Reviews for the Weekend – It’s A Mixed Bag

Let’s start with the positive, shall we?   On one of my frequent trips to the library, I ran across this darling picture book called The Adventures of Mark Twain, by Huckleberry Finn.  What a cute idea!   The book was a simple biography of Mark Finn, told through the eyes of one who should know him best – his most beloved character, Huck Finn.   I can’t find a picture of it anywhere on the internet right now, but, if you have children, go check this one out.   It was written in the vernacular style similar to our current novel, had nice illustrations, and told the story of the life of Samuel Clemens in a way that was simple yet captivating.

Now for the negative.   Christine passed on a movie version of the novel she had requested, which I was able to watch this week in snippets here and there.

This was Disney’s attempt to capture the adventurous spirit of Huck Finn.   I was excited about their choice of actor to play the lead role, since I have admired Elijah Wood’s acting for a long time.   I wasn’t disappointed in this.  He was darn cute.   Unfortunately, my positive review ends here.   I thought it was pretty flat for an “adventure novel,” and Disney seemed to have a not-so-hidden agenda.  (Why was I surprised at this, I wonder…)   Anti-slavery sentiments were brought up at every possible opportunity from every possible character, pounding poor Huck’s conscience, which, in the novel, doesn’t really seem to need any help.   The other big disappointment was the ending, which completely strayed from the book.   Apparently they were running out of time or funds, so they chose to end the movie somewhere around chapter 30 of the novel.   They invent some plot to wrap thing up in a way that turns out to be rather confusing.   So, in summary, it was family-friendly, but not very faithful.

Enjoy your weekend, readers!