Martin Bradley
A glorious piece of Americana and a great film for children, this adaptation of Mark Twain's classic was directed by Norman Taurog, who was a dab hand at this sort of thing, (he had already won the Oscar for Skippy with Jackie Cooper), and is something of a classic itself. The very likable Tommy Kelly is Tom and it's a lovely performance, one of the least ingratiating by a child in all of American movies. He's untrained and innocent and when he cries he's actually very moving. Under Taurog's direction all of the children are first-rate; they all capture the spirit of Mark Twain perfectly. The adults include the great May Robson, magnificent as Aunt Polly, Victor Jory, a suitably frightening Injun Joe, Walter Brennan, Margaret Hamilton and Donald Meek. It's also luminously photographed in early colour by James Wong Howe. David O Selznick produced with all the care and attention to detail you would expect.
rudeboy_murray
Norman Taurog's 1938 Technicolor film is a nice enough time waster but suffers from being just too faithful to the story. All of the memorable incidents are checked off, the most memorable being the final confrontation with Injun Joe, all filmed on lavish and hugely impressive sets.Tommy Kelly is fine as Tom like most of the kids in the film (apart from Ann Gillis' bland, boring Becky) he overacts at times, but he has the charm required for the part. Jackie Moran's Huck is barely developed, a wasted opportunity. David Holt's Sid, played very much for slapstick, gets some good laughs.The adult cast are solid, although none are given much to do and May Robson is decidedly more ancient than I always envisioned Aunt Polly.A nicely paced, likable effort, but more imagination would have been welcome.
preppy-3
This review is of the full 91 minute version. There's another one out that's about 77 minutes.I haven't read "Tomy Sawyer" since I was a kid (I'm in my 40s now) but this movie bought back a lot of good memories! Tom Sawyer (Tommy Kelly) is being bought up by his Aunt Polly (May Robson) along with cousin Mary and the vicious Sid (David Holt). Tom is constantly getting into trouble with his buddy Huckleberry Finn (Jackie Moran). In the course of the movie Tom falls for cute Becky Thatcher (Ann Gillis), runs away from home, witnesses a murder and it ends with him and Becky being chased by the killer. OK--this is far from perfect. Kelly was an unknown--and it shows. He's not good at all. Also the film is episodic...but so was the novel. There's also a young black kid here who comes across as an idiot and is treated pretty badly. I realize that's a sign of its time but it's uncomfortable to watch now. Still this is worth catching.The color is beautiful and the film moves very quickly. Kelly aside all the acting is good (Robson does wonders with her stereotypical role) and I was never bored. The very last bit with Sid and Aunt Polly was just perfect! It also bought back the book to me--I was remembering entire sequences I haven't read since I was a kid. This is also perfect viewing for the entire family. Well-made and worth catching. Try catching the full version.
dwpollar
1st watched 10/14/2000 - (Dir-Norman Taurog): Well-done enactment of the popular Mark Twain novel with suspense, laughs & tears. Popular child director proves again that he can teach kids how to act on film.
AD
