"The Cure" is a touching tale of an unlikely friendship between two boys: Dexter, who has AIDS, and his neighbor Erik, a transplanted Southern teen trying to adjust to life in a new place. Despite his mother's disapproval, Erik makes friends with his ailing, younger neighbor. At first the boys communicate from over the fence, but as the bond between them develops, Erik and Dexter come into closer contact. Their tight friendship ultimately leads the two to embark on a Mark Twain-like adventure down the Mississippi River.