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14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wit, humor and a philosophy of life, it's all here., April 8, 1999
By A Customer
This review is from: Mysterious Stranger (Mark Twain Classics) [VHS] (VHS Tape)
If you enjoy Mark Twain's witty, humorous, and sometimes cantankerous but insightful views on life, you'll want to see this movie. Chris Makepeace and, especially, Lance Kerwin bring this "daydream" to life with delightful performances. The video was long unavailable and, with its return, Twain fans should snap it up before it's gone again.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Life is but a Dream, January 1, 2008
This review is from: Mysterious Stranger (Mark Twain Classics) [VHS] (VHS Tape)
This is a sweet, spiritual film for those who are not fundamentalist. Pagans, you will love this movie! Based on the last writings of Mark Twain, I give it five stars. The film wipes-away any confusion, bitterness or superstitious vibes Twain struggled to articulate on his death-bed. Twain was, after all, only human. I think he would have been thrilled with the end-product! There are allegedly two versions of the manuscript which he wrote and never finished. These were not discovered until some time after his death.
The producers of this film went out on a limb with the controversial topics here. The re-write of the story stays close to the original manuscripts without being pedantic or boring. In fact, it is both inspirational and hilarious, with a surprise ending! This film is hard to find and not available on DVD - a shame. It is kid-friendly and was originally aired on Saturday afternoon television. The actors are well-chosen. The film locations, sets and costumes are fun, and the mystical-workings of The Mysterious Stranger will give you a good chuckle. In the end, the moral of the story has a bit of a zen-feeling, freeing the viewer of the heavy-stuff laid on us by sex and the church. (Yes, this film addresses sexuality as being something spiritual and timeless...) The adults in the film work overtime to compensate their personal values and needs to be "right"... As a 40-something viewing this film for the second time, it is embarrassing to consider the self-importance of adults. Here, they act entitled and abusive; even as they hire and depend on the boys who will get their Bibles printed on the first print press. Twain was a master at making adults and our conformities absurd; but he was always speaking to our higher natures. This particular story is timeless, like a dream. The main characters, forge a deep friendship that supersedes any sort of bondage.
This is a terrific film about oneness and surrender. It is part of a series of films produced for the public broadcasting system in the early '80's, and well-worth buying.
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9 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
NOT "The Mysterious Stranger", September 8, 2000
This review is from: Mysterious Stranger (Mark Twain Classics) [VHS] (VHS Tape)
Viewers and Twain fans should be warned that this is NOT based on the well known Twain story, but based on a previously unpublished manuscript for a completely different story sharing a few plot elements and the title. Twain's literary executor, Albert Bigelow Paine, chose a previously written version to edit and publish as "The Mysterious Stranger" after Twain's death. Though Paine's editing was controversial, his decision as to which was the better story was certainly correct. The dark satire and human insight present in the better known version are completely missing here and replaced by warmed over "Connecticut Yankee" style adventures. The film's producers claim this version is the version Twain intended to publish based primarily on chronology, though the author left all versions unfinished when he died. Pleasant enough as family fare, a rather bland story -- particularly in the shadow of the other "The Mysterious Stranger."
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