John Henry

Was it bad? Short answer: YES!

What’s the premise, Headley?

Well, I’m glad you asked, unknown reader. If you’re like me and anyone else living during this time, you are most likely binging so many shows on Netflix. While doing my daily circuit on the “watch it again” section, I stumbled upon John Henry, directed by Will Forbes, starring Terry Crews and Ludacris. I’m a little familiar with John Henry’s folktale. The folktale is about a prominent muscular railroad worker who is as strong as an ox, and he beat a steamed railway making machine, using nothing but a hammer. “Cool a modern interpretation of the lore? Is he going to build a spaceship faster than a robot with advance A.I, all with a…jack hammer?”.

Nope, the story takes place in Compton, CA. Terry Crews plays John Henry, a huge friendly man who loves his dog. He lives with his paraplegic father, BJ, (played by Ken Foree). One night, John meets Berta (played by Jamilia Velazquez), a recent escapee of a sex trafficking ring, ran by John’s cousin Hell (played by Ludacris). Berta’s brother, Emilio (played by Joseph Julian Soria), who saved her, is now at John Henry’s place. So John Henry is willing to help Berta and Emilio to escape the wrath of Hell and his posse while confronting his dark past.

What do you like about it, Headley?

• BJ Henry is a good character in terms of dialogue and not depth. He provides comic relief with chuckle-worthy banter with other characters.
• It’s refreshing to see Terry Crews expand his acting range to play a dramatic role rather than settle with the “jacked and goofy” character.
• We see flashbacks through an old camcorder—an excellent choice than the cliche flashbacks.
• The film tried to develop characters in the scenes.

What don’t you like about it, Headley?

• By far, the most interminable opening credits in the history of forever! It had me thinking this was an anime opening. 30 seconds of studio logos, 2 minutes of flashbacks, and 4 minutes of animated opening credits (I may be exaggerating, but you get the picture.)
• The banter between the traffickers, in the beginning, was long-winded.
• The scene with John Henry and his highschool friend was utterly pointless.
• Hell’s costume was laughable. Just take a look above.
• I’ve seen cheap movies that were really good, but this is BAADDD.
• I sense some Luke Cage vibes, but damn, John Henry might as well change his name to that! He gets shot on the head and just walks away; he probably took Tylenol and was excellent.
• They should’ve shown gore (I don’t think they had enough money for the effects).
• The last 15 minutes were hilarious. John brought a hammer to a gunfight and still whipped ass.
• I tried to take the final showdown between Hell and John Henry seriously, but I was distracted by the spaghetti western music playing unironically.
• I didn’t care about the characters.

What would Headley do?

I’m no Oscar-winning filmmaker but I would give some constructive criticism instead of beating a low hanging fruit. In my opinion, these changes would’ve saved the movie.

• DJ Quik was on point with setting a tone with the soundtrack, but I’d cut down the music. Maybe some dark instrumentals to convey emotions.
• Cut the opening credits down.
• Put subtitles in when people are speaking Spanish, the only translation we get is from BJ. I’m learning Spanish, so I picked up a few words. It didn’t do Berta’s character any justice, because the movie is saying that her dialogue isn’t critical, making her role not relevant.
• Make the movie longer so there can be more scenes to build character.
• Don’t pussy-foot with the graphic violence. Either go all in or stay out.
• Hell should’ve been shot in the eye. An eyepatch is a cliche for a villain, but it’d look more badass than a bedazzled prosthetic jaw.

In conclusion…

I’ll give it a 4/10. I admire that Terry Crews, Ludacris, Dj Quik, and Will Forbes are throwing down money to produce a film putting a spin on a famous black folk hero. Even though this film is flawed, I peeped through the cracks and saw it’s potential and what it could’ve been. It was a corrupt yet entertaining film that took my mind off of the unfortunate situation at hand. I still look forward to Crew’s work in the future. So that’s my John Henry review, until next time.