VIDEO 'STAND BY ME' ON DVD.

Byline: Rob Lowman Entertainment Editor

Stephen King's reputation as a frightmeister overshadows what sets him apart from others who mine the horror field: his ability to bring the real and familiar of our everyday lives and experiences into his stories.

His semi-autobiographic novella ``The Body'' shows how well he can do this even without the supernatural shocks. Turned into the 1986 film ``Stand by Me,'' which comes out for the first time on DVD on Tuesday, the book tells the story of four 12-year-old boys in Oregon in 1959, who set out to find a dead body that they heard was in the woods.

The story is told as a remembrance by one of the grown boys, Gordie (played by Wil Wheaton, voiced by Richard Dreyfuss). Gordie, now a writer, reflects on their trip together after hearing that one of the other boys, Chris (River Phoenix), has been killed.

In a story about youths at a crossroads in their lives, it is difficult to not be somewhat nostalgic (particularly considering the framing of the story). But the portrait of the four boys is as dark as it is light, and under the direction of Rob Reiner, the film avoids falling into a sentimental trap.

Set in the summer before junior high, the boys sense that they will be going separate ways once school starts and their worlds expand. Until then, the four had been inseparable, secure in their insular world, but differences between them - class and personality - would inevitably pull them apart. The journey then becomes one from the end of childhood to the beginning of adulthood, and along the way we catch a glimpse of their hopes, childishness, fears and dreams in a way most of us can understand.

What helps this coming-of-age tale, though, is the honesty in the performances of the boys. Phoenix, as the tough but vulnerable Chris, is the most memorable. But there is an added poignancy now to his performance. Like Gordie thinking about Chris, while watching Phoenix with all his youthful potential, you can't help thinking about his loss to drugs in 1993. The other two - the psychologically battered Teddy (Corey Feldman) and the pudgy scaredy-cat Vern (Jerry O'Connell) - are quite good, too. Ironically, O'Connell has grown up to look like quite a stud - playing the romantic interest in a number of films, including ``Scream 2,'' which only goes to prove that things do change when you grow up.

Movie with heart: Mel Gibson's 1995 Oscar-winning film ``Braveheart'' probably got too many accolades in a weak year, but there's no question that the superstar approached the project with a surplus of elan. The gory battle scenes alone are worth the film, which is at heart an old-fashioned epic. (A special DVD edition arrives on Tuesday with commentary from Mel.)

Based on the story of Scottish hero William Wallace, the story does take some liberties with history. Princess Isabel (Sophie Marceau) was a child at the time and Marceau - needless to say - is more developed than that. Patrick McGoohan as Longshanks (King Edward I of England) is properly vile (Longshanks was a particularly despicable monarch), and Angus McFadyen as the waffling Robert the Bruce proves that he's an underappreciated actor.

Ultimately, it's Gibson's charm that either wins you over or not. The added features on the DVD (Mel enjoyed the battle scenes) are fun, though.

< ``Stand By Me'' (Columbia) is $29.99 for the DVD, and includes commentary by Reiner, a featurette with interviews with King and Reiner, a Ben E. King music video and a making-of documentary. The special edition DVD of ``Braveheart'' (Paramount) is $29.99. It includes commentary by Gibson and a behind-the-scenes documentary.

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The 1986 film ``Stand by Me'' - adapted from Stephen King's semi- autobiographic novella ``The Body'' - arrives on DVD.