Flashback: Siskel and Ebert Hate Harry and the Hendersons

Christopher Nolans space epicInterstellar hits theaters this weekend, and even though some critics have been harsh, it still has a relatively respectable 73 percent Fresh ratingon Rotten Tomatoes. Odds are high its going to do very well at the box office, even though the nearly three-hour running time limits how many times it can play per night.

The film stars Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain, Michael Caine and John Lithgow. The last name got us thinking about Lithgows most memorable movie. Were not talking about This Is 40, A Civil Action, Cliffhanger or Terms of Endearment. Were talking, of course, about 1987s Harry and the Hendersons. For those unfamiliar with the picture, its about a family that befriends a kindly Bigfoot-like creature and does everything they can to protect it from a cruel world bent on destroying poor Harry.

If you were a child in the 1980s you probably have a special place in your heart for Harry and the Hendersons, but Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert were well past their childhood years by 1987 and they were unimpressed. I saw this movie with an adoring crowd, said Siskel. But I didnt buy that much of it. Its no E.T. Harry, the ape, reminded of the big orangutan in Clint Eastwoods Every Which Way But Loose, but that ape was a whole lot funnierIts a very manipulative movie that anyone whose seen E.T. has seen before.

Roger Ebert agreed. What it lacks is any sense of awe about the fact there could be a Bigfoot, an unknown creature living in the woods with a mind of its own, he said. Were interacting with, essentially, a wind-up toy. Harry is so cute, so gentle, so lovable that there is no sense of mystery and no sense of awe. Theres no belief that hes really Bigfoot.

Audiences disagreed and Harry and the Hendersons made $50 million, which was pretty good for a 1987 movie with a relatively low budget. The movie ends with Harry going off into the woods and finding all sorts of other similar creatures, perfectly setting up a sequel that were still waiting to see. Its probably going to be a long wait.