Reviews & Ratings for
The Ballad of Andy Crocker (TV) More at IMDbPro »

12 out of 16 people found the following review useful:
viet vet, 27 January 2004

Author: daniel bell (daniel.bell2@worldnet.att.net) from somers, ny

Made for tv movies used to have the stigma of being-made for tv. And for the most part it was deserved. Much like Japanese products were once dismissed as-made in Japan. Remember that? Well this is an early made for tv movie that is an exception to the rule. It deserves inclusion with the better films of the returning vet genre. I highly recommend it.

3 out of 3 people found the following review useful:
excellent early returning Viet Nam vet movie., 27 September 2006

Author: terriannjohnson from United States

i first saw this movie as a child in the early 70s,and saw it again for the first time since recently on tape,it is as relevant to a new generation and war today as it was to the "Nam"generation over 30 years ago.lee majors is excellent as the disaffected veteran who returns to a crumbled former life back home and has trouble adjusting to civilian life.also look for Marvin Gaye in a rare acting role.this low budget TV movie is as good as other returning vet movies that came later in the 70s-the deer hunter and coming home,i like this movie it shows the problems of the returning war veterans and the obstacle's that they faced.even more surprising is that this movie was released as a TV movie while the united states was still deeply involved militarily in southeast Asia.this film deserves a fresh look today with veterans returning home from a new war-to the same old problems.

3 out of 4 people found the following review useful:
Simple-minded, but somewhat interesting view of a returning vet., 22 March 2005
Author: Poseidon-3 from Cincinnati, OH

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

Then-timely, this TV movie examining the plight of a returning Vietnam veteran is now nostalgic (and more than a little trite and clichéd.) In a (thankfully brief) opening sequence, real Vietnam footage is uneasily mixed with indoor studio work as Majors is injured and then sent back to the U.S. He encounters some hippies (including an underutilized Haworth) before heading back to Texas where his small business and his girlfriend await him. Unfortunately, he finds that his business is all but dismantled while his friends have made good without him and his girl (Hetherton) is now married to someone else. The film details his struggles to find a niche for himself following his tour of duty and his desire to make his dream of self-employment come true. However, the world seems to have passed him by and no one is particularly open to helping him reach his goals. Majors, who enjoyed a twenty-year period of nearly uninterrupted TV success, is attractive and appealing, but also rather bland and wooden. He lacks the spark to really sell this story completely. He doesn't quite have the range to take on all the colors of this disappointed and dejected bad boy. Hetherton shows off her trademark pout with regularity (especially in a hilarious cinematic "innovation" in which she and Majors share a phone conversation while soft-focus, dimly-lit versions of themselves appear face-to-face!) Oddly, three music stars make rare appearances here as actors. Dean has the biggest role as Majors' loudmouthed former partner. Hatfield does an adequate job as another former pal who has married for money. Gaye is Majors' old army buddy who tries to help him adjust to civilian life. Moorehead does a cameo as Hetherton's formidable mother, spouting haughty lines in between skeet-shooting! Typical of the type of telefilms that producer Spelling ground out in the late 60's and early 70's, there is both good and bad to be found here. It offers a simple take on what was actually a very complex issue. Note how many cigarettes Majors puts away just within the first 15 minutes and listen in shock as Dean refers to one of his friends as a "pussy"!! It's not always easy to identify with Majors' stubborn and occasionally foolish character, but he exudes a quality of amiability that, along with the varied and solid supporting cast, makes this watchable. The recurring ballad, sung frequently throughout the film may drive some viewers out of their mind. Others who are fans of that style of music may like it. There's also a twist ending, which places the film in almost the same genre as "The Swimmer".

Coming Home from Vietnam, 30 August 2010

Author: wes-connors from Earth

"When a Vietnam veteran returns from serving his country in the war, his homecoming is hardly a hero's welcome. In fact, things couldn't get much worse: his girlfriend is now married to another man and his cycle repair shop is on the verge of bankruptcy. He is now left with putting the scattered pieces of his life back together," according to the DVD sleeve description, "He was supposed to return as a hero!" This ABC-TV Tuesday "Movie of the Week" stars handsome Lee Majors (late of "The Big Valley").

To his credit, Mr. Majors and his "Andy Crocker" character seem way to smart for the story. We are led to believe Majors would come home from Vietnam after over ten years and immediately take up with Peter Haskell's sitar-strained hippies, then expect sexy Jill Haworth to accompany him on a motorcycle trip home to Texas, where curvy girlfriend Joey Heatherton (as Lisa) would have been waiting for them with open arms. Meanwhile, back in Los Angeles, Farrah Fawcett was dating Tommy Smothers.

And, Majors left his "Used Bikes" shop, acquired when he was a teenager, in the hands of ditzy Jimmy Dean (as Mack), a singer without a song. Righteous Brother Bobby Hatfield (as Joe Bob) and Motown's Marvin Gaye (as David Owens) are other singers appearing without a note, and Agnes Moorehead (from the popular "Bewitched" series) has a cameo. After Majors beats up Mr. Dean, his father asks, "Son, when are you going to grow up?" Good question. Stay tuned for "Marcus Welby, M.D."

*** The Ballad of Andy Crocker (11/18/69) George McCowan ~ Lee Majors, Joey Heatherton, Jimmy Dean, Bobby Hatfield

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