`THE LEGEND OF 1900' SAILS ALONG WITH INTRIGUING SHIPBOARD TALE.

Byline: Valerie Kuklenski Staff Writer

Mark Twain probably would have liked ``The Legend of 1900.''

The latest from Giuseppe Tornatore (writer-director of the Oscar-winning ``Cinema Paradiso''), ``The Legend of 1900'' is a mostly upbeat story with the kind of tall-tale embellishments and maritime setting Twain would spin.

The numerical title is not only the year the film's story begins but also the name of the main character.

An infant boy born aboard a trans-Atlantic ocean liner in January 1900 is abandoned in a lemon crate in the ship's ballroom. He's discovered by a stoker, Danny Boodman (Bill Nunn), who informally adopts the baby, gives him the cumbersome name Danny Boodman T.D. Lemon 1900, and raises him in the sweltering, sooty, noisy belly of the Virginian.

After Danny dies in an accident, the captain learns about 1900 and considers turning him over to the authorities. But one night, the 8-year-old boy wanders up to first class and reveals himself to be a piano prodigy. Instead of being kicked off the liner, he's put to work playing in the orchestra.

In 1927, an American trumpeter named Max (Pruitt Taylor Vince), who has been narrating the story, joins the band. His first few nights on board are turbulent ones, but 1900 (by now played by Tim Roth) relieves Max's misery with what may best be described as a pas de piano. It's a whimsical scene aided by Tornatore's creative camera angles and Ennio Morricone's wonderful music.

Max and 1900 become best friends, with an awestruck Max watching as 1900 improvises everything from rags for the first-class passengers and tarantellas for steerage to a haunting melody inspired by 1900's first glimpse of a captivating young immigrant woman (the very appealing Melanie Thierry).

In a ``Ragtime''-style twist, Tornatore has added a historic figure for extra spice. Jelly Roll Morton, the self-proclaimed inventor of jazz, has heard the Virginian's pianist described as the world's greatest, so he books passage and smugly challenges 1900 to a piano duel. That scene is a real show-stopper, and Clarence Williams III is great as the fuming, egomaniacal Morton.

All this time, 1900 never has left the ship. Contrary to the common view, he feels continents are infinite (``Did you see the streets? There were hundreds of them. How do you choose just one?''), while the open sea represents security, even familiarity. The faces of the passengers and crew change, but at least there are only 2,000 of them at a time.

Years later, Max is destitute in London, reluctantly selling his beloved trumpet. In the music shop, he comes across 1900's only recording, a now-cracked platter of his haunting love song. Max starts to tell the shopkeeper about 1900, and in the process learns that the Virginian, used as a hospital ship during World War II, is now a rusted-out hull slated for imminent demolition.

Max tries to halt the blasting of the ship, certain that his old friend is hiding on board.

In ``The Legend of 1900,'' Tornatore has risen to the challenge of his first English production, masterfully handling a script peppered with Jazz Age vernacular and the witty profundities that translate into any language.

Roth, best known for playing heavies in ``Reservoir Dogs'' and ``Pulp Fiction,'' does fine work in this understated role. Vince, a familiar face from ``Heavy'' and ``Nobody's Fool,'' plays Max with the right mix of vulnerability and courage. While he cuts an Oliver Hardy-type figure, there's no buffoonery about him.

The only major shortcoming in the performances by Roth, Vince and Williams is that they might have worked harder to fake playing their instruments, or Tornatore and his editor might have given them a break with fewer shots of their hands.

It could be argued that the real star of the film is the music, most of it composed by Morricone. He previously collaborated with Tornatore on ``Cinema Paradiso,'' but his work has been familiar to American audiences since Sergio Leone's 1960s spaghetti westerns such as ``A Fistful of Dollars'' and ``The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.''

The music of ``The Legend of 1900'' is so rich with rag tunes, lively early jazz and mood-setting ballads that the film truly can be enjoyed with eyes closed. But keep them open the first couple of times.

THE FACTS

The film: ``The Legend of 1900'' (R, language).

The stars: Tim Roth, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Clarence Williams III, Bill Nunn, Melanie Thierry.

Behind the scenes: Directed and written by Giuseppe Tornatore. Score by Ennio Morricone. Released by Fine Line Features.

Running time: One hour, 59 minutes.

Playing: Laemmle Royal in Los Angeles, Carlisle in Pasadena, Lido in Newport Beach. Opens citywide Nov. 19.

Our rating: Three and one half stars.