The Adventures of Mark Twain (1986)

User Rating:

7.7/10   

Director:

Will Vinton

Writers:

Susan Shadburne (writer)
Mark Twain (segments)

Genre:

Animation | Adventure | Family

Tagline:

Where dreams become reality.

Plot:

Based on elements from the stories of Mark Twain, this feature-length Claymation fantasy follows the adventures of Tom Sawyer...

Plot Keywords:

Mark Twain | Comet | Halleys Comet | Stowaway | Portal

Cast

James Whitmore	...	Mark Twain (voice)
Michele Mariana	...	Becky Thatcher / The Mysterious Stranger / Girl In Crowd (voice)
Gary Krug	...	Huck Finn (voice)
Chris Ritchie	...	Tom Sawyer (voice)
John Morrison	...	Adam (voice)
Carol Edelman	...	Eve (voice)
Dal McKennon	...	Jim Smiley (voice) (as Dallas McKennon)
Herb Smith	...	The Stranger (voice)
Marley Stone	...	Aunt Polly (voice)
Wilbur Vincent	...	The Mysterious Stranger (voice)
Wally Newman	...	Captain Stormfield (voice)
Tim Conner	...	Three-Headed Alien (voice)
Todd Tolces	...	Saint Peter (voice)
Billy Scream	...	The Indexivator / Animals (voice)
Bob Griggs	...	First Heckler (voice)

Also Known As:

Comet Quest (UK) (video title)
Mark Twain

Runtime:

86 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:G | UK:U | USA:G

Filming Locations:

Portland, Oregon, USA

Company:

Harbour Towns

Trivia:

Some television broadcasts of the film have omitted the "Mysterious Stranger" segment because it was considered likely to disturb some viewers (particularly children).

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: Dirt and seams visible on the rear projection screen during the scenes in the deck of the airship after they enter the comet.

Quotes:

Mark Twain: The human race, in all its poverty, has only one truly effective weapon: laughter. Against the assault of laughter - ha-ha-ha-ha! - nothing can stand.

Movie Connections:

References Neighbours (1952)

Soundtrack:

Heroes

Thoughtful, fun, and dark

I must have seen The Adventures of Mark Twain for the first time over twelve years ago, and for over a decade it had haunted me... rarely, if ever, rebroadcast, I was left only with vague memory of what I remembered as one of the most vibrant pieces of visual art and storytelling that I was exposed to as a youth. I recently purchased it directly from the studio that released it, and got to return to it for the first time in a long time. Of course, when returning to childhood films, you always run the risk of being disappointed by the film being worse than you recall. Luckily, I was not disappointed at all. The story is of Mark Twain's characters Tom Sawyer, Huck Finn, and Becky Thatcher as they stow on board an airship created by Mark Twain himself. Through the course of their journey across the world to meet Haley's comet, we are invited to retellings of Twain stories and meet all sorts of different characters. The humour is intelligent and dry, but not over the heads of children.

Visually, this piece is stunning. There is something vivid and tactile about stop-motion animation that will always appeal to me more than any CGI creation. Will Vinton outdoes himself with this piece. From the grandeur of Twain's airship or the Garden of Eden, to the detail of Twain's parlour/billiard room and the simple, truthful human expressions that the animators manage to create on the characters' faces, the film is impressive from first to last.

What surprised me the most is how this film, which I remembered as a children's or family film, is in fact quite dark. It deals with aspects of life, death, evil, and human nature that one would never expect in a so-called "family" film. But while the outward darkness, and, at times, even morbidity of individual aspects may seem inappropriate for family viewing, it comes from the sane and grounded perspective that Twain himself seems to have been known for. Like in any good storytelling, the dark side of humanity is not spared from the viewer just because of the potentially youthful audiences.

By way of criticism, the film could definitely move at a faster pace. The humour, while clever and dry, as I said, could have been pushed farther. There were many times the film set us up for quite a punchline and then didn't deliver, instead settling for a consistent level of pleasant amusement. And I wish the episodic structure had been more fully taken advantage of, and had been extended into even more stories. But that may just be me wishing the movie was longer than 86 minutes. You can't have too much of a good thing.

I give the storytelling an 8 out of 10, and visuals a 10 of 10. Overall, a 9. There aren't too many of those, as far as I'm concerned.

And even if you didn't like this movie, you gotta admit, it's one of a kind.