The Adventures of Mark Twain (1985 film)

The Adventures of Mark Twain

Theatrical poster
Directed by Will Vinton
Produced by Will Vinton
Written by Susan Shadburne[1]
Based on The works of
Mark Twain
Starring
Narrated by Grey Krug
Music by Billy Scream
Edited by Kelley Baker
Michael Gall
Ed Geis
Skeets McGrew
Will Vinton
Production
company
Will Vinton Productions
Harbour Town Films
Distributed by Clubhouse Pictures
Release dates
March 1, 1985 (1985-03-01)[2]
Running time
86 minutes
Country United States
Language English
Budget 1.5 million[3]

The Adventures of Mark Twain, released in the UK as Comet Quest, is a 1985 American stop motion animated fantasy film directed by Will Vinton. It received a theatrical release, limited to seven major cities, in May 1985. It was released on DVD in January 2006.[4]

The film features a series of vignettes extracted from several of Mark Twain's works, built around a plot that features Twain's attempts to keep his "appointment" with Halley's Comet. Twain and three children, Tom Sawyer, Huck Finn, and Becky Thatcher, travel on an airship between various adventures.

Plot

After having a bout of one-upmanship, Tom Sawyer, Huck Finn, and Becky Thatcher sneak aboard an airship piloted by Mark Twain in an attempt to become famous aeronauts. Upon discovery, they find that Mark Twain intends to pilot the airship to meet Halley's Comet. Worried that this goal will end in their deaths, the trio learn to fly the ship while conspiring to sabotage the voyage.

After discovering the truth behind Twain's journey, the trio recognize their folly, and the group navigates storms and treacherous skies with the help of a mysterious dark figure who turns out to be Mark Twain's dark side. The two Twains merge and fly off to meet the comet, leaving the airship in the hands of the youngsters.

Cast

Production

The concept was inspired by a famous quote by the author:

"I came in with Halley's Comet in 1835. It is coming again next year (1910), and I expect to go out with it. It will be the greatest disappointment of my life if I don't go out with Halley's Comet. The Almighty has said, no doubt: 'Now here are these two unaccountable freaks; they came in together, they must go out together.'"[5]

Twain died on April 21, 1910, one day after Halley's Comet reached perihelion in 1910.[6]

Included are sketches taken from The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, The Mysterious Stranger, "The Diaries of Adam and Eve (Letters from the Earth)", "Captain Stormfield's Visit to Heaven" and a rendering of Twain's first story, "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County". References are made to his other works, including "The Damned Human Race". This animated film was shot in Portland, Oregon.

When he was asked about the rumours of this film being made by a 17-person crew,[3] Vinton stated:

Well it’s all true, though that’s probably exaggerating a bit. Seventeen or so represents the full-time staff and then freelance people came and went, plus you have musical talent and writing talent and things that go beyond that number. We shot the film in a converted house that had a barbershop in front of it, so we called it the Barbershop Studio. The bedrooms and things were editing rooms and offices. The high-ceiling basement was conveniently connected to a four thousand square foot studio that we built in the back, and that basement was where the animators and sculptors worked on the characters. So, yes, we spent a lot of time in the basement![3]

Critical reception

The film has a score of 82% on Rotten Tomatoes, with an average rating of 3.9/5.,[7] 3/5 stars on Common Sense Media[8] and currently as a rating of 7.6/10 on IMDb.[9]

See also

References

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