The film is not a total failure because of our interest in Patty and John. Perhaps with another director, and a better screen play a better film would have resulted, although Ms. Cochran, and her cinematographer, Robert Elswith, give the production a lovely sheen with the local color of the country in autumn, the county fair seen from a distance, and the staid prep school.

not romantic and not dark enough

[SnoopyStyle · 4/10 · 19 April 2015]

Patty Vare (Winona Ryder) hurts herself falling off of a horse. Prep school students Murphy and Cooke find her unconscious and tell older kid John Baker Jr (Lukas Haas). Baker brings her to his dorm after she refused hospital or going home. Rumors spread that there's a girl. Officer Kellogg Curry (John C. Reilly) is investigating Patty. He's looking for a stolen car and the missing Bud Valentine (Skeet Ulrich).

First, it's not romantic to sneak an unconscious girl into your dorm room. She suffered a concussion and he doesn't get her medical treatment. It's more than creepy and not cute at all. Lukas Haas is borderline sleazy with his creepy smile. The other problem is that her secret is rather disappointing. It really needs to be some crazy murder that's she's responsible for or something at that level. It's not dark enough and this movie is definitely not romantic.

unsatisfying on most levels

[pyamada · 4/10 · 29 April 2002]

This films attempts to be three things: a mystery (wherein it wastes actor Skeet Ulrich), a "first love" story, and a portrait of boys at a boarding school. Since a few of the young actors are decent, the movie almost succeeds at the portrait. But if fails at the other to stories. Ryder sleep walks through an enigmatic and poorly conceived role, and there really is not very much tension or mystery. This could have been a noirish hoot, but it ends up being uncooked scrambled eggs.

Attractive leads, but where's the beef?

[BobLib · 24 September 1999]

"Boys" is proof positive that two young, attractive leads, Wynona Ryder and Lukas Haas, can't always compensate for a complex, uninvolving plot. Make no mistake, Ryder and Haas are both as good as they can be, given the material, and their love scenes, particularly at the carnival, do generate a goodly ammount of heat. But, on the whole, the story is far too complex and uninvolving. By the time the central mystery is unraveled, you find yourself asking what all the fuss was about. In short, a dynamic team wasted on a trite picture.

Flushable

[=G= · 3/10 · 15 November 2002]

"Boys" tells a flimsy story to which Cochran tries to add mystery by keeping information from the audience and revealing it piecemeal via flashback. Cheap shot. Ryder is found unconscious, after being thrown from horseback, by a boarding school student (Haas) who takes her to his room (yeah, right), instead of the obvious choice, the hospital. You know, HOSPITAL...where you take injured people for professional medical care. Duh. Anyway, this dumbassed flick has a list of negatives too long to go into here. File "Boys" in the boys room and don't forget to flush. (D)

Dull and pointless

[grantss · 3/10 · 11 September 2020]

Dull and pointless. Plot is all over the place, and ultimately goes nowhere. Direction is listless.

The boys' characters are irritating and the performances (including that of Lukas Haas) are unconvincing.

The only positive thing about the movie is that it stars the wonderful and gorgeous Winona Ryder.

You may need a blow to head after viewing this

[AmigaJay · 5/10 · 29 August 2022]

After seeing lots of negative reviews i didn't expect much, and whilst its far from being a classic or even memorable, the film has its moments and its worth a watch at least once.

Yes the storyline is slimmer than slim, but the film at least gets on with it unlike some 2.5 hours films that drag on and on, this is just half of that runtime and speeds things along which honestly is a plus point for the film, had it been over two hours i probably wouldn't even recommend a rewatch.

Is it believable that a Florence Nightingale effect happened just because she fell off her horse and got carted into his boarding school room after dragging her, not really, just ends up a bit cringey with the age differences, maybe with younger eyes i would have viewed this as 'aye get in there you lucky b'stard!'

Other than the pretty questionable plot and believability, the ending just seemed 'oh sod it' someone got writers block, so yeah its worth a watch once if just for Winona Ryder, just go into it with i know its kinda crap mindset and your do ok!

I liked this movie...

[jpschapira · 7/10 · 14 February 2008]

I liked this movie. Imagine a teenager, named John, the typical guy who goes to the last year of high school and doesn't quite know what to do with his life. Then, one day, he finds a beautiful woman lying on the floor in a field who, apparently, is on the run for something she did and takes her to his room. It's a boarding school, he might get kicked out, but he doesn't care; he just wants to help her. The look on his face when the woman first wakes up and the teenager walks towards her, is the first sign of a magical performance by Lukas Hass; it's a look that combines the excitement of having this woman in his bed and the curiosity of wanting to know what she might have done.

The woman is called Patty Vare, played by the wonderful Winona Ryder in the kind of role she knows by heart but never forgets to add new elements to. Here, besides appearing to be somewhere other than the real world (she fell off a horse before John found her and doesn't remember much), she masters the 'look'; that seductive look only she can achieve and makes anyone go crazy to the point that they would do anything for her. Well, at least that's the effect it had on John in the movie…And on me, of course.

But don't get things wrong. I personally don't think "Boys" is a romantic movie, even if it was writer/director Stacy Cochran's intention. I would call it some kind of an 'age analysis'. Yes, there are romance related moments that make you smile because Winona is an expert on the subject, but this time her character Patty is an expert too: on men. So the study the film tries to make is what can happen when a woman of Patty's experience meets a kid like John in an extreme situation.

That's why Cochran shows us flashbacks of what happened to Patty before meeting John; they're necessary for us to know the kind of woman she is. On the other hand, we don't know anything about John but the fact that he has a bad relationship with his father (a respectable Chris Cooper). But we don't need to know, because we realize when he is with Patty; when we hear what he says and see what he does.

There's a scene in the town fair, where Patty and John are together in the merry-go-round. The final moment of that scene explains why I liked this movie, and those are the scenes in the movie that work. Not the police sub-plot (led by a convincing John C. Reilly), not John's relationship with his friends at school (although some scenes are good to watch more of Hass' perfect work), not even the conflict with his father.

There's another scene really worth paying attention too: a chat in a table where a beautiful light from the window makes Patty seem so vulnerable. Luckily for us, this is a movie where we have the final world; about whether we believe the characters or not and about the inconclusive and far-fetched ending. Yes, it may not honor reality itself, but "Boys" honors its title; and I liked that. I liked this movie.

teenage boy falls for older woman in need in this unlikely story line

[msmaita · 4/10 · 5 September 2006]

i started watching this film late one night. i was immediately interested. the music and the tension between the characters was mesmerizing. although some of the characters actions did seem unrealistic. i did not watch the rest of the film until the next evening. all day long, i happily anticipated getting back to this movie. watching the rest of the film was less than satisfying. relationships developed and/or pre-existed without explanation. i was amazed when the credits rolled. i felt a whole chunk of movie had gone missing. i really wanted more from this film. and the potential for being great was there. ryder and haas were intense and had chemistry together. peripheral characters had charisma, others were detestable. then, others seemed pointless. the "problem" in the story did not match the intensity of the mystery in the beginning of the movie. i do not recommend watching this film. there just isn't enough "meat" to make it worthwhile.

Not as bad as even WR thinks it is

[daPeda · 6/10 · 9 April 2000]

I have to admit that I am a declared Winona Ryder fan. This film was boring anyway, but almost all other issues making a film good or bad are on the plus side.

The acting of all main characters was very good. Photography was very good. The only genuine minus is for the music which does not match the movies atmosphere.

So this gets an eight from me.

Boys

[Scarecrow-88 · 4/10 · 11 May 2007]

A young prep school teen(Lukas Haas, quite good)gets involved with a mysterious young woman(Winona Ryder, who doesn't register or emote..not one of her better performances)who has a secret she is hiding. During the film snippets of a past acquaintance(Skeet Ulrich)may answer that very secret. Chris Cooper has a thankless, clichéd role as profane, short-fused father of Haas. Jessica Harper has the thankless role as Haas' mother, the typical hush-hush-wife afraid of her hot-tempered husband. John C Reilly also has a minor role as a kindly officer trying to locate Ryder over the whereabouts of baseball star Ulrich.

The oh-so-big mystery isn't anything to write home about and Ryder is merely a confused dame. The supposed fireworks between Haas and Ryder is non-existent & the film is really unfocused. We get a lot of story on Haas' life in a school for rich annoying kids and with little chemistry between the leads(not to mention a plot which doesn't provide us much in why either would prefer to have such a relationship), there is very little to get excited about. I'd say see the film for Haas' performance, because the rest of this mediocre effort isn't worth your time.

Mysterious, Witty, Romantic, Visually Appealing

[wwos1314 · 8/10 · 28 February 2005]

I was skeptical, as many others may have been, before I saw this movie. The idea of a teenager finding a damsel in distress did seem a little immature. However, the simple plot is mapped out very well. The events in this film occur in a logical manner, and as always Lukas and Winona's acting is superb.

I even found the secondary characters realistic. This is really one of those movies that keeps on giving. I have seen it about four times over the years, and each time I have caught another subtle detail that made me realize how well this was made.

I would not, however, recommend this movie to anyone who must see high action to enjoy a movie. There is quite a bit of dialogue, and you won't hear much noise in the background. And I must comment on the soundtrack, lighting, and clothing of this movie, which really add to the mood.

The main characters in this movie both want to escape from their current situations, and I found myself wanting to escape with them. You should definitely catch this one.

I get glimpses

[Chris Knipp · 7/10 · 21 July 2006]

Look, you don't watch every movie because it's a good movie. "Boys" – the title has wandered in from some gay porno flick shopping list -- is for all intents and purposes a bad movie and even nice film critics have been mean to it. But if this is a failure, this is not your average failure. Oh, no. It has moments, and an interesting, borderline cultish, cast. Skeet Ulrich is almost forgotten, but in his fleeting appearances he has a dysfunctional neediness, luminous sex appeal, a scary attraction – you see that also in "As Good As It Gets," where he robs and beats up Greg Kinnear. There's something dangerous – and expendable – about Skeet. We may think of John C. Reilly in PT Anderson's "Magnolia," and see that same homely touching appeal on idle here in his Maryland State Police role. This was probably the only time the mercurial, offbeat Lucas Haas was conventionally cute enough to match up with a pretty -- at times quite beautiful -- girl like Winona. And her dazed, out-of-it quality – she's clearly a young lady who makes nothing but wrong choices in men -- contributes to the curiously touching moments the two have in the amusement park when the high school boy briefly but intensely falls for the 25-year-old and proposes marriage and eternal loyalty and they kiss sweetly and the rest of the world disappears. That's the high point. Now, there's nothing more tedious than the boys in the opening segment nattering at each other, threatening to rat on each other, but curious to get in on any trouble that's going to come down—but the way they behave and look in this movie is completely natural and believable. Like most real schoolboys they're likely to bore each other to death before they'll ever enter into some sort of Lord of the Flies adventure. Chris Cooper – what is he doing here? He's playing an archetypal father, the one we don't see in "Dead Poets Society," the flipside of his twisted military dad in "American Beauty." James LeGros and Catherine Keener complete the surprising cast. Using a classic college campus – St. Johns, Annapolis -- for a fancy prep school works and heightens the posh effect. The movie doesn't altogether work otherwise. It's energy is sluggish; it has no drive.. But you come back to it looking for something that didn't come together, but might have, because some choice ingredients were there. And won't come this way again.. Check out Haas in "Johns", dated the same year, with David Arquette for another good offbeat role, a wilder, quirkier one that also seems to fit him like a soft old glove. He's never had the role he deserves, but what an actor. James Salter, whose story this is based on, is a very fine writer. The music isn't inappropriate; it's just obtrusively loud, the way schoolboys would play it, if they weren't being properly supervised.

Ryder should stick to shoplifting; she's better at it

[helpless_dancer · 1/10 · 24 November 2003]

Silly, impressionable young teens will probably go for this idiotic time waster but all others should be offended. I found all those schoolboys to be irritating beyond belief and Ryder to be sluggish and phony. How convenient for the young lads to have totally empty hallways in a house full of rambunctious boys as they brought in the limp body of a woman and placed her in their room. How lucky for them that they drug her all over the place for hours without anyone but their closest buddies finding out their secret. Calmest dorm I've ever witnessed. -100 stars; a world full of thumbs all pointing down.

Disappointing for Winona fans. =(

[Xapora · 29 March 2004]

Let me begin by saying, I love Winona. I think she's great. This movie is just terrible though. It's boring, slow and forgettable. Her performance is really bad. She looks tired, bored, fed up - her heart just wasn't in this one. Compared to her *fantastic* efforts in Heathers, Mermaids, Reality Bites, Little Women et al, this is just tripe. The "romance" between her and Lukas Haas is unbelievable and awkward and there's zero chemistry, the scenes in the dormitory are boring, I just can't name any redeeming features except for the beautiful Maryland scenery. And there's a scene where there's all this Spanish being spoken and NO sub-titles. Ridiculous. I know some people enjoyed this movie and I respect that, but if you decided to see this thinking it'd be another Winona classic, forget it. Oh, and as for the "mystery" of "What's up with Patty?", well, by the time we find out, I really didn't care anymore. Sorry Winona, you CAN and HAVE done MUCH better than this. 1.5 stars (for the scenery). May be of interest to some to see Christopher Pettiet in one of his final roles before his untimely death.

weird

[pacolgan · 7/10 · 3 August 2000]

This film is really strange. I think that the part that deals with the relationships between the college boys is over simplified and stereotypical, while John's relationship with Patty is well done. I think this film could have been much better with little effort.

Winona Ryder is as always beautiful but remains once again enclosed in the same character she has been doing time after time.

This was good

[scudkat · 8/10 · 1 January 2000]

I do not care what other users say, this was a good movie. The acting was superb, the directing was on target, and the photography was absolutely beautiful. A fitting soundtrack, a very sufficient cast, and quality transition between short-story and screen. Winona Ryder and Lukas Haas give a chemistry that you cannot find in many movies these days, especially with youth actors. Ok, Granted- that the story builds up and then lets you off to a bad explanation and dull outcome, the ride up to the climax was marvelous. I voted this movie an 8, and anyone who devoutly disagrees can go take a film making course and actually learn to critique.

strange and interesting

[asinyne · 9/10 · 18 July 2007]

I liked this movie a lot. Visually, it is just so appealing in a very mystical sort of way. I don't get why nobody gets this movie. While the story doesn't quite hold up as well as the photography and the ending is way eighties, if you are a poetic person, you will get into this. In a weird sort of way it has a bit of the Love Story appeal. There is just something about it that can't be explained. A lot of the appeal has to do with winona ryder, she has never looked more magnetic...trust me. She actually does a very good acting job with this, in fact she probably saves the movie with her appeal and acting skills. There are certain scenes in this flick that will just float you away...like the one where the two main characters make love in the woods behind the carnival...classic. The first fifteen minutes are very interesting also. To sum up a rambling review just let me say this is one for are searching for something poetic and different in a movie. This is one for the fans of beautiful, sensitive people, falling leaves, and cobblestone paths.

Great late night movie

[ozsmith3258 · 8/10 · 3 November 2005]

I watched this at 4 am and I really liked it. It has a certain taboo-younger boy older woman type appeal to it. It was very surreal in content. Which was perfect for my sleep-deprived brain cells. I am a long time fan of lukas haas. I am not a fan of winona. Even she couldn't mess up this role of confused ditsy rich girl who is running from trouble(sic). I would recommend this movie if asked. I would not pay to see it. I thought the story was very far-fetched, but like I said it was surreal and I did get into the movie. It had a very indie-film type feel to it. I was reminded of the movie Girlfriends. Another surreal movie which totally engrossed me around 4 am.

The cover is mesmirizing alone

[jENNA007 · 14 July 2001]

Ok, so, yeah, it was weird & a tad boring at times, but i thought that all in all, it was pretty enjoyable for a boring Saturday afternoon, because after i started to watch it for 2 minutes, I discovered that I was so curious to see what was going to happen next that i was mesmirized. The guys in it are kinda good-looking and pretty funny, if you're willing. And I have to say, I love the picture of Winona Ryder on the movie cover, she has a certain look to her that's just mysterious and attractive. I heard that the script of this movie changed and after Winona heard about that she didn't like it and wanted to refuse to be in it, so she must've been very un-willing to this movie during filming.. you can kind of tell if you pay close attention too. I wouldn't recommend renting it or buying it, cuz it comes on tv all the time, and if your bored enough I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

underestimated

[mliek · 8/10 · 3 August 2005]

This movie is underestimated and I'll tell you exactly why: the characters are incredibly realistic, they are searching for something or someone to feel less alone and you could imagine this story really happening. John could have taken the girl to a hospital but he takes her to his room instead just because he feels the need to have something of his own, something no one else knows about. Another aspect about the movie which I can appreciate is the sphere. I cannot explain exactly why, but I was taken away by the beautiful autumn setting and the well chosen soundtrack. There is one scene that might be the best example: the scene in which Jonh wakes up near the fair, you can almost feel the coolness of that autumn morning and can imagine how he feels realizing the girl isn't there anymore and he is all alone once more. This movie in a way, is about how people sometimes just do not want everybody to know everything about them. The girl keeps it a secret what happened to her, the boy does not tell anyone about the girl he found. The only thing I didn't like about the movie was the title, I don't understand what "boys" has to do with the story.

Great movie....

[vansherbrt · 10/10 · 16 February 2001]

Winona at her finest! Absolutely wounderful performance by Winona,excellent acting and a twisted ending. Skeet Ulrich is good as the ball player Bud Valentine and Hass is decent as the kid....it made me want a sequel!

Visual cure for insomnia

[outsider-2 · 24 May 1999]

It took a lot of gnashing and grinding of teeth for me to finish this mediocre film. The only thing that kept me going on was the fact that winona ryder was in it. I kept telling myself, "she wouldn't do a movie THIS bad..it probably gets better towards the end..". They say you should always trust your first instincts. In this case, they were dead on the mark. Unless you are totally obsessed with winona ryder and need to see every single one of her movies, AVOID.

Funny -

[Joyce Hauchart · 8/10 · 7 July 2001]

I watched this movie late at night and thought it was very funny. The schoolboy characters are sharp as well as their dialogues.

The music is great fun, and the photography is great. The story line may be a little thin, but this does not matter. Listen to the music, the hide and seek in the first hour is almost theater and the kids are great.

But, I did not like the ending. Too romantic and incredible but nice movie to watch when there's nothing else on TV.

In Belgium this movie got two stars, I think it deserves 3 stars, only for the great dialogues.

better then the book

[ivana-7 · 6 August 1999]

I read a book (a short story) that this movie was based on and it was good but I think that the movie is better. That is probably cause I dont like to read.

Winona Rider and Lukas Haas make the story believable. Its a really good movie.