Review of Harry and the Hendersons (1987) by Shashia G — 25 Oct 2011

"Harry and the Hendersons" has a very straightforward plot: Family finds Bigfoot, family takes Bigfoot home, family tries to get rid of Bigfoot, Bigfoot runs away, family misses Bigfoot, family searches for Bigfoot, townspeople try to hunt down Bigfoot, family saves Bigfoot, [insert sentimental ending here].

Aside from a few swear words, this is a very good family movie, though I likely wouldn't watch this again unless it was a family movie night due to the cheese factor and shallow plot. John Lithgow's acting is magnificent as always, but I typically favor a film with more depth.

My favorite scene of the entire movie is the dual sequene between the lady boiling the chicken and the old guy helping the fat lady into the hot tub - the film is pretty predictable but that moment really caught me off-guard.

This film absolutely deserved its Oscar for best make-up - I actually had to google the film midway through to figure out how they were "creating" bigfoot and was surprised that it was just Predator in make-up (if you literally read the words "Predator in make-up," it's a very amusing image but you know what I mean).

The combination of make-up and Kevin Peter Hall's "gentile giant" mannerisms make Harry very realistic and not as scary as I remember him from my childhood. Harry and the Hendersons certainly isn't a bad film but it may not measure up to the standards of someone with a refined movie taste; however, it's a great piece of fluff for family movie night!