Good movie, mostly kind of sad but also kind of happy in a symmetric kind of way. And Frodo has always been a good actor.What annoys me is the way the movie, and Hollywood in general, put the blame of child abuse on men and alcohol. But the cause is rampant divorce and feminist extremists' denial of biology.Biological parents care more for their own children, and feminists expect their new partner to ignore that primal instinct. Children living with one parent and unmarried partner are more than 8 times more likely to be abused.Divorce is about individual freedom, and I get that, but people ignore that it leads to unhappy lives, it often bankrupts the biological father, and the children lose a parent, and in bad cases, children are beaten and even die because of divorce.Hollywood should paint a more realistic picture, but I understand that they are in the business of selling emotions, not education.

This movie tells us a tale, where Tom Hanks narrates a dark part of his past. Elijah Wood and Joseph Mazzello star as two the kids who live their life with big dreams. Joseph Mazzello stars as the younger brother who is being abused by his mother's alcoholic intimate who puts Joseph into silence about the entire abuse. Elijah Wood as the older brother, becomes protective and wants to become his hero and so they create a big idea to conquer the bad situation. It was a successful film because it's easy to relate to with both the dark reality and the imaginary, where we have two bright kids looking for a better way to enjoy their life. Then, we have the drunk father (Adam Baldwin) who you will never see the face of because he is symbolized as a monster throughout the film. This technique allows us to only judge him by his actions.Radio Flyer is the the waggon; also a symbolism for the dreams they will carry off. If you are the type of person who enjoys meaningful movies with symbolism's then Radio Flyer is a perfect movie for you. Also make sure to hold a napkin box because it is bound to make you into a cry baby.

I remember the first time I watched Radio Flyer was in 1992-93 (pretty much around the time it first came out); I was 14 years old and had somehow been through the same situation the two brothers (wonderfully played by then-child actors Elijah Wood and Joseph Mazzello), so I found myself having some heavily mixed feelings about the film's content; today, I see it in a more "objective" light, but its plot and message remains as conflicting as the first time.The story itself is kind of biter-sweet and quite dark for what is supposed to be a family film (the scenes involving abuse, although mostly off-screen, are nonetheless upsetting), but then it goes on and becomes a monstrous wreck by the third act. No wonder so many people have speculated about the true nature of what happened towards the end, and gave "their own theories".The real deal, though, are the two young brothers. Elijah Wood and Joseph Mazzello (about 9 and 7 years old, respectively, when they did the film) each give a powerfully dramatic, breakthrough performance that just could not be parallelled by any other child star in a while -until, of course, Haley Joel Osment got an Oscar nomination for THE SIXTH SENSE, a mere 7 years later-. They both manage to be believable, incredibly adorable and painfully devastating, alternatively, without ever recurring to the cliché of "smart-aleckiness". Interestingly enough, they both went their respective ways to establish what was a somewhat solid career for a while as child performers: Mazzello got his big break with Jurassic Park, while Elijah Wood played opposite Macaulay Culkin in The Good Son (while Culkin was able to bring his own career down with said film), both released in 1993.Anyways, without veering away from the topic. The rest of the cast are mere adult presences (except for the other kids playing the bullies) who only pave the way for our two youngsters to shine the way they did. Particularly Adam Baldwin, it was a very good idea to barely show his face at all, because he was truly loathsome in his role as the source of the kids' sorrow.In all, despite all the fantastic elements inherently present in the storyline, had they handled the core of the plot with a little more "maturity", perhaps the outcome would have been a lot different. That's why, sadly, the film remains a below-average experience, only redeemable by the terrific turns of Mazzello and Wood (both now all grown up and not as noticeable as back then). If the film is to be seen, it should be only for them two. Which is also why I give the film 5 out of 10.

My take on the ending. Bobby died at the hands of his step father. Mike had tried as he may to get Bobby out. Only a child could think that it would be possible to build a machine that could fly. Bobby died.... Mike as a child survived by creating an alternative ending in his mind...on how Bobby left....Mike made a plane that flew Bobby out. Children who are sexually and violent abused often create whole other worlds in their minds to survive.Was also great seeing my old housing area. We called it San Jose Boulevard and I lived right around where these house were filmed. It was so strange to see that they filmed inside the houses...not studios... It was my kitchen, bedroom and living room. And those hills...we use to hike them as kids....looking down on our little valley....seeing glimpses of the bay. Was a real nostalgia trip for me.