The Good Son (1993)
12-month trend
12-month trend
Monthly article views
2025-09 to 2026-08
A young boy's stay with his relatives reveals the chilling reality of his cousin's sociopathic behavior.
The story
After the death of his mother, 10-year-old Mark Evans is sent to stay with his aunt and uncle in Maine while his father is away on a business trip. During his stay, Mark is introduced to his extended family, including his cousin Henry. While Henry initially appears well-mannered, he begins to display an abnormal fascination with death and signs of psychopathic behavior. Mark becomes uneasy with Henry's actions but is unable to alert the adults due to Henry's threats. The tension escalates as Mark realizes the danger Henry poses to their family, specifically to his younger cousin Connie, leading to a desperate struggle to protect her.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Mark Evans travels to Maine to stay with his aunt Susan and uncle Wallace. He meets his cousin Henry, who exhibits disturbing behavior, including causing a vehicle pileup and attempting to harm his cousin Connie. After Connie is injured in an incident at a pond, Susan becomes suspicious of Henry. She discovers a hidden toy belonging to a cousin who drowned, and Henry's admission of his actions leads her to realize his true nature. As the tension peaks, Henry attempts to isolate and harm Susan. During a confrontation at a cliff, Henry pushes Susan off. Mark intervenes, and the two boys end up dangling from a cliffside. Susan is forced to choose which boy to save; she releases Henry, who falls to his death, and saves Mark. The film ends with Mark reflecting on Susan's choice.
- First release year
- 1993
- Runtime (minutes)
- 86
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Joseph Ruben
- Writers
- Ian McEwan · writer
- Cast and characters
- Macaulay Culkin · Mark Evans; Elijah Wood · Henry; Wendy Crewson · Susan; David Morse · Wallace; Daniel Hugh Kelly · Connie; Jacqueline Brookes · none
- Genres
- psychological thriller
- Themes
- psychopathy; childhood innocence lost; moral choice
- Tone and mood
- unsettling; tense
- Setting
- Rock Harbor, Maine during winter break.
- Premise and plot tags
- psychological thriller; child villains; family drama
- Source material / true-story basis
- The Child in Time by Ian McEwan (novel)
- Content notes
- violence
- Reception
- The film received mixed reviews from critics, with some praising the suspense of the final sequence while others criticized the casting of the lead actor.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 25% · scale: percentage · review count: 28; Metacritic · score: 45 · scale: 100 · review count: 17; CinemaScore · score: B · scale: A+ to F
- Awards and nominations
- The Guardians list · The 10 best fictional evil children · 2014 · included
- Production trivia
- The film was originally intended to be a low-budget, high-class movie.; The script was originally written by Ian McEwan as a response to a request for a story about 'evil' involving children.; The film was briefly set up at Universal Studios before being moved to 20th Century Fox.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
Your lists
Loading your lists…