Not a great movie, but still the best Twain adaptation to date

Since we have yet to see a great film adaptation of a Mark Twain novel, I'm hoping some young, energetic director will tackle Huckleberry Finn in the near-future, but I do think this movie is the best version we've gotten so far. Stephen Sommers writes and directs it about as well as he possibly can, given the limits of the childrens' studio that financed it. It's very refreshing to finally come across a Disney title that doesn't shy away from painful subjects like slavery or child abuse, and hits them where it hurts.

All the same, much can be improved on in a future adaptation. We have yet to see a Huck Finn movie that makes us feel the bitterness of racism, which is precisely what put slavery in its place in history in the first place. It would have to include the "N" word -- a lot. Twain's allegorical implications behind the Walter Scott steamship and the King and Duke's flimsy quotations of Shakespeare would need to be acknowledged. And Huck's infamous line, "Alright, I'll go to hell!" would have to be included somewhere.

To do all of this, Disney would have to sell the story to a more adult studio that can market it towards a larger audience. This is not just a kids' story.

Still, this movie surprised me in how well it was made, and it's a vast improvement over the so-so Michael Curtiz adaptation from the 60's. The Janusz Kaminski cinematography is lovely. Elijah Wood and Courtney B. Vance are the most believable Huck & Jim I've seen in a movie. And Sommers' writing/directing is intelligent, which convinces me that he might even be suitable for a remake.

"What I don't understand is how we're going to stay alive this winter."