The Adventures of Huck Finn

Whenever a book is adapted into a movie, there are sacrifices and interpretations that must be made because the totality of the written work cannot possibly be translated to the screen. These choices can become exceptionally difficult when the work is one as widely-read and well-beloved as Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. For this latest filmed version, Stephen Sommers' script is faithful in spirit -- if not in all the details -- to the original. Much of Twain's keen insight into human nature, as well as his finely-tuned sense-of-humor, is kept intact in Disney's 1993 The Adventures of Huck Finn. It should be noted, however, that significant chunks of the novel are missing, including the bulk of the ending, and the character of Tom Sawyer doesn't make an appearance. While it's easy to debate the merits of what was cut, the final result manages to convey a good sense of the book's scope.

Say what you will about Mark Twain, but the story of Huckleberry Finn and Jim was truly his best. Forget Tom Sawyer and his fence - the tale of a mischievous child from an abusive home escaping with a runaway slave capable of enlightening said-child's perspectives on freedom gets my vote. At the height of the popularity of Bart Simpson, Disney released another adaptation of the classic starring a new up-and-coming child actor named Elijah Wood as Huck and a Yale graduate named Courtney B. Vance as Jim. But wait! The stars just keep on coming; Back-to-back Oscar-winner Jason Robards as the King, pre-Harry Potterized Robbie Coltrane as the Duke, Ron "Hellboy" Perlman (I could've sworn it was Tom Waits!) as Huck's drunk pappy, and Anne Heche (still hiding her cuckoo) as Mary Jane Wilks. There are also cameos by "Six Feet Under's" Frances Conroy, Curtis "Booger" Armstrong, and Pete's younger brother Pete Danny Tamberelli. There are quite a few dark moments for this PG-rated film, but maybe that's a big part of why I support it; Huck's gun-wielding confrontation with his father happens to be my favorite scene, though it's certainly not the darkest (That would be Billy's big scene.). The end of the movie is quite different from the end of the book - of course, they took the happily-ever-after approach - which sucks and ultimately makes a film filled with beautiful scenery and an unbelievably terrific score by Bill Conti seem like just another piece of Disnefluff. I know a bad ending can slay an entire movie, but one can't deny there's some good stuff in this one.

If you haven't read Mark Twain's book already, I highly recommend you read it, for it is a truly great and compelling read. While not 100% perfect, this is a worthy film adaptation. As people have pointed out, the film is true in spirit if not in the details to the book, but it is really not bad on its own merits. For one thing, it's beautifully filmed, with crisp cinematography and beautiful scenery. Then there is a wonderful score, very fitting with what was going on on screen. Also a decent script, good direction and even better performances. Elijah Wood does a good enough job in what I consider one of his best performances in the title role, while Courtney B.Vance plays Jim with such feeling and finesse he was perfect. Ron Perlman is suitably brutish, while Jason Robards and Robbie Coltrane come close to stealing the film as the roguish King and Duke. Plus the ending was heart-rending. My only problems were some parts that were too overly-modernised, its length and how Tom Sawyer was written but other than that this is a worthy film and adaptation. 7/10 Bethany Cox

I've watched the movie several times and each time , it brought the same emotions. Not one of the movies, that you'll watch just once. I read the book many years ago, when I was 10 years old and the first time I watched, the movie brought out nice memories and emotions in me . I couldn't help but smile throughout the movie. Definitely one of the best adaptations of children's books. It made me want to go through the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn again. Movie doesn't follow all the chapters, some details are left out but it leaves up to the book's spirit. Elijah Wood's performance is noteworthy. He expresses Huck Finn's personality and characteristics perfectly. It is considered a children's book and a children's movie, but in fact, it's pleasant to watch for all the audiences, regardless the age. Like the book, you'll enjoy the movie at any age!

The Adventures of Huck Finn is an adventure movie based off the classic story "Huckleberry Finn" by Mark Twain. Elijah Wood played the adventurous young boy Huck Finn. Huck runs away with a slave, Jim, Courtney B. Vance, and their goal is to make it to freedom for Jim. This is a dangerous journey through Mississippi for a slave in the 1950s.

Huck Finn is a young boy who lives with two old woman because his father, Pap, is not a nice man. Pap decides to take him out of his home one night and brings him to his own house. While at his dad's house, Huck has to be careful because Pap is scary when he is drunk. In order to escape from Pap's life, Huck fakes his own murder. He starts out on a journey but on the first day he comes across Jim in the woods. They decide to travel together but they have to be extra careful who they run into because Jim is blamed for Huck's murder. Eventually, they run into two thieves, Duke and King, who bring them along with them to pretend to be people they are not. Their lies finally catch up with them and they have to carefully find their way out of the situation. Watch the movie to find out what twists this movie takes at the end.

This movie does an excellent job of staying in the 1950s time period. The way the slaves are treated and enslaved was really how they were treated. The two boys get stuck on a plantation and Jim is enslaved. Huck sees how Jim is treated and wants to leave. The dialects of the people tell that they are from the South. The way the people dress also keeps with the time period. The ladies wore big dresses and men wore suits and hats.

I thought that this movie had excellent acting. Elijah Wood is a young actor and is really great for his age. The other actors are good at playing the roles that they got. They are very realistic and act with the time period.

I found this movie really enjoyable and it even had some humor in it. I would defiantly recommend this movie for an age of person because it is classic literature but has a Disney spin on it. I give this movie 7 out of 10 stars.