The Black Cauldron [1985]

Customer Reviews:

'The Black Cauldron' is magical!.......2007-08-03

Of all of Disney's animated classics, 'The Black Cauldron' was one of the last that I saw, not counting the package features and some of Disney's latest releases which I have no interest in seeing whatsoever. I didn't have any clue of what The Black Cauldron was about, I had seen a few pictures of it and heard very little about it, at one point, I even thought this film was some kind of Mickey Mouse short. Well, I finally got to watch "The Black Cauldron" and after repeated viewings, I don't know why I waited so long to see it, it is truly amazing and one of Disney's greatest adventure tales.

Inspired by the first two titles in The Chronicles of Prydain, 'The Black Cauldron' is the story of assistant pig-keeper Taran, a careless young boy who dreams of one day becoming Prydain's finest warriors. His chance comes when his master, Dallben discovers that the terrifying Horned King has discovered the powers of one of the pigs the boy takes care of. You see, Hen Wen the pig can create visions of what's to come and Dallben fears the Horned King will want to use Hen Wen's power for evil. For this, Dallben sends unprotected Taran alone with Hen Wen and asks him to take care of the pig and hide until its safe. However, Hen Wen runs away and Taran's adventure begins, meeting such memorable characters as the wild, furry Gurgi, the sweet, sassy Princess Eilonwy and the fun minstrel, Fflewddur Fflam. Taran and his friends begin a fantastic and magical journey through the lands of Prydain, learning more about the Horned King and his evil intentions, now they must race against him to find the wicked Black Cauldron and destroy it, before the evil King gets his hands on it.

This beautiful film offers just about everything that makes a great Disney film, the best of Disney animation and a delightful cast of characters is brought to life with great vocal acting. Comic relief is brought by such fun characters as Fflewddur Fflam, Gurgi, Creeper and Doli, the grumpy fairy. The film doesn't have any real songs, but that is made up with a breathtaking soundtrack, very complete and probably knocking out other musicals like even "The Lion King." 'The Black Cauldron' is very different from other classic Disney animated features, for one, it doesn't feature a complete happy ending, for Taran never really sees his dream come true, the film ends more realistically having Taran learn that everyone must be happy with whom they are, but you also know that after this adventure, good Taran has gotten yet one big step closer.

After reading several reviews, I've seen many people call this the worst of Disney features or a simply forgettable feature. However, just by comparing it to trashy newer films like "Home on the Range" or "Atlantis - The Lost Empire" you know "The Black Cauldron" is high, high above such films. 'The Black Cauldron' has been poorly released to DVD under the Gold Classic Collection line, which automatically states that the DVD brings little bonus features, which although few, are pretty decent. What I mind most is such a poor presentation of the film, a restoration such as the ones given to older Disney flicks is definitely needed here, for the film is presented, flashy, shaky and not very sharp. However, the DVD is still highly recommended and so is the movie. If you haven't read Lloyd Alexander's books, I recommend watching this before reading the books so you can avoid disappointments, since as others have stated, the film isn't the finest re-telling of the chronicles.

A dark film for under 5's - but great for older preteens.......2006-01-29

This is probably the darkest (literally) Disney cartoon made, even eclipsing Snow White for dismal castle scenes and skeletons. My daughter, then 7, simply didn't go for it and found it 'far too scary' towards the end - the Barbie and Cinderella films are more her bag. My son at the same age loved it however, and I quite enjoyed watching it with him as well. The story involves a young boy farmer (who has dreams of being a great warrior) and his magic pig, who both search for the mystical Black Cauldron. The scene with the three witches who guard the Black Cauldron is a highlight in a pretty consistent film (once the story gets going). OK, some of the characters, well one really, the Bard, are a bit wet, and occasionally the slapstick seems out of place, but the cosmic struggle between good (the farm-boy Taran) and evil (the Horned King) is well done and there a few nice touches. Personally I prefer the older 'Sword in the stone' though which has a similar feel, as it's also a medieval fantasy, although that one's relatively pig free. However do have a look at the excellent book this film was adapted from: The Black Cauldron (Chronicles of Prydain) by Lloyd Alexander, aimed squarely at preteen boys around 10 - it's part of a cult series of books first published in the 1960s.

This film is strangely reminiscent of the earlier 1982 film - Conan the Barbarian, particularly the tomb sequence where Taran finds the enchanted sword. Although this film is a little scary for little ones, the humour lightens the film considerably and it's no more frightening than Sheer Khan's sequences in The Jungle Book really. Overall I think many preteen children (more likely a boy I suspect) would enjoy watching 'The Black Cauldron' few times (but it's not for frequent viewing). It's probably not for teenager's either, who will no doubt prefer the likes of the new 'King Kong', `Batman Begins' and Harry Potter.

Not Disneys best, but still a great film.......2005-09-03

I got this film for my daughter and she loves it (so do I). It might not be as polished as some Disney films but we think it's great. It's funny and it's a great story of magic and sorcery, so we give it a big thumbs up.

Disney at their worst.......2005-08-19

The hacks at Disney took Lloyds Alexander's brilliant Prydain
Quintet and ruined it completely.

Everyone involved in this travesty should hang their heads in shame.

Disney's Finest Hour?.......2004-01-15

Well, it's certainly up there.

I first saw this as a child in the cinema, and I loved it then.

20+ years on, I was excited to find a secondhand copy and wondered how it would far next to my memories of it.

It fared beautifully, actually. I've long since gone off Disney as being too saccharine and patronising, and this is a perfect antidote to modern Disney films. The animation is painterly and lovely, the story quite unexpectedly dark.

I guess it's not surprising that this didn't do too well, when the Disney name leads people to expect sanitised, all-happy all-singing all-dancing versions of everything from American history (Pocahontas) to classic tragedy (The Hunchback of Notre Dame). However, if you've got a kid who's into traditional fantasy and folklore, check this out. You might be pleasantly surprised.

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