The Misadventures of Merlin Jones

Reading about the history of this film, I discovered (as other reviewers pointed out) that this film was produced as a two-part production which was then stitched together and released theatrically. While this explains how disjointed it is, it really is two separate stories in one piece of media, as a viewer neither narrative is fully explored and feels unfinished.

These days, we're more likely to see one story cut into two feature-length films, so to see the opposite feels a bit jarring. There are plenty of films which feel like separate stories, such as Downsizing.

As for the two stories, I'm not sure 'misadventures' is the right word. The premise is classic Disney: what can go wrong when an inventor tries his whacky invention? The first half is enjoyable, where Merlin Jones exposes a court judge's life of crime. But the second half, which explores hypnotism, seems to lose the plot (so to speak).

It's interesting enough for fans of classic Disney, Tommy Kirk, and Annette Funicello, but for casual viewers, give it a miss.

The movie seems to have dramatic arcs that end at 45 minutes. First 45 minutes is about mind reading. The second 45 minutes was about hypnotism. Both almost seemed disconnected from each other. If there is anyone out there who knows about the production or about this T.V. show....Uh.. oops..I mean movie, let me know. I guess I'll have to mention my guess for why this Potential television series did not happen. The scandal of Disney discovering that "Tommy Kirk" was not heterosexual, caused Disney to drop his contract. Since the series was already in the can, they had to do something with it. So to make some money back, they linked two of the four episodes into two feature films. Again if somebody out there has the real answer...write.

This 1964 Disney film, like many other of it's era have been long forgotten except by certain aficionados such as myself. The Misadventures of Merlin Jones stars Tommy Kirk as the title character and the unforgettable Annette Funicello in the female lead.

For those of you with short attention spans this movie actually wraps up one story line and continues to conclude another one...not only that, it's left open for a sequel called The Monkey's Uncle! Merlin Jones is the college campus genius who's wacky "scientific" experiments land him in more trouble than any good kid deserves. As a result of one experiment he gets his driver's license revoked, as a result of another he can suddenly read minds...including the mind of the judge that took his license away...and it seems that the good judge isn't all that good. Yet a 3rd experiment gets the judge himself into the same hot water that Merlin is usually in! Just as the title indicates this movie is one misadventure after another.

Don't try to analyze this movie, just sit back and enjoy it. This is the kind of movie whose sole purpose is to celebrate life's little absurdities. If you enjoy being silly then you'll enjoy this Disney gem.

If you're looking for something clean, family friendly and funny, here it is. The Misadventures of Merlin Jones delights from beginning to end. In this classic Disney fare, Tommy Kirk plays Merlin, an eccentric college student at Medfield college who is interested in science, in this case, hypnosis.

Along the way, he and girlfriend Jennifer, payed by Annette Funicello, find themselves getting into all sorts of mischief. Included in the mischief is a chimp and a judge, who likes to write crime novels.

Between the judge writing crime novels, a mischievous chimp and an eccentric student who uses hypnosis, what more in a plot could you expect or ask for?

A great film for kids and adults alike that the whole family can enjoy.

Merlin Jones was intended to be two episodes of Walt Disney's Sunday night hour long anthology series "The Wonderful World of Color." For some reason, they decided to release it theatrically instead. Disney produced some very good films for his TV series like the 3 part Scarecrow of Romney Marsh and the Gallagher Boy Reporter episodes which were very highly rated. Merlin Jones was a theatrical hit for some odd reason, though far less entertaining than aforementioned programs. One can never predict what the American public will buy but even at the time this was pedestrian entertainment. I realized that even at 10 years old when I saw it at my local movie house.