Mark Twain - A Film Directed by Ken Burns
by Ken Burns
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Actor: Blythe Danner, Keith David, Kevin Conway, Philip Bosco, Tim ClarkDirector: Ken Burns
Brand: Paramount
Cinematographer: Allen Moore
Cinematographer: Buddy Squires
Producer: Ken Burns
Producer: Dayton Duncan
Writer: Dayton Duncan
Producer: Pam Tubridy Baucom
Writer: Geoffrey C. Ward
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: Color, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 212 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2004-09-28
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: PBS Paramount
DVD Reviews of Mark Twain - A Film Directed by Ken Burns
DVD Review: Another gem from Ken Burns
Summary: 5 Stars
No one I know can tell a story as powerfully and movingly as Ken Burns. This biography on Mark Twain was not only entertaining, it was a rare look at a man of genius who reached the pinnacle of success as an author who created unforgettable characters and a fearless social critic who used his humor and razor sharp wit to expose the hypocrisies of his day. He delighted millions the world over with his observations on human behavior, delivered with great humor, and left the world with countless sayings which are quoted to this day. Despite his great success, he also suffered disastrous defeats and crushing tradgedy. This is a riveting story of a brilliant, complex and very human man whose social comment is as relevant today as it was in his day. Utterly fascinating.DVD Review: The Avatar Of American Letters
Summary: 5 Stars
No, this will not be a paean to the `transformative' nature of reading Samuel Clemens' (hereafter Mark Twain) seminal works, "Huckleberry Finn" and "Tom Sawyer" in childhood. I spend no long nights reading his works under a blanket, flashlight at the ready, until I fell asleep exhausted. (I did do that form of reading but not for Mr. Twain's work.) I, frankly, could not relate to the characters and the dialogue that seemed rather stilted (although I would not have known enough to call it that then). I do admit to having built a raft to try to `escape', along with my brothers, from some unfair sentence imposed my parents for some childhood transgression. But that can hardly be lain at Mr. Twain's door.
Nor will this review be a homage to Twain's treasure chest of humor and witty sayings that are sprinkled through out this documentary, and that have become part of the common language (and were, in the old days, very quotable newspaper filler). This film only reinforced the notion, other than the famous ditty about his response to the premature announcement of his death and his comment about San Francisco in August, that I did not find his humor funny. That said, after viewing this fine almost four hour Ken Burns PBS documentary I will admit to an on-going curiosity about this, arguably, first great modern American writer. Hey, I said Mark Twain didn't "speak" to me. I know that he is a great writer, and I think I sensed that notion even as a kid.
Ken Burns is probably the latter day master of the educational film documentary, most famously, and justly so, from the time of his ten-part PBS "Civil War" epic that I can still take in with my mind's eye. To a lesser degree, but with the same close attention to detail, a fine eye for selecting just the right photograph to make his point and appropriate musical scores in the background (including many variations of Stephan Foster songs that give a feel to the "gilded age" in which Twain lived and to which he added his own imprint).
Here Burns goes through the obligatory life of the author, starting from the rough and tumble days in Missouri and on the Mississippi River, on through to the fits and starts of finding a niche for himself (and a job) in the American literary market to success, fleeting as that was at times, and the fame, fortune, and in the end misfortune that went with that final acknowledgement that he was the premier literary man and storyteller of his times. The heart of this exploration of Twain's life, and what made it intriguing for a skeptical non-literary man like me was the way in which Twain was portrayed as a representative man of his age. That included both in his appetites for success, financial and otherwise, and to be, and be seen, as a successful product of the rough and tumble democratic American social system of the time. No small part of that persona is attributed to his wife and family that seemed, through thick and thin, hard times and good, to be his anchor. Not every successful writer has had that stable foundation but Twain literally thrived on it.
This film spend some time on Twain's literary production, his methods of work, his witticisms and his successful career as a public storyteller. I need not detail that information here. I would only say this-those who argue that Twain was first great American writer certainly have the best of the argument. In retrospect I can see where my own favorite from the 19th century, Nathaniel Hawthorne, really was not writing for the great democratic masses beginning their long search for some cultural expression to which they could relate. Twain, for literary and financial reasons, was trying to reach that audience.
Finally, and here is where Mark Twain gets high marks from this reviewer, as the documentary pointedly highlights on many ocassions. Twain positioned himself as a truth-telling about the inequities of the world, the absurdities of racism and its cultural expressions and about the foolhardiness of the upcoming rise of the American empire that he was, in the end, helpless to stop. That he did so while feting kings and queens, the rich and famous and liking such activities points out the contradictions of his life as a man. A contradiction that more than one American would-be radical had faced unsuccessfully. But here is a home truth. We can always use an extra truth-teller or two, a rather rare commodity in any age. We can sort out Twain's contradictions from there. Twain devotee, or not, this documentary is worth four hours of your time.
DVD Review: Excellent Biography
Summary: 5 Stars
Ken Burns 3 and half biography is a masterpiece in bring the life of Mark Twain to life. Full of humor and insights into the life of America's greatest author. The story is full of Mark Twain's axioms and wisdom on life. This in itself makes it worth the price of the tape - In my opinion, Twain's humor and sayings are even greater tan the old master of Ben Franklin.
The biography is not only laughs and humor, but there is also a considerable amount of commentary on Huck FInn (About 30 minutes). The insights on his works outside of Huck FInn are also enlightening - Tom Sawyer, Yankee in King Arthur's Court, and Pudd'nhead Wilson, and Innocence Abroad... all add interesting perspective on Twain life and his place in literary history.
Twain's/Clemens' life was fascinating - his rise and fall the humor and the tragedy. His life was as eclectic as his writings. He was everything from a steamboat captain to a correspondent in Hawaii. Twain traveled the world giving lectures and was a true ambassador to middle american life. All of this presented in a tight poignant tale by Ken Burns - great viewing.
Final Verdict - A must for fans of Mark Twain and everyone who is a fan of American Literary History. Ken Burns does a outstanding job in tying Twain early life into his works and shows how his lack of business acumen ruined him.
5 Stars
DVD Review: Beautifully done biography
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a fantastic biographical film about Mark Twain, really Samuel Clemens. It covers everything from his birth to his death. This man, considered to be one of America's greatest humorists, suffered a lot of personal grief - some of it by his own doing. The film is typical of Ken Burn's style; very engrossing, very long, and always worth the time.DVD Review: Ken Burns does his bit for Mark Twain
Summary: 4 Stars
If you've seen anything by Ken Burns, you know his formula, and you will not see anything different here. But the formula is good, and it works.
If you don't care about Mark Twain, this probably won't capture your attention, but if you have read Twain and are a fan of him, as I am, this bio will do a great job of putting Twain's works into the context of a life that was remarkable in so many ways. The thing I most learned from this that I didn't know before had to do with the extent to which Twain's life was marked by personal tragedy, and thinking through the extent to which the appeal of his material is because it is comedy that is not glibly funny, but is marked by the gravitas of someone who knows life is hard. That to say you will understand Twain better for having watched this, and I recommend that you do.
Description of Mark Twain - A Film Directed by Ken Burns
Studio: Paramount Home Video Release Date: 10/20/2005 Director: Ken BurnsGiven the legendary life of its subject, it's not surprising that Mark Twain is perhaps the most entertaining documentary Ken Burns has made. The creator of The Civil War and Jazz achieves reverent harmony with the magnificent story of Missouri-born author Samuel Clemens (a.k.a. Mark Twain), encompassing legend and fact with an exhilarating sense of adventure. Hailed by Hemingway as the originator of American literature, Twain (a nom de plume taken from a riverboat pilot's term for "safe waters") viewed himself as the American. Burns's film backs that claim as it follows Clemens's literary odyssey around the globe, from unrivaled acclaim as a writer to near destitution and the devastating deaths of his wife and three children. As usual, eloquent writers and scholars (including longtime Twain performer Hal Holbrook) provide a wondrous flow of anecdotes and observations, recounting Twain's remarkable humor while acknowledging a darker side that felt anger toward an indifferent god. Like all of Burns's films, Mark Twain is must-see viewing. --Jeff Shannon
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