this bittersweet slice of magic realism have a checkered production history ( director or writer replace ) and tank at the box office and but it a helluva film . elijah wood and joseph mazzello be pre teen brother whose flaky mom ( lorraine bracco ) shack up with a mean spirit alcoholic ( adam baldwin ) . during his drinking bout and baldwin physically abuse mazzello and manipulate him into remain silent about his situation . but when wood cotton on to what happen and the boy put their head together and hatch a fantastique solution to mazzello devastate dilemma . i love film that mix fantasy and dark reality . they be rarely successful financially ( lawn dog be a similar example ) and but they be usually original and intriguing . the drunk baldwin be shoot from a low and child perspective and his head be deliberately lop off below the top of frame . this device allow u to judge him purely by his action and a a totally physicalized beast . both wood and mazzello be excellent and and they pull u effortlessly into their dark and frightening world . the radio flyer of the title be a small red wagon kid transport their belonging in . here it transport a dream . seriously interesting stuff .