Tall Tales & Legends (TV Series) John Henry (1986) User Reviews

What "animation"?

[jack-260 · 7/10 · 29 September 2006]

This was one of the famed (and deservedly so) Shelley Duvall live action presentations from the mid-'80s.

Danny Glover acted the title role with verve and sensitivity. Tom Hulce did a fine job as his Boswell.

Director Ray Danton took some chances with his subtle sex/love stories in a work that seems to have been aimed at the elementary school crowd. I refer of course to J.L. Watkins ("I'm too much man for any one woman.") with a lady-friend on either arm...and also to the effort Big John put into winning the affections of his love (sweetly played by Lynn Whitfield).

The early mano-a-mano challenge and the courtship are extras...not part of the story...but they filled in the time leading up to the legend itself very nicely.

Barry Corbin and Lew Rawls also appeared in the cast.

There is no animation associated with this entry (that I could find).

Horrible

[liquidbabydoll-391-515328 · 1/10 · 20 March 2014]

Horrible acting and horrible script. Glover is even overacting,cheesy. This was not true to legend, not even close. This was more of a courtship show then the real element of the legend , human labor being misused and outsourced by machines.Blah! The sets were lame. The ending was disappointing . The original ending served a purpose, to warn workers to pace themselves or else they befall disaster .I loved all of faerie tale theatre , even the cheap sets. I also liked every episode of Tall Tales. Except this stinker. The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, Pecos Bill, Casey at Bat, Darlin' Clementine, Johnny Appleseed, Ponce De Leon. Are all excellent and worth watching.

This was actually pretty good!

[ash2k · 6 May 2003]

The music was good. The animation was so-so. It paid attention to detail but someone decided not to erase the basic lines and shapes of the characters. Your kids will probably like it if you rent the American legends Video or DVD.