Seemingly nice individuals that turn out to be not so nice at the end are one of the most recognisable cliches of 1990s Hollywood thrillers. Yet, such plot element doesn't always have to look like cliche, and in proper context it could be original. Of course, chances for something like that were small in Hollywood. Canadian cinema, somewhat less bound by formulas, produced one such film in The Boys Club, 1996 thriller directed by John Fawcett.
The plot, set in small Ontario town during summer, begins with local high school teachers on strike. Three 14 year-old boys - Kyle (played by Dominic Zamprogna), Eric (played by Dewon Sawa) and Brad (played by Stuart Stone) suddenly have plenty of free time at their hands and they decide to spend most of it in a small shack in the middle of woods. There they hang out, listen to hard rock and try to forget that the boring outside world exists. One day their little hideaway is occupied by uninvited guest - Luke Cooper (played by Chris Penn), mysterious, armed and wounded American who claims to be policeman hiding from his corrupt colleagues. In desperate desire for adventure, boys decide to believe him and help him hide. In return, he gives them friendly advice, acting like some sort of father figure, especially to sensitive Kyle. But some things don't add up and suspicions about Luke's true identity arise.
Doug Smith's and Peter Wellington's script for The Boys Club represents interesting and very effective mix of thriller and coming-of-age drama. This combination works because the thriller subplot and the boys' reactions towards mysterious strangers make the drama more realistic, while adolescence of protagonists make the thriller more disturbing. Director Fawcett took some risk with this film, especially with somewhat unconventional ending, but those risks paid off. The story is simple, at times predictable, but is in the same time very engrossing. Chris Penn's acting leaves something to be desired, but the young trio of protagonists is played by some very talented artists - the best known of them is Dewon Sawa, later immortalised as Stan in Eminem's music video. The Boys Club could have been truly remarkable film, but at times Fawcett got careless with overuse of hard rock music, often making this film look cheaper and somewhat unfinished. However, even with such flaws, The Boys Club is another proof that simple genre formulas can still provide interesting movie viewing experiences.
RATING: 6/10 (++)
(Note: The text in its original form was posted in Usenet newsgroup rec.arts.movies.reviews on June 2nd 2003)
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