I found how this TV version of the John Steinbeck novel was filmed to have a very strange structure, with Maureen O'Hara and Henry Fonda a bit mature as Clint Howard's parents, especially since they were in the same generation as original stars Myrna Loy and Robert Mitchum. This is definitely more adult oriented than that version too, closer to the film versions of "Of Mice and Men" and "The Grapes of Wrath", and less about the pony than the antagonistic relationship of aging farmer Fonda and sensitive son Howard.
The three stars give very good performances, although there's not much sympathy for fonda. In one of the very first scenes, Howard is telling his mother that he hates his father and she sends him to his room, later trying to explain why hating a parent is wrong. Her father, Jack Elam, and Fonda do not get along, and every time Elam visits, there's bound to be problems. A scene in a local tavern involving aging good time girl Lieux Dressler seems to be something from another story. Then there's the presents of an aging Mexican man, said to be 97 years old and seemingly planning to settle on the property with or without Fonda's permission. He too disappears out of the story very quickly.
So while there are some great situations, the structure of the film is not a linear story, and the audience gets easily distracted. Certainly it's always great to see veteran stars past their glory days in leads, and it's nice to see Fonda and O'Hara reunited. Even though this got a slew of Emmy nominations, I found it rather disappointing, as if someone took a bunch of scenes from the movie and moved them around so there was no real continuity, just constant conflict. I would have loved to rank this higher, but I just can't recommend it other than for the presence of the two legends. A real missed opportunity.
The three stars give very good performances, although there's not much sympathy for fonda. In one of the very first scenes, Howard is telling his mother that he hates his father and she sends him to his room, later trying to explain why hating a parent is wrong. Her father, Jack Elam, and Fonda do not get along, and every time Elam visits, there's bound to be problems. A scene in a local tavern involving aging good time girl Lieux Dressler seems to be something from another story. Then there's the presents of an aging Mexican man, said to be 97 years old and seemingly planning to settle on the property with or without Fonda's permission. He too disappears out of the story very quickly.
So while there are some great situations, the structure of the film is not a linear story, and the audience gets easily distracted. Certainly it's always great to see veteran stars past their glory days in leads, and it's nice to see Fonda and O'Hara reunited. Even though this got a slew of Emmy nominations, I found it rather disappointing, as if someone took a bunch of scenes from the movie and moved them around so there was no real continuity, just constant conflict. I would have loved to rank this higher, but I just can't recommend it other than for the presence of the two legends. A real missed opportunity.