Shirley Madlock Movies

Corey Haim plays 13-year-old Lucas, a bespectacled, bookish type who attracts school bullies like a magnet. Lucas befriends 16-year-old Maggie (Kerri Green); she wants to be "just friends," while he'd like a more meaningful relationship. The boy introduces the girl to a world of intellectual pursuits of which she'd been previously unaware. She enjoys the attention, but is physically attracted to football jock Cappie Roew (Charlie Sheen), and becomes a cheerleader to be nearer to the young athlete. Lucas feels shut out once more, but is comforted to learn that Cappie is not just one more bully but a sensitive kid who sticks up for Lucas when the younger boy is being picked on. Still hoping to impress Maggie, Lucas tries out for the football team himself, threatening legal action when the coach tries to turn him down. This innovative teen-oriented film threatens to come to a hackneyed "big touchdown" climax, but instead goes for a more original finale. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi