The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

Funny, strange, confrontational and subversive, this is one of the most interesting experiences you'll have at the cinema this year.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

I was much more familiar with the sequel, "Edison The Man," when I watched this film. The depiction of Edison is completely inconsistent between the two films (apparently about seven years Edison spent as a telegrapher). He doesn't just mature; he undergoes a complete personality change. Edison in this movie is sort of Sheldon Cooper of the 19th Century but annoying, rather than funny. I am shocked by the physical abuse he endures but at times I feel the urge to hit the self- absorbed brat, too. I have read the Edison may have suffered from Asperger's Syndrome (like Sheldon), and Rooney's portrayal is consistent with that, although Asperger's was not yet defined when this movie was made. This may be a far more realistic depiction of Edison than Spencer Tracy's in "Edison The Man." But Tracy's is the more enjoyable of the two films.

Captivating Americana based on the boyhood of the famed inventor, played here by Mickey Rooney, who is kicked out of school for his intense inquisitiveness - and his habit of staring out the window, and that big explosion - is branded "addle-pated" by the townsfolk, but ultimately comes good. Rooney's stock persona was as a brash, cartoonish know-it- all who gets a lesson in humility (at which point he starts crying and saying sorry), but his best performances came when he was asked to calm down and actually act, doing extraordinary work in The Human Comedy and National Velvet. He's superb here - using slightly broader strokes than in those seminal later performances - and surrounded by a cast of top character actors, including Virginia Weidler as his affectionate sister, Fay Bainter as his protective mother and George Bancroft as a stern patriarch with impressive sideburns but an unfortunate propensity to ignore his son's protestations of innocence. It's a wonderfully-mounted production, with a literate script that mixes things that actually happened, things you wish had happened and MGM staples like the family sing-along. And it climaxes with two extraordinary, unbearably tense suspense sequences. If you're a cynic, just don't bother. For everyone else, this is a rosy primer on Edison's early years and a poignant, exciting and flavourful example of MGM at its absolute best.

MGM opens the first film in the studio's Edison biography project by promising, "This is a story of courage. The courage and triumph of a typical American boy. In all its essential facts, it is a true story. The boy actually did experience the adventures - the joys and sorrows portrayed here. His name might have been John Jones or Bill Smith. It happened to be Thomas A. Edison." Mickey Rooney plays "Young Tom Edison", and the movie ends with a cameo appearance by Spencer Tracy, star of "Edison, the Man" (released shortly). They weren't much like Thomas Edison or each other, but Mr. Rooney and Mr. Tracy were the #1 and #2 "Box Office" stars of 1940, according to Quigley Publications - so, these films were both very well-produced."Young Tom Edison" focuses on the Edison family (who disappear for the Tracy film): likewise precocious little sister Virginia Weidler (as Tannie), misunderstanding father George Bancroft (as Sam), and mysteriously ailing mother Fay Bainter (as Nancy). Rooney's adversary is "Dead End Kid" Bobby Jordan (as Joseph "Joe" Dingle), who gets repeatedly gets kicked in the shins.In the strangest scene, Ms. Bainter pretends to take over the beating of her sixteen-year-old son while his proud father listens to Rooney's painful cries. Later, gravel-voiced train conductor Eugene Palette (as Nelson) smacks Rooney so hard he develops an earache. Doctor Lloyd Corrigan says, "Sometimes there's nothing like a good box in the ears to sharpen a boy's senses." Edison subsequently suffered from deafness.***** Young Tom Edison (2/10/40) Norman Taurog ~ Mickey Rooney, Virginia Weidler, Fay Bainter, George Bancroft

In this film, Mickey Rooney very capably plays the title role. His energy, very good acting and 'aw, shucks' attitude worked well in this film. That combined with the usual MGM polish and writing made this an enjoyable movie. As for this interpretation of Edison, he's a combination of Jimmy Neutron (or Dexter) and a Horatio Alger character--full of schemes to earn a buck as well as an abiding love of science.When I watch biopics from Hollywood's golden age of the 1930s-1940s, I always assume that the truth took a back seat to entertainment and drama. More often then not, the facts have been 'adjusted' to make a more enjoyable film--regardless if it strays pretty far from the truth. So, as I watched "Young Tom Edison", I naturally assumed it was once again a very highly fictionalized account. This seemed even more obvious when Tom jumps onto the train tracks to save a little boy's life. However, imagine my surprise when I did some reading and found this film was actually pretty close to the truth! Sure, they took a few liberties here and there, but for the most part it was real. Sometimes the truth really is stranger than fiction! Overall, it's quite enjoyable and a nice companion piece to MGM's other Edison film that came out the same year, "Edison, the Man"--which shows the adult life of the great inventor.