The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

All the acting was superb. The sets were...well, it was 1960. But the script! To hear Mark Twain so joyfully transposed, and so artfully accurate for the film characters and actors! What a straight, simple joy to see this film, made to entertain and doing it proudly, with all concerned -- actors and director mainly -- working on the same premise. And tell me Tony Randall didn't go home whistling after every day on the set! But this was Mark Twain done proud. How many other great writers so easily lend themselves to film scripts? What a writer! What fun he had with phrases, sayings and words. And how well all that was put to use in this movie. And PS Archie Moore was a great heavyweight.

It's the Mark Twain classic. Huckleberry Finn fakes his own death to escape his abusive father. He travels down the Mississippi River with fellow runaway, a slave named Jim. They form a strong bond and encounter various people including two con men. I've never read the book. Somehow, I escaped it in school. I do know the broad strokes. The movie has a bit of cursing and I counted one n* word. There could be more but it's not quite the book. I can't talk to the faithfulness of the adaptation. The story is much more fitting for a mini-series with its episodic nature. The kid is pretty good. He has the rambunctiousness. Jim needs a bigger performer. It's easier to dial it down than it is to dial it up. All in all, their friendship is what sells the movie and the story. They do well in that aspect and thereby makes this movie work.

Adaptation-wise, die-hard fans of the book will find plenty of fault. On its own this film is not bad at all, actually from this viewer's perspective it was decent. Of the 5 Huckleberry Finn adaptations on film that I've seen it is around the middle, with the 1938 Mickey Rooney film being the best and the 1975 Ron Howard film(the only one of the 5 that was anywhere close to bad) being the worst. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn(1970) could have been better. Eddie Hodges was a little weak and somewhat too prim for Huck and while there are some tense, heart-warming and moving moments the storytelling could have been much stronger. The additions and some omissions didn't always make the narrative cohesive(for example much more could have been done with the ending)- though the Ron Howard does a much worse job at this- and because the grimmer parts of the book are trimmed down or diluted there are times, not always mind, where things did come across as a little on the "cute" side. The adaptation is beautifully filmed though with evocative and quite charming locations and river settings(where the photography was at its most striking). The music score is rousing, foreboding and poignant at all the times it's called for and it is placed appropriately, while the scripting is colourful and generally makes an effort to capture the spirit of Mark Twain's own writing and while not all the storytelling is as good as it could've been it is difficult not to be moved by Jim's talking of his deaf child(something that anybody would identify with). The acting is good generally. Archie Moore is just great and very dignified as Jim(his chemistry with Hodges just about convinces), while Neville Brand is a brutish Pap, Mickey Shaughnessy is appropriately oafish with an ability to be menacing and humorous and Tony Randall's King is superbly conniving. Buster Keaton and Andy Devine also make lively appearances in one of the more delightful and chemistry-strong scenes of the film. All in all, a decent film but "purists" may want to look elsewhere. 7/10 Bethany Cox

This is one of a number of film adaptations of Mark Twain's classic novel of the same title. I haven't seen any others to compare. Although Eddie Hodges, as Huck Finn, and Archie Moore, as African American slave Jim, are the principle characters, I vote for Tony Randall as giving the stand out acting performance, as con man the 'King', along with his accomplice Mickey Shaughnessy, as the 'Duke'........In general, I found it an entertaining experience. Neville Brand plays Huck's scary ne'er do well alcoholic father, Papy, who is always criticizing Huck. He even accuses Huck of murdering his mother, since she died in childbirth. Jose Hutchinson plays the widow Douglas, who takes Huck in, being essentially an orphan. Jim, slave to the widow, runs away after he heard that she was planning on selling him to raise money to meet Papy's demand for not taking Huck way. Jim is also accused of probably murdering Huck, in Huck's staged suggestion that he had been attacked and thrown in the river. These two runaways meet and steal a raft to float down the Mississippi.......I have several reality issues to discuss. Jim's stated goal is to float down to Cairo, Illinois, a free state, and head north. But, Hannibal , Missouri, where he started from, is well north of Cairo. So, why couldn't he simply raft over to the Illinois side of the river and claim freedom?? 2)Jim recognizes the corpse in the derelict house boat they run into as being that of Papy, and refuses to allow Huck to see in that room. How did Papy's corpse wind up there? He lived in a shack. 3)Why are the King and the Duke on the steamboat that picked up Huck and Jim? They were arrested by the sheriff and presumably put in jail, unless they simply paid a fine for impersonating, with the intent of robbing an inheritance. See it In color at YouTube

From the man who directed "Casablanca" and "Yankee Doodle Dandy" comes a colourful, humorous video version of Mark Twain's timeless novel. The casting is superb. It's hard to think of any other actors from the early 1960s in these roles, they are so well chosen. Especially impressive is pro boxer Archie Moore as Jim. His scene where he's talking about his deaf child is heart-wrenching, quite a feat for a cross over athlete. The child actor who plays Huck is very good as well. My honourable mention goes to Tony Randall and Mickey Shaughnessy who make a great comedy team as the King and the Duke. They are simply hilarious. Although many of Twain's adventures are deleted, most of the better known and interesting characters and scenes are included. Many of these characters are played by Hollywood legends like Sterling Holloway(the voice of Winnie the Pooh and Jiminy Cricket), Judy Canova, John Carradine, Neville Brand, and Buster Keaton. All in all, a highly recommended family film.