Mark Twain

To call him a great American is to limit him. He is a citizen of the world, read in every country, more American than anyone else, yet more critical of his country than most. I will never forget how mother read Tom Sawyer to me in German, in a park in Montevideo, Uruguay, when I was only nine, and how I couldn't stop laughing at the funny way the characters talked. I was convulsed with laughter, one of the first big laughing fits of my life. Alas, as I grew up, I lost interest in fiction. But Twain is more than a writer. He is a character with flaws and all. His taste for luxury is disappointing. To coin an aphorism: How sad that people born in log cabins, don't want to live in them! It is heartbreaking to see Twain sink into debt and his family separated by penury. And one also wonders how much Huckleberry Finn owes to Uncle Tom's Cabin. Why not a big documentary about Harriet Beecher Stowe? Was she less of a writer?

I have yet to watch anything by Ken Burns and his usual crew/co-creators that doesn't inform, educate, entertain and fulfill my expectations. Even a subject like baseball is presented in a way that pulls you into its heart and soul. His forte, is of course, the immense detail and unknown angles that he presents to the viewer, especially when it comes to historical events that can be tedious. This is perfectly exemplified by his handling of the complex subject of Mark Twain/Samuel Clements. His wit, profound understanding of the human psyche and his complicated life are dealt with in such a respectful yet honest way. I knew a bit about the author and had read some of his books, but after watching this biography, I felt I understood him a bit more as a fully-realized human being. The background music, the voices (narrators), the unknown facts and the beautiful photography makes for compelling watching. I cannot imagine a more thorough and even-handed telling of the Civil War, or the Vietnam War, where you are not subjected to the victor's viewpoint alone. I regard Ken Burns as the ultimate storyteller and teacher for not just his American audience, but for all of us who are unaware of or lacking the exposure to the themes he covers so well. Entertainment can and should be more than just mindless viewing. Here is proof it can be many things. And the best.

Typically emotional and reverential Ken Burns biography, featuring the usual display of wonderful vintage pictures and discreet music and sound accompaniment, as well as professional line-readings and commentaries.

Twain's interesting life alone and all the anecdotal plentifulness of Burns's script guarantee three-and-a-half entertaining hours, but as a documentary about such a witty and sagacious writer, this feels too conventional and tame in style and presentation, hammering home some of its notions about Twain's inner conflicts too repetitively.

It's still quality work, though.

7 out of 10 failed business schemes

By far, a great documentary about a truly great American. I never knew there was so much more to Mark Twain than just a few books and a name. From a humble Christian beginning in Florida, Missouri; to a world known presence by his end, Twain was a remarkable human being.

Ken Burns couldn't have picked a better, single person or subject to do a documentary. Mark Twain had great humour, and Burns was able to capture this with powerfully wonderful stories and photos. Twain's life was not always humorous, it was filled with tragedy, both personally and financially.

He was humble though, until the end. We need more men like him.

This is one of the finest films I have ever seen. And I have watched it over and over. One comes away awed that one man could have endured so much sorrow and been able to translate it in a way other people could learn from, sometimes through laughter.

Ken Burns is a treasure. He has given us a well rounded picture of a gifted man who was all too human. Could one person have lived his life more fully than Samuel Clemens? This is a fascinating study of a writer I knew little about and now will honor whenever I hear his name.

Mark Twain was not afraid to write about ugly things, evil things, but wise enough to do so in a manner that lead the reader deep into the subject before realizing the truths he met along the way, and by then it was too late. The reader learned something about slavery or how one group of people treats another or about human nature that he had not intended to learn.

This film is a masterpiece and worth viewing often.