Big Bad John

It's hard to believe that the song "Big Bad John" dates back only to 1961, when it stayed at the top of the charts for five weeks. Jimmy Dean's ballad of the big, quiet man with a murderous past who sacrifices himself to save his fellow miners has the mythic quality of a folktale. The movie version, which zipped in and out of theaters prior to appearing on videocassette, is about as memorable as a second feature at a drive-in. Dean himself has a starring role, not as John but as a retired sheriff in the Louisiana swamp country. He is visited by his erstwhile deputy (Jack Elam) and an old nemesis (Ned Beatty), the latter of whom married Dean's ex-wife (now deceased)...