"Mark Twain's America" is more A&E Biography than it is spectacular Imax 3-D entertainment. Sure, its interesting enough, and sure you walk out with a better understanding of our distant yester-year and famed author Mark Twain, but "Wings Of Courage" or "Everest" it is not. There are no avalanches coming down on us, nor wild tumbles down mile-high mountains. What this latest IMAX effort does have, though, is black and white photos of the Twain-ster himself and other semi-familiar historic glimpses of the past, digitally transferred to a 3-D format to create a startling realness. As a mild fan of Mr. Twain myself, and a mild American history buff as well, I found my eyes wide at the remarkable effect of the photos in 3-D, and my attention was held for some time; until the minutes kept ticking by, and the novelty of wearing 3-D glasses began to fade, and director Stephen Low's endless assortment of photos kept coming with the narrational talents of Anne Bancroft droning on... Mercifully, Mr. Low does cut in live action footage to break up the monotony and take advantage of shooting a 3-D film. The Civil War re-enactment battle scenes are particularly enjoyable, as well as some 19th century ballroom dance sequences. Combined with these are scenes of modern day Hannibal, Missouri, Twain's own birthplace, which give a somewhat confusing affect. The whole point the film stresses is the past that was the world of Mark Twain, and it seemingly cries out to the audience to allow yourself to be swept away and immersed in a time long gone...yet when we're not watching modern day parades and modern day youngins' frolicing in rivers, we have Anne Bancroft's voice similar to that of a principal's voice over a P.A. system telling us that the scenes we're watching supposedly set in 1860-something are "just recreations, the people we're seeing are just actors pretending to be in the past"...so what's up with that?? It's really the film's only sore point, and that should be placed on the shoulders of Low, who, on his way to a documentary IMAX film touchdown, fumbles the ball he has placed in his own hands, and leaves us only vaguely satisfied at the hurried conclusion the movie has. Special mention should be made of Alan Williams' heartfelt score...I predict we will be seeing, or hearing rather, a lot of his work in the near future.

The biography, or "biopic", is a genre that portrays the life story of a real person, often a notable individual or historical figure. They aim to provide a depiction of the subject's personal history, achievements, challenges, and impact on society.

Ben Kingsley, Rohini Hattangadi, and Geraldine James in Gandhi (1982)

The documentary is a form of non-fiction storytelling that aims to present factual information, insights, and perspectives on real-world subjects, events, issues, or people. Documentaries can cover a wide range of topics, including history, science, culture, social issues, nature, biographies, and more.

Dziga Vertov in Man with a Movie Camera (1929)

Interweaves Twain's life and times with the lives of current day enthusiasts of the 19th century way of life. Utilizing archival stereo-optic photos, powerful images from the past seemingly come alive in a larger-than-life presentation.

Get a closer look at some of Hollywood's perfect pairs.

Hollywood Power Couples

Get a closer look at some of Hollywood&#39;s perfect pairs.

"The Gentlemen" and "Slow Horses" return this fall, while the "Reacher" spin-off series "Neagley" makes its debut. See our guide of the biggest Fall TV and streaming releases.

2026 Fall TV and Streaming Watch Guide

&quot;The Gentlemen&quot; and &quot;Slow Horses&quot; return this fall, while the &quot;Reacher&quot; spin-off series &quot;Neagley&quot; makes its debut. See our guide of the biggest Fall TV and streaming releases.

Get a closer look at these actors from their many TV and streaming series roles.

Mark Twain's America in

Photos1

Top Cast5

User reviews2

Related interests

Storyline

Top picks

Details

Box office

Tech specs

Contribute to this page

More to explore

Recently viewed