The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1938)
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The Adventures of Tom Sawyer Movie Review
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is a 1938 family adventure film directed by Norman Taurog and starring Tommy Kelly in the titular role. It’s such a terrific adaptation.
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“Play hooky on Friday?
Whitewash on Saturday!“
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This movie follows the book so closely that it acts as a fine example of how to properly adapt a book without sticking all the way to it. I am talking about the various racist and sexist parts in the book which were present here for sure, but were so minimized in comparison to the source material that I was very grateful for that.
I would say that Huckleberry Finn’s role is a bit too minimized which was a problem as he’s such an iconic, memorable character from the novel. But otherwise all characters got their solid treatment with the highlight being Tom himself.
I wouldn’t say he’s as developed as he was in the book as the maturity aspect wasn’t as present here, but he’s somewhat more likable here in my opinion. Tommy Kelly’s casting was stupendous as he looks and acts the part. He became Tom Sawyer, and the whole of child acting in this movie was so commendable as the kids are very believable across the board.
I also liked Becky Thatcher as she wasn’t as weak and annoying as she was in the book, and the romance between the two was even better and sweeter in the movie version. Various interactions between the two steal the show. Aunt Polly is great thanks to May Robson’s strong performance, and the scenes at the house are uniformly great. Others aren’t as memorable with Injun Joe still being horribly villainous, but at least not as present as he was in the book.
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Let’s talk about the best scenes in the movie. The whitewashing sequence is absolutely fantastic. It was so well done, beautifully filmed and a lot of fun. The island part is thoroughly forgettable and underutilized in comparison to the source material whereas the funeral scene is absolutely fantastic and so entertaining.
But the highlight is easily the cave part. I was amazed how they managed to make this plot point resonate so much. It was certainly the book’s standout part, but here it’s even better. The action is excellent including the villain chasing the boy, the scenarios are so well played out and the cave looks absolutely brilliant.
Yes, that brings me to my next point. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is a superb cinematic achievement. It’s a glorious, highly cinematic Technicolor production where the colors leap off the screen in a beautiful fashion. I adored the cinematography here by the great James Wong Howe in what is his rare color work. The film is colorful without ever being garish, but incredibly charming throughout.
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It was rightfully nominated for production design by the Academy as its sets are truly phenomenal. The cave is beautifully constructed, meticulous in detail and simply hard to believe that it is just a set. Great work went into this and it paid off as it’s the defining moment for the film. The direction from Norman Taurog is also pretty good. I wished for better pacing as the second act is very awkwardly paced, and the film overall is rushed and should have been two hours, but at the end of the day it is the ultimate adaptation of this novel.
The 1938 adaptation of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is badly paced and overly short, but mostly a terrific, faithful and memorable adaptation that benefits from strong child acting across the board and beautiful Technicolor cinematography. The film looks gorgeous, it is very charming and adventurous and in particular the cave part is gloriously cinematic and unforgettable.
