Have you ever seen My Bodyguard (1980)? Not exactly the apex of American movie-making, but it does contain a pretty powerful instance of grace. The movie tells the story of a teenager named Clifford who moves to a new school and immediately runs into trouble with bullies (the lead one played by Matt Dillon, in a dry run for his Outsiders peak). Out of desperation Clifford decides to befriend a kid that even the bullies are afraid of, a guy named Ricky Linderman (a young Adam Balwin aka Jayne in Firefly). Rumors are that Ricky killed someone. As their touching friendship develops, it becomes clear that Ricky is a tortured kid, extremely withdrawn and unhappy. Come to find out, Ricky accidentally shot and killed his younger brother when they were playing with guns as boys.

Clifford takes Ricky to meet his hotel-dwelling family, warning him beforehand about his eccentric Gramma, played by the immortal Ruth Gordon (also known as Maude from Harold and Maude). The following interaction ensues, ht JAZ:

Where Clifford (and Ricky) see death, Gramma sees life (Luke 20:37-38), and that small act of imputation, which even has the slight ring of dementia to it, is the beginning of healing. The brief smile we catch in that last shot is the first we see on Ricky’s face in the movie.

COMMENTS

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2 responses to “Ricky Linderman Is Among Friends”

1. John Zahl says:

   11/14/2013 at 10:50 am

   One of my all-time fave little portraits of grace. 🙂

   Reply
2. em7srv says:

   11/14/2013 at 1:16 pm

   I loved that movie when I was a kid…still the character I think of every time I see Adam Baldwin…great scene.

   Reply