"Les aventures de Tom Sawyer" or "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" is a co-production between Romania, West Germany and France that was shown first on television back in 1968, so this one has its 50th anniversary soon and I guess they went with the French title here because most of the actors in here are from France. This mini-series consists of 4 episodes and each of them has a runtime of 85 minutes approximately, which means that you can watch the entire thing in under 6 hours. If you have the patience, that is. It is a mini-series that I would not call well-known here in Germany, but it isn't totally forgotten either. The characters of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn have names that really most Germans have definitely heard of already, also because there have been more recent films about these two rascals featuring some really well-known actors like Benno Fürmann. He plays Indianer-Joe, the main antagonist in this series here too.
But while he is a decent enemy for the two boys, he was also overused with how powerful he is and nobody dares to hang him and with how often he appears out of nowhere really posing a threat to Tom and Huck. This is a bit of a shame as the idea of the two watching Joe commit a horrible crime and framing somebody else for it wasn't too bad. I also liked the idea of them not running to the sheriff, but caring for their own safety and keeping their mouths shut. Initially, of course. That's why I believe the first episode was among the best the quadrology had to offer. Afterward, the film lost itself in recurring Indianer-Joe references that become repetitive quickly and the Becky Thatcher baby love story was so irrelevant it was among the film's biggest weaknesses actually. How Tom is trapped in a cove with her and everybody's thinking he is dead is a poor man's version of Tom and Huck fleeing to the island early on. By the way I must say I found the Huck character much more interesting and initially underused than Tom, who is a bit of a lookalike of Benji Gregory from ALF. That's why I was really glad that the 4th and final chapter had him at the very center of it all and there also was a new prime antagonist in Huck's father, which was a really nice addition. Negro Jim (have to censor here or IMDb won't let me submit the review) was an okay addition too. And I also really liked the authentic take of the last installment that this was not a forced feel-good happy reunion father-son story, but that Huck found a father figure in somebody else he really didn't think he would, also with some racist remarks by him earlier that were just the rule back then.
I am a bit surprised that IMDb does not list this as a western film. The town totally looks like a typical western town and one main character is called an Indian. Maybe because with how American the film was that there is absolutely nothing American in the production. It was shot in Romania with French actors as a German television production. Says it all right? Doesn't get more European than that. Anyway, I think overall this had its ups and downs and it is tough to make a definite choice whether to recommend the watch or not. Maybe you want to check out the first 1.5 hours and then decide for yourself. But be aware that things go south very quickly at that point and stay there for a while. The 4th episode is one that you can also watch without having seen the previous 3 as it almost feels like a sequel. As a whole, I give a very cautious thumbs-up I guess. Check it out if you like the Lederstrumpferzählungen for example too.
But while he is a decent enemy for the two boys, he was also overused with how powerful he is and nobody dares to hang him and with how often he appears out of nowhere really posing a threat to Tom and Huck. This is a bit of a shame as the idea of the two watching Joe commit a horrible crime and framing somebody else for it wasn't too bad. I also liked the idea of them not running to the sheriff, but caring for their own safety and keeping their mouths shut. Initially, of course. That's why I believe the first episode was among the best the quadrology had to offer. Afterward, the film lost itself in recurring Indianer-Joe references that become repetitive quickly and the Becky Thatcher baby love story was so irrelevant it was among the film's biggest weaknesses actually. How Tom is trapped in a cove with her and everybody's thinking he is dead is a poor man's version of Tom and Huck fleeing to the island early on. By the way I must say I found the Huck character much more interesting and initially underused than Tom, who is a bit of a lookalike of Benji Gregory from ALF. That's why I was really glad that the 4th and final chapter had him at the very center of it all and there also was a new prime antagonist in Huck's father, which was a really nice addition. Negro Jim (have to censor here or IMDb won't let me submit the review) was an okay addition too. And I also really liked the authentic take of the last installment that this was not a forced feel-good happy reunion father-son story, but that Huck found a father figure in somebody else he really didn't think he would, also with some racist remarks by him earlier that were just the rule back then.
I am a bit surprised that IMDb does not list this as a western film. The town totally looks like a typical western town and one main character is called an Indian. Maybe because with how American the film was that there is absolutely nothing American in the production. It was shot in Romania with French actors as a German television production. Says it all right? Doesn't get more European than that. Anyway, I think overall this had its ups and downs and it is tough to make a definite choice whether to recommend the watch or not. Maybe you want to check out the first 1.5 hours and then decide for yourself. But be aware that things go south very quickly at that point and stay there for a while. The 4th episode is one that you can also watch without having seen the previous 3 as it almost feels like a sequel. As a whole, I give a very cautious thumbs-up I guess. Check it out if you like the Lederstrumpferzählungen for example too.