The ButterCream Gang
is a 1992 children's direct-to-video film produced by Feature Films for Families, with music by Kurt Bestor.
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THE BUTTERCREAM GANG TICKETS
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Plot
{{#ifexist:Category:Wikipedia articles with plot summary needing attention from September 2008
Pete Turner (Weatherred) is the leader of a good-deed-doing group, the ButterCream Gang, in the small rural town of Elk Ridge. Moving away to attend school in
Chicago, Pete nominates Scott Carpenter (Johnson) to become the new leader of their small band. Though shortest in stature, Scott exceeds the others in honesty and conviction.
Together with fellow ButterCreamers, Eldon and Lanny, Scott is soon faced with his first challenge as leader of the Buttercreamers. It seems
widow Mrs. Jenkins cannot come to her door, having fallen and hurt herself. The quick thinking Scott devises a daring plan. Eldon and Lanny swing Scott on a rope swing, using his inertia to reach a second story balcony. Scott races to see to Mrs. Jenkins, who is fortunately all right. The boys can't help wondering why the widow Jenkins lives all alone in a huge house.
While living with his
aunt in Chicago, Pete's personality remarkably changes as he comes under the influence of a local
street gang. He soon has no time to reply to Scott's earnest letter writing attempts. Neglecting his school work and participating in petty crime, Pete is expelled, arrested and sent back to Elk Ridge.
Pete turns heads with his new style of dress. Scott notices Pete
shoplifts some treats for the gang.
Uninterested in participating in the ButterCreamers'
charitable acts, Pete starts a gang with two local
bullies. He leads them into acts of
vandalism,
theft, and
intimidation, even showing them the proper way to nip treats from the kind grocer.
When Scott confronts Pete about the treats and his other misdeeds, their conflict leads to escalating violence.
Scott's Baseball Coach, Reverend Willde, teaches him about
Mahatma Gandhi's use of
nonviolent resistance to deal with opposition. Scott discloses the uneaten, stolen treat to his father, who then teaches him about
unconditional love, which he uses to try to redeem his friend. Pete's gang repays his kindness with malicious
pranks and
assaults.
Pete attempts to get back to Chicago by staging his "
kidnapping". With help from a seedy drifter, money is demanded from Pete's grandfather under threat of Pete's life. But Scott and his friends, taking this at face value, attack the pretend kidnapper, who is no match for Eldon's patented "Earthquake Stomp".
Angrily, Pete tells them off and runs off to the grocery store, where he demands money. The grocer refuses to let him rob him by offering to give him the money. Flabergasted by this, Pete attacks the store's goods—terrorizing the shoppers—and sends treats flying across the room. After Scott arrives, Pete breaks down and runs away.
Later in the year, Scott and his friends are pleasantly shocked to read in a newspaper article that Pete has started a new ButterCream Gang in Chicago, keeping it a complete secret from everyone.
Explanation of title
The ButterCream Gang was formed several decades prior to the storyline during
the war. The local women were left unable to
churn butter with their men gone. A group of boys began going around town to help them do this (hence the name) and other chores. Over the years, the group expanded to four members and eventually came to do all sorts of helpful things for the locals.
Production
The ButterCream Gang
was filmed in
Draper and
Riverton, Utah.
Availability
The Buttercream Gang
was released on
VHS in 1992 by
Feature Films for Families (
Murray, Utah;
OCLC , and
).
In 1995, it was released with the title
The Treehouse Gang: A ButterCream Gang Adventure
on VHS by Feature Films for Families (
Salt Lake City, Utah;
OCLC , and
).
A DVD version was released in 2002, 2003, and 2004 by Feature Films for Families (Murray, Utah;
OCLC , and
).
Sequels
The ButterCream Gang in Secret of Treasure Mountain
was the 1993 sequel.
References