Tall Tale (1995)

A young boy draws on the inspiration of legendary western characters to find the strength to fight an evil land baron in the old west who wants to steal his family's farm and destroy their ... See full summary »

Director:

Jeremiah S. Chechik (as Jeremiah Chechik)

Writers:

Steve Bloom (as Steven L. Bloom), Robert Rodat

Stars:

Patrick Swayze, Oliver Platt, Roger Aaron Brown

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Patrick Swayze	...	Pecos Bill
Oliver Platt	...	Paul Bunyan
Roger Aaron Brown	...	John Henry
Nick Stahl	...	Daniel Hackett
Scott Glenn	...	J.P. Stiles
Stephen Lang	...	Jonas Hackett
Jared Harris	...	Head Thug Pug
Catherine O'Hara	...	Calamity Jane
Moira Sinise	...	Sarah Hackett (as Moira Harris)
Joe Grifasi	...	Man in Top Hat (as Joseph Grifasi)
John P. Ryan	...	Grub
Scott Wilson	...	Zeb
Bert Kramer	...	Bronson
Eric Lawson	...	Sheriff
Bill Rodgers	...	Captain of Industry

Storyline

A young boy draws on the inspiration of legendary western characters to find the strength to fight an evil land baron in the old west who wants to steal his family's farm and destroy their idyllic community. When Daniel Hackett sees his father Jonas gravely wounded by the villainous Stiles, his first urge is for his family to flee the danger, and give up their life on a farm which Daniel has come to despise anyway. Going alone to a lake to try to decide what to do, he falls asleep on a boat and wakes to find himself in the wild west, in the company of such "tall tale" legends as Pecos Bill, Paul Bunyan, John Henry, and Calamity Jane. Together, they battle the same villains Daniel is facing in his "real" world.

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Plot Keywords:

horseback riding | quick draw | jailbreak | land grab | rifle | 

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Taglines:

A journey into a world where legends come to life. Dreams come true. And every boy is a hero.

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Genres:

Adventure | Family | Fantasy | Western

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for western action violence

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

24 March 1995 (USA)

Also Known As:

Tall Tale: The Unbelievable Adventures of Pecos Bill

Filming Locations:

Barstow, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$32,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$3,046,181, 26 March 1995

Gross USA:

$8,247,627

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$11,047,627

Company Credits

Production Co:

Caravan Pictures, Walt Disney Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Bill tells Daniel a story about a man named Lanky Hank who was bounced by Widowmaker up to the Moon and had to be euthanized by shooting. This is a variation of a well-known Pecos Bill anecdote, but usually the victim is a woman, Slue-Foot Sue. In many versions, Sue is rescued.

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Goofs

When he makes his debut, Pecos Bill shoots off two varmints' "trigger fingers" before they can shoot Daniel and you can see that they are gone. But when they put their arms and hands up they still have their trigger fingers.

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Quotes

Pecos Bill: I ought to plug you two right now, but I make it a rule never to kill a man on Sunday.
Zeb: Today's Wednesday.

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Connections

Featured in At the Movies: Dolores Claiborne/Funny Bones/Major Payne/Circle of Friends/Tall Tale: The Unbelievable Adventures of Pecos Bill (1995)

User Reviews

Excellent Film for older children and adults.

I thought this movie was excellent for older children and adults. Tall tales are such a large part of our culture and others as well. Sometimes a person has to make a stand to protect his or her way of life and I think this movie does that in a way that is easy to interpret. It would also stay in our minds as a life lesson. Rosa Parks stood alone on that bus in Montgomery, AL. The boy in this movie took a stand too. He never hurt anyone either. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. took a stand without any violence and look what happened! The boy's father was an inspiration to his son. Our youth of today need these things. They need someone to look up to by example. I'd highly recommend this movie for all ages! I watched it twice in one day and will do so again and again.