Harry and the Hendersons (1987)

My Review

“Harry and the Hendersons” is a fantasy comedy film about a family making friends with a Big Foot-like creature, whom they nickname Harry, after taking him home from a camping trip. The weak premise is poorly executed into a full-length motion picture by director William Dear (“Angels in the Outfield” 1994), also co-writer of the screenplay with William E. Martin and Ezra D. Rappaport. It seems to be another version of “E. T. the Extra Terrestrial,” a 1982 movie from director Steven Spielberg, who was also executive producer of this motion picture.

The cast manages to slog through this production, which includes John Lithgow, Melinda Dillon, Margaret Langrick, Joshua Rudoy, Lainie Kazan, Don Ameche, David Suchet, M. Emmet Walsh, Robert Isaac Lee, William Frankfather, John Bloom, Laurie O’Brien, and Kevin Peter Hall suited up as Harry. “Harry and the Hendersons” was a modest hit in theatrical release for Amblin Entertainment and Universal Pictures. It won one Academy Award for Best Makeup, and was filmed in Washington state.