Tom Sawyer (1973)

Tom Sawyer and his pal Huckleberry Finn have great adventures on the Mississippi River, pretending to be pirates, attending their own funeral, and witnessing a murder.

Director:

Don Taylor

Writers:

Mark Twain (novel), Robert B. Sherman (screenplay),

Stars:

Johnny Whitaker, Celeste Holm, Warren Oates

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Johnny Whitaker	...	Tom Sawyer
Celeste Holm	...	Aunt Polly
Warren Oates	...	Muff Potter
Jeff East	...	Huckleberry Finn
Jodie Foster	...	Becky Thatcher
Lucille Benson	...	Widder Douglas
Henry Jones	...	Mr. Dobbins
Noah Keen	...	Judge Thatcher
Dub Taylor	...	Clayton
Richard Eastham	...	Doc Robinson
Sandy Kenyon	...	Constable Clemmens
Joshua Hill Lewis	...	Cousin Sidney
Susan Joyce	...	Cousin Mary
Steve Hogg	...	Ben Rogers
Sean Summers	...	Billy Fisher

Storyline

Tom Sawyer and his pal Huckleberry Finn have great adventures on the Mississippi River, pretending to be pirates, attending their own funeral, and witnessing a murder.

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Plot Keywords:

mississippi river | river | spanking | child's point of view | small town | 

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Taglines:

A Musical Adaptation of Mark Twain's Tom Sawyer

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Genres:

Adventure | Musical | Family

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Certificate:

G

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 March 1973 (USA)

Also Known As:

A Musical Adaptation of Mark Twain's 'Tom Sawyer'

Filming Locations:

Arrow Rock, Missouri, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Reader's Digest, Apjac International

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System) 70 mm 6-Track

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

Injun Joe leaps out of the courtroom window and lands on the ground. When he gets up and starts to run, the covering used to hide whatever soft surface he landed on flips up for a second.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Tom Sawyer: Hello Huckleberry.
Huckleberry Finn: How come you're playin' hooky?
Tom Sawyer: Same as you.
Huckleberry Finn: Never spent a day in school in my life.

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Connections

Version of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1974)

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Soundtracks

"A Man's Gotta Be (What He Was Born to Be)"
Written by Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman

User Reviews

Hurrah for the DVD! What a way to relive this film!

Adrian Everett's dreams have been answered!! MGM/UA has released this title and Huck Finn (in which child actor Jeff East reprises his role as the title character) on DVD. My only complaint, and it is a minor one, is that MGM opted not to release the film on DVD in the widescreen format. The title and end credit sequences are in widescreen, while the remainder of the film is "modified to fit your screen". Much as I prefer widescreen films presented in their original aspect ratio, Tom Sawyer does not lose anything by being "panned and scanned". If anything, the full screen presentation enhances the performances of the child actors, allowing them to fill the screen with their winning personalities. Johnny Whitaker as Tom, and Jeff East as his rag-tag friend Huck, really light up the screen in every scene they are in, but it is Jodie Foster, as Becky Thatcher, who steals Tom's and the audience's hearts.

Most of the musical score is forgettable, but overall, the Sherman brothers have once again done an admirable job. Several of the songs, such as "Free-bootin" and "Gratifaction" will stick in your head. But it is, "River Song", as performed by Charlie Pride, that will bring a tear to your eye as you think about lost childhood. "...a boy is gonna grow to be a man, be a man. Only once in his life is he free. Only one golden time in his life is he free."

I highly recommend this film, and this DVD to anyone who is a Tom Sawyer fan. All of the storytelling elements of the earlier David O'Selznick production are here, and with the exception of the music, the two films are very similar. While it is the child actors that really sell this film, I cannot overlook the memorable performance of Kunu Hank (apparently in his only film role) as Injun Joe.