MartinHafer If you watch "Jim Thorpe--All-American" expecting to see a full account of the famous athlete's life, you'd be disappointed to know that it's pretty incomplete. However, it does capture the essence of the man and his many foibles (it IS a warts and all bio-pic). Plus, while Burt Lancaster looked almost nothing like the man, his athleticism was a definite plus (Lancaster having been an acrobat and very physical specimen). It's enjoyable, that's for sure.The film begins during Thorpe's childhood and difficulties his parents had getting him to stay at the residential Indian school. I have no idea if this really occurred--but it was pretty cool. Then the film jumps ahead to his entering Carlisle College--at which he distinguished himself as an amazing athlete. To Hollywood-ize Thorpe's life, the film makers created a romance. While it IS true that he married this woman, Thorpe was married three times and had many kids--whereas the other two marriages and all but his first child were omitted. I really don't see why--and it did seem dishonest only mentioning the one kid who died tragically.The rest of the film is reasonably accurate but also a bit sketchy at times. It DID show his many failings but again, this was very sketchy. The problem for me is that although Lancaster was dynamic, the film entertaining and the ending inspiring, it was woefully incomplete. In fact, his life was so much more complex and interesting that it is perhaps a better made as a mini-series--as 105 minutes isn't enough. Good...but not worthy to truly be called the life story of Jim Thorpe.

jimakros Jim Thorpe was an incredible athlete and this movie shows this much,it is pretty accurate in the description of his athletic achievements. Where it fails miserably is in the telling of his personal life,for some strange reason it makes up a tragic story of Thorpe's life,concentrating on the fictitious death of his supposedly only son when a young boy, and the tragic consequences that follow,turning him into a sad,miserable and lonely middle-aged man. The truth is ,that Thorpe had 8 children,a son and 3daughters from his first wife and 4 sons from his second wife.His son from the first marriage died at age 2, but Thorpe had other children and the loss of his son did not destroy him. Furthermore ,after he divorced his first wife he didn't end up alone and miserable as the movie shows but remarried twice. Whatever problems he may have had later in his life,they were caused by other reasons and one wishes this movie tried to explain the true story of Thorpe and not make up one instead. Burt Lancaster is OK in the role,physically he seems perfect for the part,but the script doesn't help him understand this man by making up most of his personal life.

jjulian1009 This biopic is one of my favorites, mainly because of the excellent effort Burt Lancaster puts into his portrayal of Thorpe as well as the strong supporting cast, including a few Native American actors.However, you should go to the official Jim Thorpe website to learn that he didn't sink into quite the lower depths shown in the film. He became the first president of a professional football association, served as a director of recreation in the Chicago Park system, and performed in small, often uncredited, roles in films for decades until a few years before his death.Nevertheless, his being technical adviser for this film would suggest it renders a fairly truthful characterization of him in what I consider one of the finest sports films ever made.

tfrizzell Emotional and heartfelt story of athlete Jim Thorpe (superbly portrayed by Burt Lancaster), a multi-faceted individual who dominated several sports of the early-20th Century. The film follows the title character from his youth at his reservation (Thorpe was a Native American) and proceeds through his college, professional and Olympic careers. Tragedy strikes on more than one occasion though as the super-star goes into a tail-spin, feeling that his nation and even God have turned their backs on him (due to his Olympic medals being stripped and the death of his young son). Through it all the film is told in wonderful flashbacks by Coach "Pop" Warner (the always outstanding Charles Bickford). Definitely worth a look. An under-rated and somewhat ignored gem from the director of "Casablanca" (Michael Curtiz). 4.5 out of 5 stars.