I think I should probably start by saying that Stand By Me is one of my favorite movies. It was one that my mom shared with me when I was thirteen, and has stuck with me since then. We constantly quote lines back and forth, referencing the movie all the time. It's been a fixture in my house for almost ten years now.
However, I think you can really, really, really like a movie (even love a movie) without putting it in the canon. What did Stand By Me contribute to our greater conversation about cinema? What did Stand By Me teach future filmmakers? What impact has it left on our ability to tell stories through movie-making?
As much as I love this film, I would suggest that it's impact is minimal and arguable at absolute best. Sure, perhaps the campfire scenes had some later copy-cats and perhaps this movie does accurately represent boyhood, as Devin suggests. But, frankly, that's just not enough.
tldr: A good movie is not necessarily an important movie, and I think it's necessary to remember that when we're evaluating The Canon.
