This Disney adaptation of the Mark Twain perennial stars Elijah Wood as the scrappy, scruffy boy who embarks on a series of adventures with an acquaintance, a slave named Jim (Courtney B. Vance). Over time, the two become real friends, especially as Hucks' eyes are opened to the bigger problem of racism. "Just because an idea is popular, doesn't make it right." is what he comes to learn. Huck is running away from his brutish, selfish father (an appropriately menacing Ron Perlman), and Jim is likewise a runaway, which will get him lynched if he is caught. (When Huck fakes his own death, Jim is also assumed to be guilty of the "murder".)
Overall, this was pretty watchable, with Disney throwing a reasonable amount of money into costumes and sets and making this look fairly authentic. This marked the breakthrough film for director Stephen Sommers, who works from his own screenplay; he went on to direct "The Jungle Book", "Deep Rising", the two "Mummy" movies with Brendan Fraser, "Van Helsing", and "Odd Thomas". He does a capable job, and the story is fairly entertaining, if not too memorable in the end. A big subplot involving shameless con men The King (Jason Robards) and The Duke (Robbie Coltrane) takes up a lot of the second half, and it's amusing to watch and wait for the inevitable moment when these two scoundrels finally get what they deserve. They also help to further cement ideas in Hucks' head of what constitutes "right" and "wrong".
Wood is appealing in the lead, while Vance is credible as the man yearning to be free. Robards and Coltrane are such cheerful scum that it was worth the wait for their comeuppance. (The faux English accents that Wood and Robards try to affect are so bad that they're hilarious.) One main draw of the film is a variety of familiar faces in supporting roles and bits: Dana Ivey, Anne Heche, James Gammon, Paxton Whitehead, Tom Aldredge, Curtis Armstrong, Frances Conroy, Renee O'Connor, and Leon Russom.
Other draws include Bill Contis' score, the cinematography by Janusz Kaminski (who began his association with Steven Spielberg the same year with "Schindlers' List"), and the production design by Richard Sherman.
Six out of 10.
Overall, this was pretty watchable, with Disney throwing a reasonable amount of money into costumes and sets and making this look fairly authentic. This marked the breakthrough film for director Stephen Sommers, who works from his own screenplay; he went on to direct "The Jungle Book", "Deep Rising", the two "Mummy" movies with Brendan Fraser, "Van Helsing", and "Odd Thomas". He does a capable job, and the story is fairly entertaining, if not too memorable in the end. A big subplot involving shameless con men The King (Jason Robards) and The Duke (Robbie Coltrane) takes up a lot of the second half, and it's amusing to watch and wait for the inevitable moment when these two scoundrels finally get what they deserve. They also help to further cement ideas in Hucks' head of what constitutes "right" and "wrong".
Wood is appealing in the lead, while Vance is credible as the man yearning to be free. Robards and Coltrane are such cheerful scum that it was worth the wait for their comeuppance. (The faux English accents that Wood and Robards try to affect are so bad that they're hilarious.) One main draw of the film is a variety of familiar faces in supporting roles and bits: Dana Ivey, Anne Heche, James Gammon, Paxton Whitehead, Tom Aldredge, Curtis Armstrong, Frances Conroy, Renee O'Connor, and Leon Russom.
Other draws include Bill Contis' score, the cinematography by Janusz Kaminski (who began his association with Steven Spielberg the same year with "Schindlers' List"), and the production design by Richard Sherman.
Six out of 10.