The Black Cauldron (Disney Gold Classic Collection)

1 The worst Disney film... Not!
Disney's The Black Cauldron may be the most unpopular Disney animated film ever, but it is so not the worst and it isn't even bad, really. Now, forget that it was rated PG, (So yeah, other PG Disney films included the horrid "Atlantis - The Lost Empire or Home on the Range, but it also included some highlights like Lilo & Stich!) The Black Cauldron offers a soft and interesting story to watch on rainy days, with lots of fun characters, humor and charm, the only thing missing that weakens the film is the lack of songs, but the soundtrack is beautiful.

The Black Cauldron is the story of Taran, a young assistand pig-keeper who is, by his trusting master Dallben, sent on a mission to protect one of the pigs, Hen Wen from the hands of the evil Horned King, who has discovered the powers of the little girl pig and wants to use them to find the Black Cauldron and with it, rule the world. Taran travels through forests eventually losing the pig and finding himself in desperate need of help and then gets caught by the Horned King, Creeper (A troll) and his men. There he finds not only Hen Wen, but also a sweet princess named Eilonwy and a good Minstrel named Flewddur Fflam, who journey with Taran in the search for the Black Cauldron, hoping to destroy it before the Horned King has a chance of using it.
Also adding to the fun is Gurgi, a cuddly creature who longs for friends, the witches of Morva and the fun and colorful Fair Folk.

The Black Cauldron offers a fresh story, although not as fresh or moody as The Rescuers (1977), the atmosphere is close to Sleeping Beauty (1959), very dark but with lighter moments which were missing in other gloomy films like The Great Mouse Detective.

Overall, a pretty overlooked and wonderful Disney film, it has something for everyone, times of scary and dark scenes, fun, musical and simply visually perfect scenes (Like the visit to the Fair Folk's underground cave) and moments for everyone else. Animation is Disney at their finest, very detailed.

4.4/5

2 Not a Disney "classic", but an interesting experience.
In 1985, Disney attempted to do a PG-rated swords-and-sorcery animated tale based on a good source material--Lloyd Alexander's CHRONICLES OF PRYDAIN. The resulting movie had a lot of winning things going for it--for one, the animation was impressive for its time, showcasing an early mixture of CG effects. A massive underscore by Elmer Bernstein (which remains one of the best for a Disney movie) substitutes singing characters here. In addtion, there are at least some well-defined (and created) characters, notably the young, inexperienced "pig-boy" Taran, the terrifying Horned King (voiced superbly by John Hurt) and of course the two "comic" characters, Gurgi (a Gollum-like character with a childlike innocence and more loyalty--and an equally cuddly voice) and Creeper (a great baddie sidekick for a villain).

And yet the movie is considered Disney's greatest failure. It is understandable to see why: for one, the movie flopped at the box office (in fact, it took more than 10 years after its theatrical debut to finally arrive on home video). Second, in trying to compress the five-volume "Chronicles of Prydain" into one movie, the story comes across as a little too overplotted and frustratingly leaves questions one is likely to have about its characters (and magic rules) unanswered. The third reason is that aside from the aforementioned quartet of Taran, the Horned King, Gurgi, and Creeper, the characters aren't as well defined or memorable as they could be. In particular, Princess Eilonwy (whose bitchiness from the novels has been noticeably toned down for the film) comes across as an underdeveloped heroine--her abrupt shift from berating Taran's boasting about who got them out of trouble to a quasi-romantic love interest felt jarring to me. The same, frustratingly, feels true for many of the other characters, even if some of them (Fflewdurr Flamm, an elderly minstrel whose harpstrings happen to snap every time he lies) are actually quite likeable and/or interesting (a trio of batty witches who hold the titular object).

But even with its flaws, THE BLACK CAULDRON is by no means Disney's worst animated feature (that prestigious title belongs to HERCULES and probably HOME ON THE RANGE). True, it is problematic, but I nonetheless enjoyed the movie and applaud the animators for painting a grim, gothic fantasy setting through art. If only the plotting and characters were better developed, it would've been a classic. I would definitely recommend reading the books to get a full experience on the universe Disney was struggling to portray but by all means try out the movie as well. It has a lot of high points and there are some great animation effects (notably when an army of skeleton warriors comes alive), even though it probably isn't one of Disney's best.

A word of caution to parents: this is probably not a good film for children to watch. THE BLACK CAULDRON was clearly rated PG for a reason--not anything in the way of graphic violence or profanity, but there are lots of scenes which do come across as nightmarish, especially those involving the Horned King.

As far as the DVD release goes, it's a bit sparse on the extras, but the slide-show feature on its production origins and spin-offs warrants the purchase alone. The visual transfer is well done (aside from a few film scratches and one period of dirt filter) and it sure beats watching a pan-and-scan version. The real star of the DVD, though is the Dolby Digital 5.1 sound mix. THE BLACK CAULDRON was originally mixed for six-track Dolby Surround, and the music by Elmer Bernstein comes across as brilliant and the dialogue separation is impeccable.

So there you have it, my impressions of this flawed yet grossly undervalued entry to the Disney animation cannon. True, it's far from perfect, but as long as you don't compare it to the books (and acknowledge that it was created at a time when the studio was in something of a slump), THE BLACK CAULDRON is enjoyable and leaps and bounds above the weakest animated films ever made.

3 Untried courage is no match for his evil
Taran is an assistant pig keeper with dreams of becoming a warrior. He gets his wish unknowingly when he is assigned to the task of guarding an oracul pig named Hen Wen. Hen Wen is kidnapped by an evil lord known as the Horned King with hopes Hen will show him the way to The Black Cauldron. This will allow the Horned King to unleash a giant army of undead soldiers. Taran in his mission becomes acquainted with a stubborn princess, a windbag harpist, and a peculiar creature called Gurgi. Taran and his associates will try to save the world from the Horned King. Taran will face witches, fairies, mercenaries, and the Cauldron itself. Taran will need to learn a true warrior needs to be resourceful rather then mighty.

"Munchy crunch in here somewhere."

The Black Cauldron has a very strong Lord of the Rings feel to it. Even the ending, which involves self-sacrifice is very similar to the ending of The Lord of the Rings. In addition, Gurgi quickly reminded me, with his voice and ambitions, of Gollum. That is, if Gollum was a good guy. The Black Cauldron is a very dark Disney movie, maybe the darkest. That is probably why it does not get the recognition of other Disney films. It is every bit as entertaining as the Dumbo's, Fox and the Hounds, and Lady and the Tramps that came out. Since The Black Cauldron lacks singing, it is removed from that category.

"I wish I'd stayed a toad."

The Black Cauldron was released in 1985. The Black Cauldron has a very strong science fiction feel to it. The ferries that Taran runs into under ground reminded me a lot of the smurf's, which were big in the mid 80's. The Horned King reminded me very much of Skeletor from He-Man. The Black Cauldron has a strong 80's feel to it, where most Disney films feel very universal.

The Black Cauldron is an entertaining movie. I would agree it is perhaps not as good as Sword in the Stone, Jungle Book, or Robin Hood. I still enjoy watching The Black Cauldron despite its detractors. The above-mentioned movies may be an A or an A+, then The Black Cauldron is an A-.

Grade: A-

4 Not a thrill for even a dedicated fantasy film lover
If you want to see this film, rent it first. If you think you might want to see "Black Cauldron" again, you can buy it. Mine's going back to the video store to be traded in.

Plot premise is young lad Taran wants to become a famous warrior. Well, he can't even keep track of his prognosticating pig charge, Henwyn. The resulting chase to recover her and keep the wicked king from using her to spy out the black cauldron acquaints Taran with witches, a beautiful princess, an air-headed bard and many others.

I barely made it to the end of the film. Usually, even bad fantasy has me gripping the edge of my seat. I can't can't say the film has a lot to recommend it. There are too many long pauses in the action, the old animation is stale, "Googie" reminds me of a slightly nicer "Gollum.' I won't call viewing this film a waste of an afternoon, but the DVD is not staying in my collection, either.

5 Not representative of the classic Disney quality.
I work in animation and I have been scouring the video stores lately in search of anything that I may have missed earlier my entertainment is also my research. I picked this up, remembering that there had been great hype about it at one time, and having heard that the books were very good. My significant sweetie always refers to them whenever we discuss mythic structure for storytelling, she thinks they are a prime example.

Well I was disappointed. The drawings are good, the characters seem to have potential, but the quality just isn't there. The movie particularly falls short on settings. The backgrounds seem to have all been done cheaply and so do most of character sequences. The story is bland, and my sweetie frequently pointed out how the characters and major plot turns had been thinned or rushed in order to fit the story into the duration of the movie.

I wondered why, when I picked up the box and read that it had been a Disney movie they had not promoted it as they consistently do with their other old films. For instance I recently saw a poster with several princesses from Disney movies, Jasmine, Belle, Cinderella, Snow White, but Princess Eilonwy, from this movie is not in it. Well after having watched it, it seems apparent that they want to distance themselves from it. Rightly so.

If all you want to do is sit your child down for an hour and a half to keep them quiet then this will probably fill the void as well as anything. In much the same way children will often take Kool Aid as readily as grape juice. But if you want to give them quality then I Suggest you keep looking. I enjoy "The Lion King," "Sword in the Stone" "The Jungle Book" and "Little Nemo in Slumberland" much more.

6 Read the books first. Or only.
Sorry, I hate to offend those of you who are 12 or under, but this movie is a piece of ridiculous plagiarism. It's a very bad, formulaic movie based on the classic Disney principles: see something good, make a movie, slap the title of the good thing on the movie and make the characters have vaguely the same dialogue in the movie as in the book/other movie/classic fairytale. Those of you who are already fellow admirers of Lloyd Alexander's five-part series will note that the movie takes the name of the second book. I suppose it was the easiest to rip off. For some reason the plot is centered on the black cauldron, which issue was brought up AND RESOLVED in only one of FIVE books. Gurgi is about the size of a terrier, while The Book of Three clearly describes him as about five feet tall. Gurgi plays out taking Taran's apple, but neglects choking him from behind first. Taran somehow comes upon that magic sword (the name of which I forget; it's been years since I've had access to the books) out of nowhere and doesn't try to get rid of it. The cauldron warriors appear in droves out of nowhere, rather than requiring actual people to go into the cauldron to become the deathless, soulless killing machines of the series. In case you haven't noticed, I'm describing something close to a Final Fantasy sequel, with Gurgi representing the Moogles. For those of you unfamiliar with the Final Fantasy series, that means the two things are almost wholly unrelated. Disney's production team of hacks wrote up their own sub-par script, drew up silly and ridiculous approximations of the original characters, and slapped a random book name on the whole thing. By adding occasional "authentic settings" (the quotes indicate sarcasm, rather than an actual quotation) in random places, like for instance the scene from the end of the third book, The Castle of Llyr, at the end of the movie, Disney somehow hoped to make this movie stand apart from the millions of dollars' worth of useless trash they churn out every year. They did not succeed. This movie is plagiarized crap and deserves to have every VHS, DVD, video CD, or hard drive carrying even the slightest scene from it in anything other than a tone of ridicule and disgust burnt. Read the Lloyd Alexander series instead; it'll be money better spent (or not spent, at the library).

7 Disney's 25th animated film and first PG-rated movie
Based on "The Black Cauldron" by Lloyd Alexander, Disney's first PGrated film starts out well but loses steam about halfway through, when the action becomes bogged down and we lose interest in the characters. This is the story of taran, a pig keeper who is charged with keeping a clairvoyant pig safe from an evil-doer. Along the way taran meets friends and enemies, and learns more about life. The animation is interesting but the content is darker, and the film doesn't really do justice to a fine novel. This will be of interest if you like the book or want to see every Disney film, but it isn't particularly appropriate for young children or for those with a more casual interest.

DVD extras include a game, a Donald Duck cartoon, stills and a trailer. The film can be heard in English, French or Spanish, and subtitled in English.

8 Disney wrost movie.
Why bother with this wrost cartoon. There heads are not on tight. I let the MST3000 think about this movie.

9 Among the Bigger Dissapointments in the Movie World
As an adoring fan of the Lloyd Alexander books this film was loosely adapted from, I have to admit that I have a biased view. The books are so lovely that I purchased this video before seeing it, assuming that since Disney was given such great material to work with it would be a piece of art. I was sorely dissapointed. I suggest that any fan of the books stay away from this movie all together, or at least view it before you make the investment in purchasing it. You'll find many important characters missing, and several key elements to the plot have changed.
I feel that Disney would have done well to make the full series, rather than try and combine the events of The Book of Three and The Black Cauldron and cram them into one movie.
However, Disney's version of The Black Cauldron does have its good points. The animation is rather nice. It's rather simple, but it serves its purpose very well. It's a bit refreshing to see Disney make such a different movie from it's norm. This one is very dark, and doesn't rely on song to pull you in. The characters, while dissapointing if you're familiar with the books, are still portrayed rather interestingly in their own rights. The Horned King is pretty well established, and early on you get a feeling that he just drips with evil. Gurgi, although very different from his written counterpart, is a very loveable character, and brings a bright spot to the otherwise very gloomy feeling of the film. The voice acting is good, the sound effects are of the highest quality, and the score does an adept job at setting the mood.
If you are unfamiliar with the books, and watch the movie with an open mind, it can really be quite enjoyable, but it's noteworthy that this movie has a PG Rating, not the G Rating that most annimated Disney films feature. There are some scenes that I find rather innapropriate for a children's film, including a scene where Fflewddur is changed into a toad and gets stuck in a woman's cleavage, and some of the scenes with The Horned King and the Cauldron-Born which may be very disturbing for sensitive children. I recommend parents pre-view this movie before deeming it appropriate for their young children.

10 Black & Blue
I love all the risks and new avenues this film took. There is much love and thought that went into its creation. Unfortunately most of this love and attention was focused on looks and not story.

A mixture of visual styles are used in the film, hand-drawn animation, CGI (Disney's first attempt) and even live action smoke. This mixture gives the film a very distinctive look. One that is strikingly different from other Disney animated films.

The Horned King is Disney's most terrifying looking villain ever but he's got the personality of a dead fish. We never connect or understand him like we did say Lady Tremaine or Maleficent. When one character sacrifices himself for the good of the others it should be an act filled with great drama and emotion but it didn't even choke me up much less bring a tear to my eye.

What the film really needs is character development and a clearly thought out plot. About a third of the way through we learn that the film is not about what we were lead to believe (the thwarting of evil) but Tarran's need to accept his position in life. This is a drastic change and the film never really recovers it's footing afterwards.

I'd like to see Disney attempt a film like this again some day because there is much they got right (the tone, character designs, general look of the film). I'd recommend The Black cauldron if you are a serious animation, Disney or fantasy film fan.

11 A Worthy Effort 3 and a half.
Epic medevil stories are hard to put on film, and are more challenging to put in an animated film. In the Black Cauldron Disney gave it's best. There are a few things though that make the film un-Disney. The characters are not as lovable and iconic on the exception of Gurgi in this movie. The animation is too different and it detatches itself from the other Disney films. The villain is too strong and powerful for a child audience and a little too mediocre for an older crowd. If you look at is as just another movie it really is not that bad, but when comparing it to past Disney effort that is where you run into problems.

12 A horrible movie (I give is -5 stars)
I was excited to see this movie after having read the books. Not only is this movie one of the worst cartoons I have ever seen, but it is a sacralige that it is associated in any way with Lloyd Alexander's wonderful books. The story does not relate to anything in the books and I found the movie quite offensive and lewd at times. This movie goes at the top of my 'Never ever ever see list'.

13 THE BLACK CAULDRON
I love this film. And it has no songs which is great. It is a very short film, dark, and with a very simple plot, but with wonderful voices of the characters. Each character is absolutely lovely. And the fairies are the most beautiful and sweetest I have ever seen in film.

14 Well, They Don't Make 'Em Like They Used To!
It's no secret that Disney has been . . . . . . . well, slacking off lately. (Quite frankly, they suck.) Boy, do I miss the good old days with just 2-D animation, and no computer enhancement to be seen. I'm only thirteen, so I don't want to act like I know and have seen it all. But because of my age I feel privilaged to really know how *GOOD* these older movies are (most kids I know don't). Anyway, on with THE BLACK CAULDRON.

This is a very strange film for me; when I was little, I didn't like the movie at all. It didn't necessarily scare me (though I definitely found the movie creepy), I just didn't like it. Then just yesterday I saw it on TV in the morning, so I figured "What the heck?" and watched. And for some reason, I really liked it! I just loved the old-fashioned fairy tale plot and characters. Sure, Taran and the Princess don't break any new ground, but they don't try to, and that's some of the charm to the story. And I can't write a review for this movie without mentioning The Horned King. . . . . . aaaahhhhh, what a grand villain! His prescence reminds one of the villains of old, like Malefecent from SLEEPING BEAUTY. And don't forget the classic score by Elmer Bernstein.

At the time, this was the most expensive animated movie ever made (at $25 million . . . . . that's $15 million more than the original STAR WARS cost, people!), and it shows. THE BLACK CAULDRON mixes all kinds of animation, from traditional Disney-style to new-age techniques. But none of the new stuff do any more than enhance the story. If this movie was made nowadays, it would be chalk-full of pointless show-stoppers. It's a beautiful looking film, pure and simple.

Oh, and I forgot to mention the spectacular voice cast: Freddie Jones, John Hurt, John Huston, Susan Sheridan, Grant Bardsley, and more inhabit the movie throughout. Their prescence further enhances the classic traditional feel of the story.

For all those who enjoyed so much SLEEPING BEAUTY, or for all those of this generation who are wondering why all the grown-ups keep praising Disney, see this film. Though it is far from Disney's best, you'll undoubtedly see what they are talking about.

(P.S. I've never read the books, so I don't know how you'd feel about the movie if you have.)

15 Bad Writing Slays the Horned King
Lloyd Alexlander's Prydain series consists of four books, the second of which, the Black Cauldron, continues the story long after the characters of Taran, the princess, the minstrel, and Ghurgi know one another. The first book, The Book of Three, introduces all these characters as they unite to find Hen Wen and keep her from the Horned King. The Disney producers seems to have slammed these first two books together with little regard for Alexander's work except its popularity.

Though in the books, these characters are complex, funny, and interesting, I found myself yawning five minutes into this film, because the screenplay strips away character in an attempt to graft in gags and evil castles. In the Book of Three, Taran's sword is taken away by the Princess, a sorcesses, because he hasn't the right to use it. Here, Taran is forced to become a swashbuckler instantly, without any development whatsoever. That was the point of the four books, to develop Taran into the character he becomes.

I remember when this film came out, it tanked, hammering one more nail in the Disney coffin until the new regime came in and revived the animated feature. It's hard to believe that the Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast come only a few years after this clunking, over-serious, archaic feature.

That said, the artwork - the backgrounds mainly - is detail and often superb. It's too bad that who ever transfered this over to DVD didn't care to clean up the negative. When this film shines, it can really shine. Also, don't watch TBC along with the Peter Jackson Fellowship of the Ring; too many shots are similar for comfort.

The DVD does come with a Disney cartoon, "Trick of Treat for Halloween" which outshines the feature in every respect. Oops.

16 Too bad it looks like a bootleg
Unfortunately, the people at Disney didn't seem to notice that this DVD looks like a bootleg. Film flickers and white spots are abundant. Worse yet, the trailer opens with purple lines running across the screen akin to what you used to see when a VHS tape had been dubbed one too many times. I'm aware that Cauldron isn't the company's most prized possession, but still...(as for the actual film: it's entertaining, though there is no music and the climax is weak. Overall, it can't compete with their princess stories, but lots of other people have talked about that already (see below)).

17 Turing Test Cinema
I've never read the books on which the film is based, but the action and dialogue have the nervous, half-apologetic opacity of a screenplay too hastily cut-and-pasted out of a more complex work. Like the Rankin-Bass Return of the King, crucial motivations and important relationships are poorly established or not explained at all, long journeys are reduced to a two-second transition shot, and the exposition manages to be both half-hearted and desperate. Unlike The Return of the King, the bad comic relief is rampant. Several characters seem to have been rewritten entirely as tiresome jokes (can the minstrel really have been that useless and goofy? Could the witches have been such feeble caricatures?)

In a movie in which nearly everything is handled poorly, the villain fares perhaps worst of all, because he has such tremendous potential. A death's-headed sorcerer who uses the eponymous cauldron to raise an army of the undead, he ought to be monstrous and terrifying. And while he looks nasty enough, and delivers a lot of speeches about "the cauldron-born" that in theory should send chills down the spines of small children, he seems to inspire little fear in the inhabitants of the movie. They all talk about his dread majesty, of course, but scene after scene shows him striding into a room full of boisterous henchmen who, far from being in awe of their evil master, barely seem to notice him at all, and do not even stop eating when he speaks. His second-in-command or Generic Comic Sidekick is terrified of him, but only because he is constantly bashing him over the head. Even the hero, an untested young boy, barely balks in his presence. The man has no menace about him. He might as well settle down and start reading romance novels, because he's exactly as scary as the Elephant Man. He probably needs an army of the undead just to maintain order in the Castle of Evil.

Also abominable is the film's treatment of Gurgi, the fluffy nothing who begins as odious comic relief and stays odious comic relief until precisely the moment he is needed for a heroic self-sacrifice. It turns out that for obscure EVIL reasons of its own, the Cauldron (which has to be destroyed so that the dead can stop walking and the Horned King can get back to whatever it is he does when not covering all the lands in darkness) needs someone's life given willingly. Gurgi, a useless bit of window dressing not unlike that annoying hummingbird in Pocahontas (only with the added inconvenience of speech) has been rejected by the heroes of the movie as cumbersome and silly and for contributing absolutely nothing to the plot. So he's feeling a little sad and lonely, and so just when you think that one of the heroes is going to sacrifice himself to the Cauldron for the salvation of the world, the little Ewok comes panting out in front of everybody, announces, "Gurgi has no friends. Gurgi will die," or some such thing, and cannonballs into the Cauldron, just like that-- thus granting cinema perhaps the least thoughtful suicide in its history. Well, all right. But if you thought just because The Black Cauldron was rated PG that it would let its odious comic relief stay dead, think again. No sooner has the undead army been swirled back into the earth than Gurgi is found, coughing and wheezing but very much alive. What, did the Cauldron have pity on him or something? Pretty sentimental for an EVIL artifact, especially considering that nobody else really liked Gurgi to begin with. The entire sequence-- the seeming arbitrariness of Gurgi's sacrifice and his subsequent (and equally arbitrary) resurrection, would have sunk a much better movie. Here, it's just one more in a long string of bad decisions.

The overall failure of the movie, however, is a consistent and difficult to explain failure of tone. Technically, all the elements are there for a competent Disney movie-- except that the adventure isn't exciting, the humor isn't funny, the heroes are colorless and seem to act almost at random, and the villain is peculiarly unimpressive. In fact, the entire movie appears to have been written, directed, and edited by an early experiment in artificial intelligence. The computer was given a few books and the Disney formula and instructed to make a hit movie. The result is a novelty, but not a success. The Black Cauldron is soulless.

18 WHY?
This is one of the worst movies I've ever seen. It's bad, even for Disney, and while I have issues with their versions of fairy tales, taking this kind of "liberty" with a set of wonderful books should be criminal. As a fan of the books, I was disgusted beyond belief. I watched it with my daughter, wanting to give it a chance, but I simply couldn't stand it. If you like the books, don't touch it with a ten foot pole. If you never read them, read them, then don't watch this. If you don't want to read them, still don't watch the movie, because it's bad by itself. Even Disney can do better than this.

19 Black Cauldron - the first PG rated Disney Canon movie
Black Cauldron was the first of a very short string of Disney's animated canon movies that was rated PG. (The others, so far, are "Lilo and Stitch" and "Treasure Planet".)

But don't let that deter you from getting this movie and showing it to just about any age group. Although =some= younger children might get upset about the sheer evil of the "Horned King" and his army, he is still one of the best Disney villains ever.

The basic plot is simple. Taran, an assistant pig keeper, finally realizes that the pig he is keeping watch over is a magical animal, capable of foretelling the future. He, along with a few friends, must protect this pig. The evil wizard captures the pig and finds out the location of the Black Cauldron, a very powerful magical device capable of summoning an army of undead warriors. Taran and his friends must somehow prevent the wizard from coming to the full fruition of his plans.

My favorite character was Fflewddur Fflam, the travelling minstrel that is drawn into this quest of Taran's. Every time he tells a lie, a string breaks on his magical instrument. This funny bit reappears several times during the movie, and it is wonderful to see him change what he is going to say in mid-sentence in order to keep his strings from breaking.

Strangely, this movie is based on the =second= book in Lloyd Alexander's "Chronicles of Prydain". I would have liked it much more had they done the other books in the series, but the fantastic bomb this was in the theaters probably prevented that.

A good addition to a library of Children's films, and a great addition for the Disney collector.

20 Good Animation and Story, but not representative of the Book
This DVD should really be judged on 2 levels. For those who are interested in the movie, but are unfamiliar with the Prydain Chronicles, should find this fantasy movie compelling. The animation was unique for the time, and the movie itself should be compelling for adults and mature kids. Young children may find it disturbing.

Viewers who are familiar with the Prydain Chronicles and are militant about the rendering of a written story to film will probably react otherwise. The movie is more of a parrallel of the entire Prydain series than the second book in the series, the eponymous Black Cauldron, with characters and events appearing anachronistically. Viewed through this prism, The Black Cauldron will be seen as little more that Disney's debasement of a beloved story.

21 A bit dark for the YOUNGER children.
We rank this movie 35 of out of 41. It had some fun moments, but was generally a little dark for my kids. If you are looking for family entertainment there are so many other movies available that are better.

This movie was based on a book, but based on some of the reviews, the older viewers that have read the book hated the movie. I didn't hate it, but it was below average, 2 star quality when compared to its peers.

We had a lot of fun by gathering the family together to rank the 41 Disney movies we have that include some cartoon work. All the kids, ages 6 to 27, participated along with mother and dad. Lion King was selected number 1 of the 41 as the family favorite, but narrowly. Peter Pan was 2. Pete's Dragon 3, Beauty & the beast 4, Sleeping Beauty 5, Snow White 6, Robin Hood 7, 101 Dalmatians 8, Fox and the hound 9, Cinderella is 10th, Rescuers 11, Hunchback of ND 12, Aladdin 13 and Aladdin King of Thieves 14.

22 Ok,but kind of dark.Odd for a Disney movie.
Like the review's title says,the movie is odd for somthing Disney would do. In my opinion,this movie is similar to the Harry
Potter movies in that there is a lot of magic spells type of stuff.I don't think kids 2-6 years old should watch this as it is a creepy kind of movie.

23 A hidden gem
Sadly, this disney feature has not received the attention it deserves. In fact, I first heard of it a few years ago. Magical and full of atmosphere, it is one of the best feature animations of the past twenty years. If you like the mystic and medieval, you are in for a treat. I was very disappointed by The Sword in the Stone, mosly because many of the sequences not essetial to the telling of the story was too long and tiring for my taste. The Black Cauldron helped me fill the gap made by that film. It is a quite dark and fast-paced film, and it includes some of disney's early experiments with computer animation. It may not be the most stunning film in terms of visuals or story, but it is a highly entertaining experience with wonderful characters and places, and definetly worth the watch. If you liked Robin Hood or Alice in Wonderland, you might as well enjoy this one.

24 An Underrated Masterpiece!!!!
Ever since I saw this movie in a drive in theater as a child all those years ago, I have been fascinated by this movie. When they finally released it on video in 1998, I was pleasantly reminded why I was so obsessed about this movie. It has everything an imaginative child looks for in a movie. Adventure, sword fighting, castles, fairies, magic, strange creatures, witches, good versus evil, a princess... More importantly it still has the nice message the excellent Lloyd Alexander's books has to offer. Read the books and check out this movie!! Enjoy!

25 Insult!!
I have read the whole series the Pydrain Chronicles. There are no Dragons,the Horned King dies in The Book of Three(the first book). I just think this movie is insulting a great book!!!!!

26 A neglected gem
This film deserve far better than it got. When the film first came out in the mid '80s, it devastated Disney financially due to its very poor box office performance and very high cost. Pity, I really liked this film. It was one of the few Disney cartoons not based on any classic fairy tail. It was original. It was not formulaic like just about everything else produced by Disney before and since. Dark, dingy, and scary - oh yeah! Fearsome creatures, villain, and ghouls, oh my! Finally Disney began showing some guts, to go beyond the usual sugar coated fluff, kind of like Disney meets Dungeons and Dragons. The cutesy kid stuff was kept at a minimum (though not eliminated completely) and there was none of the usual song and dance numbers. Unfortunately it didn't pay off, and Disney went back to doing what it always had been doing. Sigh...

The animation was fairly good. My only real complaint is that it was a bit flat at times, a little greater use of light and shadow would have been nice. The characters were well designed, and the voice acting was well done (dig them British accents).

Add this neglected gem to your treasure trove.

27 What a scray movie!
Okay i can understand that some movies take that bappily ever after stuff out of movies like Atlantis but this was just to much. My kids didn't get scared by Atlantis and Lilo and Stich but the Black Cauldron scared them half to death. The horned King has no humour, he speaks scary and he looks like the devils son! Don't get this movie for your kids!

28 Gurgi must die
Unfortunately, the nasty little critter didn't stay dead. Gurgi is among the most unloveable of side kicks in Disney flicks. The animation was second rate and was not all of the same style throughout the movie so it had a feeling of many animators collaborating, but not communicating. It tried to be something new and different, but it fell pretty flat. The plot was VERY predictable and though based on a fairytale world, not very transporting. Oh well, better than no animation at all.

29 Not a terrible movie, but not great, either.
As other people have mentioned, the characters are rather flat, and the plot is just a variation on the must-save-world-from-scary-guy theme. If you can ignore the predictability and the contrived and sappy ending, it's an okay flick. Eye candy, and the kids'll probably like it -- I did, when I was younger.

If you're going to watch it, though, please DON'T read the books first. Read the books, by all means, but if you read them before watching the movie, you'll find the flick unbearable. Disney changed so much, and with no fathomable reason behind most of the changes. The changes to the character of Fflewddur Fflam hit me especially hard, since he's my favorite from the books -- apart from the name and harp, he's unrecognizable. Basically, everything's been simplified and, well, Disneyfied. All of the PG rating comes from visuals, and any bad things happening to the good guys are fleeting, unlike the books, which carry the more difficult -- but true -- lesson that life can be unfair sometimes.

Anyway, in closing, the movie isn't bad, but as has been said, the books are far better. If you're thinking of buying it for your kids, especially, I'd highly recommend getting the books instead and sharing them. If they like Harry Potter, they're almost sure to like these. The Prydain Chronicles have a depth and a warmth to them that's difficult to find; I first read them when I was a kid, and I find myself re-reading them every few years or so.

30 Not Lloyd Alexander and yet?
Well, this is a really hard movie to review because I have such mixed feelings. Disney is known for taking liberties with many stories and basically changing them to the point that they are almost unrecognizable and this is no exception. Any time my children hear the original storybook version of a story Disney has made into a movie they say things like, "That's not how it happened in the movie." Snow White, Cinderella, Sword in the Stone, to mention just a few, but the absolute worst was Pocahonas since that was history they were messing with! Back to The Black Cauldron. They have totally changed so many things that if you know the story you may very well be sickened by what they have done to the story and it's characters. On the other hand, if you go into this with no previous knowledge, it's a wonderfully animated, fun story to be watched again and again. My children have read the Prydain Chronicles by Lloyd Alexander and although they immediately noted many discrepancies, they still thoroughly enjoyed the movie. I guess what it comes down to is this. If you can watch it through the eyes of a child without expectations of acuracy, you'll probably really enjoy this movie, but if you're expecting Lloyd Alexander's novels on screen don't bother with this one.

31 A decent DVD to own
Although I'm not impressed with the amount of bonus materials on the Disney Gold Edition DVDs, The Black Cauldron is a decent Disney animated movie that Disney fans and families will enjoy. The picture and sound quality are improved over the VHS version and there are a few bonus features that make this DVD worth the purchase.

32 Disney is returning to this kind of movie (alantis,)
This movie was sooooo bad it belongs with the patheon of bad disney films: The fox and the Pound, the adventures of mr. Road, aristoflats, tarzwan, dinosours. and the worst thing is that's what kind of movies disney is starting to make again, alantis, please that was one of the most boring movies, and treasure planet, they are trying to apeal to the teenage audence just like they did in the black cauldron. The only good animation is coming out of PIXAR studios.
Lets face the facts the disney animators are burned out. wait 10 years and they will get there wind back.just like they did after this movie and then they will come out with some brilliant movie like beauty and the beast or aladdin

33 Please buy and read Alexander's books and ignore this junk
I love movies. I love books. I am often the one defending the merits of a movie adaptation of a book to those who don't like the choices that must often be made to translate a book to film. I can't defend this disaster. If it was possible to give "0" stars, I would. I love Disney animation, but this was inexcusable, and has harmed the reputation of the books. Please, please if you are the sort who loves outstanding children's fantasy literature, go buy the Prydain chronicles in Amazon's book section (there are some very nice sets) before allowing this to turn you off to the books. I normally have friends who take my recommendations automatically, but who won't give these books a chance because they saw this movie first and hate it so much. O.k., here's why. The character's are flat and lack any of the wit of the characters in the books, let alone other Disney characters. I especially hate Disney's take on good old Doli. And while all movie adaptations must make some adjustments or liberties to translate a book to film, the drastic differences between the characters in the books and in the movie are both unnecessary and render the characters dull and uninteresting. By the end of the Prydain chronicles, you care so much about these characters that, if you are an avid reader, you will end up revisiting Prydain for years to come. I can honestly say that after one viewing The Black Cauldron on videotape, it has sat on a shelf collecting dust, which is far better treatment than the incinerator it so richly deserves. P.S. If you can find some good in this movie (and I understand some might, and that's o.k.), I still strongly recommend that you read the books. With authors such as Tolkien, C.S. Lewis (Narnia), Susan Cooper (Dark is Rising) and Ursula LeGuin (Earthsea), Lloyd Alexander was one of the outstanding authors who wrote fantasy literature accessable to both children and adults long before Harry Potter led to the current boom. The new writers are good, and some are great, but don't forget that there were authors who were good enough to get noticed before the genre truly came into its own.

34 Disney's mistake
What were they thinking?!? Why on earth they tried to make a cartoon based on the Prydain Chronicles I'll never know. Yes, I love the books. Yes, I love Disney. But the two just didn't mix in this animated feature. I am aware that Disney always changes classic stories (and sometimes history) to make their movies, and I'm usually quite willing to forgive them for it. After all, fairy tales and folk stories are passed on through word of mouth and change a little everytime someone new tells the story. Disney is just one of those voices. But when you take a relatively new work whose author is still alive and claim to be retelling the story, it needs to be somewhat similar. Honestly, the only thing accurate in the whole movie are the names of the main characters. They even got the color of Hen Wen's eyes wrong after such a big deal is made out of that point in the books. You'd think that would be a simple thing! But even this would be forgivable if Disney had produced a decent movie. But, in my opinion, this was not good at all. The plot was rushed and the characters shallow (except maybe Taran). I had seen this movie before I read the books and didn't like it at all. I watched it again after I read the books thinking that I would appreciate it more after knowing some background information, but it was even worse! Disney could have made a really good fantasy film if they had had the confidence to write their own story. Instead they were constrained by their ties to a highly regarded series of books that couldn't possibly be boiled down into an 80 minute movie with any success. I think they learned their lesson, though, since in recent years we've seen several top-notch original stories from Disney that didn't have any of the short-comings of "The Black Cauldron." Thank you, Disney, for learning from your mistake!

35 A Great and fun Disney Animated gem.
Known as the first disney animated feature to be rated " PG", this 1985 Animated gem was an expensive one that was forgotten over the years until it hit Video and DVD for the first time plus this one gained a cult following cause it was the first PG rated Animated Disney movie.

Inspired by the books of Prydain, in a faraway land in the Camelot times, a pig keeper named " Taran" has a pet Pig that is psychic and the evil Horned King wants to use the pig so he can use a powerful thing called " The Black cauldron" to rule the world with an army of deathless warriors, now Taran along with friends must save the world.

A highly fun and entertaining Disney effort with good Xerox style animation and no songs, but why is it rated " PG"? well cause it does have some frightening material that may not be suitable for small children but this does include John Hurt as the villain plus there is even a beautiful princess named " Ellionwy" who is a dreamgirl of mine.

Also recommended: The Last Unicorn, The Secret of NIMH, The Dark Crystal, Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring, The Princess Bride, Fun and Fancy Free, Fantasia, Beauty and the Beast, Star Wars, Atlantis, Sleeping Beauty, Peter Pan, Oliver and Company, and The Great Mouse Detective.

36 Repeat Viewings
I will admit that upon my first viewing, I was surprised and somewhat disappointed. The Horned King is far too one-dimensional. The plot is sometimes confusing and simplistic. The plot progression and resolution is not satisfying enough. The animation is quite alright, considering the time period they tried to portray.

So why four stars? 'Cuz I just can't get it out of my mind. It was groundbreaking in that Disney tried something different, darker, and foreboding. Yet I want to see it again. Disturbing, yet makes me curious.

I had first rented it. After I watched it, I promised myself to never to see it again. Then three weeks later, I bought it. It was the strangest feeling that I had that I wanted to see it again. Now I like it. I'm sure with each viewing, I'll find something else to appreciate. It's just one of those movies.

I never read Alexander's books, upon which this was loosely based. For all intents and purposes, this movie is a simple fantasy flick that fits the fantasy mold.

37 This Movie is a sad disgrace...
I thought untill recently that I had seen every Disney movie in some form or another untill I heard about the release of this one. My little brother owns it so I just recently decided to watch it. I was extremely dissapointed. If you look at a list of chronologicaly listed disney films, it is no surprise that this is part of Disney's "down period"... Along with Oliver and Great Mouse Detective, it helped to create a bad name for Disney and it was only with the creation of The Little Mermaid and Rescuers Down Under that they restored their name. The animation in this movie is sloppy and pictures are unclear. This would normally be acceptable except for the fact that in a short amount of three years they created one of the greatest animation-wise movies of their times, Rescuers Down Under. Realizing now that it was made after a book and looking at the general jist of the story, I have to believe that the movie was made and released only to counter that of the animated Lord of the Rings... Disney was losing their audience and they knew it so they created this sloppy film. It is no wonder that it was forgotten for more than a decade.

38 One of Disney's most enchanting (and unappriciated) classics
Being an avid Disney video collector, I of course saw trailers for this release hitched onto other 1998 tapes, and was genuinely amazed with them alone. Needless to say I ran out to the store August 4 of that year to buy my copy of this never-before-released-on-video animated Disney flick and popped it into the VCR as soon as I got home. I honestly do not understand why so many people who have reviewed this movie have called it bad. Sure, it's different, and yes, it did recieve a PG rating, but those are not nessesarily bad things. And, yes, appearently it IS different from the book, but, putting all of that aside, it is a WONDERFUL movie, and, unlike some reviewers, I'm very glad that they let it out of the vaults.

Taran, dreams of being an incridible warrior, but soon finds himself reduced to searching for Hen Wen, a young pig he tends to that has run away. This eventually leads to his embarking on a quest to find the mythical Black Cauldron, which gives the one who bears it ultumate power, before the evil Horned King. Aside from the adventurous, dark mood, the movie carries other strengths, too. First off, the characters are amazing and can be related to. I too have dreams and fears just like Taran (in fact quite simmilar in one perspective), and he is like a welcome friend to me. Gurgi is cute and funny and is this movie's classic Disney sidekick; there's one in every classic, you know. Second, there's the annimation - it's amazingly mood-setting and obviously helped the animators learn a great viriaty of skills they would use in later films. Finally, there's the film's tear-jerking (yes, I did say "tear-jerking" in regard to Disney's "The Black Cauldron," folks) ending and the timeless moral that is illustrated within it -- I won't say what it is; you have to go rent (or better yet buy) this too-often-ignored Disney gem to find that part out. To top it all off, the original 1998 release has a very cool-looking cover, supposedly "FX packaging" according to some old TV spots; the Gold reissue has a wonderful (different) logo and cover image too.

All in all, I can't find a negative thing to say about it. The DVD supposedly has it in widescreen, which I'd love to see - and the Gold Collection issue (in both VHS and DVD formats) has "Trick or Treat," a classic Donald Duck short. I don't know why I don't have this on DVD yet! It's something you and I should both make a point to get. Amazing! I sincerely hope that this gem enjoys many more successful years out of the Disney vaults, and am glad that Disney had a change of heart about it in 1998 after its summer 1985 theatrical release bombed. ***** 5/5

39 One of Disney's most enchanting (and unappriciated) classics
Being an avid Disney video collector, I of course saw trailers for this release hitched onto other 1998 tapes, and was genuinely amazed with them alone. Needless to say I ran out to the store August 4 of that year to buy my copy of this never-before-released-on-video animated Disney flick and popped it into the VCR as soon as I got home. I honestly do not understand why so many people who have reviewed this movie have called it bad. Sure, it's different, and yes, it did recieve a PG rating, but those are not nessesarily bad things. And, yes, appearently it IS different from the book, but, putting all of that aside, it is a WONDERFUL movie, and, unlike some reviewers, I'm very glad that they let it out of the vaults.

40 The first PG rated Disney cartoon
Everybody seems to forget about the detailed, and sometimes dark Disney cartoon 'The Black Cauldron', untill it was re-released for few years ago, and this 'Sword & Sorcery' inspired cartoon is not for small kids.
This is something for the audience of the 80's cartoons, and role play fans.

41 Good film, not for kids. Different for Disney.
The Black Cauldron certainly doesn't fall into the genre of animated Disney family favorite, but instead feels much like the more grim and complicated fantasy films that were made in the eighties. Does it stack up to (...) films as Return To Oz and The Dark Crystal? Well, although not as complex as the aformentioned, this film is not without its charm.

The story of Taran, the pig-keeper's journey from gawky boy to gawky boy-hero apparently works better as told through the course of five books, and indeed it is the plot that feels put together, with a lot cut out of it for it's slim 1:20 running time. Also suffering becuase of the short time is any character development, or a reason why the charcter of Dallben (an old minstrel) are in the film at all. However, this film still has a lot going for it.

The film has a wonderful pacing to it with some fantastic action scenes. It is adventurous and fun. An engaing film for any fantasy fan. What really makes the film though is it's terrifying and dastardly villain, The Horned King. He is basically a Skeletor knock off with absolutely no sense of humor. He looks like he stepped right out of an Iron Maden album cover, and that is a monumental good thing. The true threat felt by the presence of this decidedly un-Disney character keeps the tension of the film high.

It is this contrast, between the unconventionally ghoulish villans (definatly enspirered by Bakshi's animated adaptation of Lord of the Rings ) and the stock Disney characters makes the audience care more-so for the cutesy characters than usual. This is especially true for the cutsey character of Gurgi, who is much more tollerable than almost all other Disney sidekicks and especially more tollerable than a certain J*r J*r B*nks that we have all been over exposed to lately.

So I would reccomend The Black Cauldron , it's a fun and well animated adventure film. Compleatly scary and strange for Disney to make, but still very very good nonetheless.

42 disappointing flick compared to the BOOKS!
This is a so-so movie that, sadly, is all many people know of Lloyd Alexander's wonderful Chronicles of Prydain. It's Disney, but it lacks the "charm" of earlier Disney flicks as well as the "polish" of ones to come only a few years later.

I'd only pick this up for Alexander fans or people who want to own *every* Disney movie...but, regardless, READ THE BOOKS- they are wonderful!

43 It deserves minus 5 stars!!!!!!!
This movie should be erased from the disney collection. It was a horrible translation of the charming book by Lloyd Alexander. No person who read the book could ever like this movie. It was an attempt to mix the whole series of "The Book of Three" that went horribly wrong as any movie would when you try and mess with such a wonderful classic. It left out wonderfull characters and basicaly the whole story line. Disney needs to take this one back and try again or jsut leave it alone. There's a bad apple in every buch but disney sure turned out a rotten one.

44 The Black Cauldron Gold Collection DVD
This is a fantastic action adventure story, that gave a much needed break to Disney's wonderful musical. Not one song is in this film, and that gives it a major benifit becuase it kept the film very serious and dark. A lot of the past reviewers have said that the animation is not very good. Aside from one scene, I strongly disagree with this. The animation is not extraordinary, but it does succeed in making the atmospheric mood a very dark one.

Besides, animation is not what carries this film, it's it's characters. Starting foremost, with the Horned King, a villian that goes beyond any bad guy before him using the Cauldron's magic to resurrect his army of skeletons. This provides one of the movie's most intense and dramatic sequences. The comedic relief in this film belong to Creeper, the king's goblin creature and Gurgi, a cowardly creature who redeems himself later in the film. Both do well in making us laugh, but not going too far to avoid taking the film's dark feel. Taran is the main character, but aside from knowing that he wants to be a hero, not much is known of him.

This film is greatly underappreciated, mostly becuase it was a severe economical failure. What Disney lost in $, they gained in creative expansion, beginning to be able to tackle many different subject matters for different audiences.

The Gold Collection DVD, includes "Trick or Treat", a classic Donald vs his nephews cartoon.

45 A Return to the Days of Doom and Fear
Disney finally returns to the days of good vs. evil with very little compromise with their production of THE BLACK CAULDRON. This is a tale of swords and sorcery, evil, revenge and magic. It is the story of a search for a magic cauldron that if it falls into the hands of the evil Horned King, will be used as an abyss of endless evil. This Disney animated film is in the old tradition of SNOW WHITE, PINOCCHIO and BAMBI where some frightening moments and moments of real loss bring reality to the tale. THE BLACK CAULDRON had to follow this same mold to bring it credibility. If it looked too cute it would not work. You can see this same balance in SLEEPING BEAUTY. Good characterizations are the backbone of this film. The Horned King (coldly voiced by John Hurt), and a wooly little creature named Gurgi (voiced by John Byner) are the best. Gurgi is a great character who slurps and gurgles his way through this tale giving it that little bit of required levity. In fact the cauldron-born scenes were toned down before the release of this film. Taran the main character keeps the tale moving in a prerequisite and obligatory role. Creeper is one of the more memorable and noteworthy henchmen. ALL in all I think this is one of Disney's better films of the last two decades. I love the score by Elmer Bernstein that is lush yet whimsical. The storytelling goes back to the roots of Walt Disney's animated films yet the animation is unique from the rest of all Disney's other films. It was filmed in Super Technirama 70 and the DVD takes great advantage of this widescreen format.

46 A forgotten classic
This movie is sadly a forgotten one. I had never heard of it until they released it on DVD. I was quite surprised too, its hardly "disney-like" No singing, different animation style, and a much darker story. Overall its a good film.

I keep reading in other people's reviews how its "not like the book" that may be true (and the books are much better)but who cares? its a good film in its own right and it just might serve to introduce people to the books who might never have heard of them (like me). Besides that we could complain that EVERY disney movie is not like the story its based on. Have you every read The Jungle Book? Or any of the classic fairytales like Sleeping beauty or Beauty and the Beast? Or how bout the Little mermaid? Talk about rewritten endings! The little mermaid DIES in the end of the fairytale!

My point is every disney movie is VERY LOOSLEY based on some classic. They TOTALLY rewrite ALL their stories keeping only the basic plot points (if any)and the main characters, then they throw in some songs and cute/funny sidekicks. But does any of this make me enjoy Sleeping Beauty or the Little Mermaid less? No! and it shouldn't make you enjoy it less either. Enjoy the Stories/Books for what they are, and enjoy these Disney films for what they are.

So go buy or rent this movie already!You might be quite surprised like I was.

47 The Black Cauldron
This is one of the greatest dvd's. The picture and sound are so clear. Te widscreen picture is great.

48 As always, Disney changes too many things
Being a fan of manga/anime (Japanese comics and animation); I did not enjoy this Disney adaptation to the novel.

I have read the novel to this and when watching the movie; noticed Disney has CUT/CHANGED it. This movie is VERY LOOSELY based on the novel (if at all). The novel is by far MUCH MORE darker, scarier and bloodier.

The characters are rather shallow and not well developed in the movie. At least the plot's essence seems to be there, however alot less grimmer.

Disney also gave this its usual "Disney (happy) ending" (as expected), when the novel ended on a much more dismal/darker note.

I do not understand why Disney is afraid to do any "teen/adult animations". I guess they have a reputation to be "family" entertainment.

Although the animation was good, it was the CHANGES they made that had me VERY DISAPPOINTED.

If an animated feature could be redone, I would prefer it to be done by Japan. Since it seems they do animations in all different age groups (from children to adults only). In fact if this could be redone, have another company do it, NOT Disney.

49 May not be suitable for toddlers
This is a different Disney flick from what most Moms' and Dads' expect. This is a dark movie with some very scary creatures for your little ones. The older kids may love the action/adventure, but be forewarned that your younger children may want to sleep with the light on after watching this movie.

50 The Black Cauldron
I had never heard of this movie until I saw it on my sister's book and tape. I rented it just recently and intend to buy it A.S.A.P. I thought the Black Cauldron was a great movie, brilliantly animated with interesting plot lines. The only disadvantage was that Disney made one movie out of three books, so some storylines and characters had to be cut out. It is very dark for a Disney movie, hence the PG rating. If you are looking for a classic Disney adventure, look no further, and see the adventures of Taran, Eiloinwy, Fflewdur, and Gurgi in Disney's The Black Cauldron.

51 I LOVE THIS MOVIE.
after hearing so much about it for all these years and in 1998, i finally got it on video and became very happy with it. the only Disney Animated Movie to be " PG-Rated" and i loved it.

Recommendations: The Last Unicorn, Dark Crystal, Labyrinth, Army of Darkness, Return to Oz, and Rock and Rule ( another forgotten 80's classic of PG animation.)

52 Great animated adventure, with exceptions.
This is a great, but dark, animated adventure. The movie is based (quite loosely) on the first of a trilogy of excellent books that another reviewer mentioned. If you take the movie on its own merit, without comparing to the books, it is a very good movie, but definately not one you should play in front of the smaller children. It has a lot of intense and scary scenes in it.

If you're an avid Disney DVD collector, especially if you're working on your "gold" collection, snatch this one up. But if you've got smaller children, and are looking for a more lighthearted film (ala Bambi, Dumbo, Peter Pan, etc) then you might want to pass this one by for now.

53 Looking for something other then the normal light hearted
Disney movie?Then the Black Cauldron is for you!!!Its Diseny's only movie with a PG rating and is quite good,no singing what so ever!!!That's a plus side right there!!!Its so much darker then your average Disney movie...Staring a pigboy,scullery maid,musicman,and a monket/dog(okay that's not what he is,but that's what he reminds me of.!But he adds comedy to the movie without that character this movie would fall pretty short though its not the best Disney movie ever made its still worth a watch!!!So check it out today!!!

54 Clean the dirt out of the cauldron,please!
What are they on about? It maybe was trying to mix with Alice in Wonderland with The Legend of Zelda, but it had frog eating witches in, magic pigs, a strange little mammal thing called Girgi and it gets worse; fluffy pink fairies! Why didn't they do a different story like Tom Thumb or Jack and the Beanstalk? Go buy Alice in Wonderland or Pinocchio...

55 This movie is nothing like the books...
The Chronicles of Prydain by Lloyd Alexander which include THE BLACK CAULDRON were among my favorites books when I was younger. I remember seeing this movie when it first came out and I hated it because the only thing this movie has in common with the books are the names of the characters. I say the names of the characters, because for the most part, the characters portrayed in this movie are nothing like the characters in the book. I am now an adult, and I recently re-read the books and rented this DVD. I knew the movie would be nothing like the books this time and discovered the movie to be a good but dark adventure. So the bottom line is... If you are expecting this movie to reflect any characters or plots from the books, you will be very disappointed. If you want a Disney adventure movie, it's fine. However, it is too intense for young children !

56 Not Based on The Black Cauldron by Lloyd Alexander
I saw the movie before reading the book. My reaction was "okay, lots of flaws, just okay." Then I read the book to my 5-year old. I was blown away by the story. It is a crime that this movie is even being called "The Black Cauldron". It has a few of the characters from the book, alters the characters it does have beyond recognition, and substitutes a DIFFERENT storyline from the book!

It's as if someone created a movie based on "The Lord of Rings" but decided it would be better to end the story with Frodo and Sauron locked up together in steel cage in a no holds barred wrestling match. It's that much of a travisty. Really.

My question is: why? Why would anyone take a classic of children's literature (which "The Black Cauldron" and all of the Prydain chronicles surely are) and say, "eh, we can do better. Let's rewrite it, but we'll still call it "The Black Cauldron". If your name is William Shakespeare, you can rewrite the source and get away with it. The people who rewrote "The Black Cauldron" are not William Shakespeare. And they're also not Lloyd Alexander, but at least they had the rights to his book, but choose not to use it.

Listen, take the money you would've spent either renting or buying this movie, march over to the book store (or click over to the book section of Amazon.com) and get the book. You'll save money and get a vastly better product.

57 Do NOT adjust your sets! It's not just another Disney film!
Lloyd Alexander's Taran books are sort of compiled together to get the plot of this movie. And the average 8+ year old might actually like the dark elements of the movie even though they give them goosebumps.

But be very, very sure you understand that this is NOT a typical Disney film. Audieces were very surprised this December with The Emperor's New Groove. I loved the movie because it owed more to the Road Runner and Tom & Jerry cartoons than the usual Disney fare.

But an awful lot of Disney fans felt cheated. They could not stand the movie. I know you were there, because you were complaining behind me all the way back to the car.

If you were one of those people, avoid The Black Cauldron, too.

You'll just upset yourself. And Disney has lots of other great films you'll like better.

For the rest of you: It's a little darker than the standard Disney fare. No hummable music. No singing man-beasts.

And not much humor.

For the adults out there, I think this is an important movie animation-wise. Bakshi worked on the film. Fans of Bakshi's Lord of the Rings and Wizards willrecognize and appreciate the style. Bakshi's shadowy, haunting world of the dead captures the feeling of helpless souls lost in the fog. Of course, for your eight year old, there are still cartoony zombies, monsters, et al. so necessary for the plot. :)

The more mature themes of are an early precursor for the darker parts of Disney's Hunchback movie (You know. The parts without the goofy gargoyles in them). Give it a try.

58 A Terrific DVD Release from Disney!!!
Lots of surprises on this DVD from the Disney Gold Classics Collection. For starters, it's released in its original theatrical ratio. This makes all the difference for a film like The Black Cauldron that was originally released in widescreen. There is no comparison between the DVD and VHS versions. Here, the special effects are much more impressive. Shadows, background art, and even entire characters can be seen that were lost in the pan and scan VHS copies. The Dolby digital soundtrack is also impressive. Disney has opened its vault to provide artwork, promotional materials, and even a favorite Donald Duck cartoon on this DVD. Thanks to everyone at Walt Disney Home Video involved in this first class release. Like The Rescuers Down Under (also in widescreen on DVD), this is the kind of quality we have come to expect from a company like Disney.

59 One should judge this with an open mind
I think the biggest problem people have with this movie is that it's not like other Disney movies. This means no happy happy joy joy attitude and no songs(which I actually find distracting in most disneymovies). Other than that I've heard people dissing it because it's not like the books. Well I haven't read the books but that might make me more objective cause I DO love this movie. I love dark stories and this is indeed a dark story. I mean in what other disneymovie do we get to see Undead.

Personally this is my favorite Disneymovie. It has magic, dragons, rather creepy villains(they could be straight out of a horror movie) and faeries. Also very noteworthy is Eilonwy. She's my favorite princess from all the Disney movies. It's funny to see how clumsy she and Taran act around eachother. Speaking of him. I think he's believable. He shares my wish to be great someday. Too bad I don't live in a magic kingdom tho... o well :)

Sure this movie looks a little dated compared to more recent Disneymovies but I mean we're talking the 80's here. When they didn't use 3D modeling to make 90% of the movie.

All I can say is that this is a charming movie which is way underrated. And that it's more likely to appeal to people with a darker taste(people who like Tim Burton's work for example) than to the typical Disney fan.

Okay that's my 2 cents for today.

60 Better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick
Actually that probably makes it sound worse than it is.

I actually liked this film. I initially purchased the DVD because I had been told that Tim Burton had worked on it. I never actually saw his name, but then again I could have missed it.

It is a little darker than most disney cartoons, but I think that is one of the things I liked about it. I never actually read the book, but have been told that the movie was pretty light weight in comparison, but that happens a lot.

Some of the plot is a little silly but its still a cute movie to watch. I was glad there was not a lot of singing in it as a lot times that is a put off for me.

The main problem I seem to have is that there is a defect in my copy of the DVD. It freezes up consistently at the same point in the movie which forces you to stop and then chapter selct and fast forward past that part. It is the only DVD I seem to have a problem with, so it may just be the copy I got.

61 This Lost Classic.................
...should have stayed lost.

Sorry Disney fans. I saw this at Radio City Hall many, many years ago during its premiere week. What a disappointment. While the animation was somewhat interesting, it failed to live up to its hype. Instead, the movie consisted of very loud rumbles, crashes, special effects. The characters were one-dimensional lacking any warmth or depth. Disney could have spent a little less on special effects and hired a screenwriter.

It gets 2 stars rather than 1 star only because it served as a prototype (only with respect to special effects) to Disney's renaissance animation (Little Mermaid, Beauty & the Beast, et. al.).

62 The Black What?
This movie came out originally when I was 7. All I remember was that it was really, really creepy and there was a cute little furry guy. And it faded into a distant memory, one that would stir up everyonce in awhile.Until Disney finally released it to video in 1998.

The Black Cauldron isn't your typical happy Disney movie, and that is what seperates it from everything else they have released. It IS very dark and creepy (even now as I'm 22). There aren't any joyful and happy songs every other Disney movie contains. The only real semblance it has is Gurgi, the cute sidekick.

This movie isn't for everyone. I would hesitate to show it to my 4 yr old sister. But don't let this discourage you from viewing one of Disney's best.

63 Why 2 stars? I read the book.
This is Lloyd Alexander's "Black Cauldron" on video. Sure, Dallben wears a skirt, Arawn and the Horned King are a single character, Fflewdur Fflam is a cowardly old man, the Fair Folk are flying, glowing gnomes, gwythaints are dragons, Arawn seeks the Black Cauldron instead of owning it, his armies consist of stupid barbarians instead of the deathless cauldron-born, Henwen doesn't run away, Orwen, Orddu, and Orgoch are standard Halloween witches, Taran trades Dyrnwyn for the Crochan (which isn't referred to as such), and Coll, Gwydeon, Ellydyr, King Smoit, and Arwen are absent altogether, but, really, do you care? I certainly do!

This video's title is very misleading; rather than following the book it shares its title with, "The Black Cauldron" is a mish-mash of that book and "The Book of Three", with some Disney cartoon formulas thrown in for good measure (such as a cute sidekick). There's some good dialog with fairly authentic English accents, but all characters' mannerisms from the books were dropped, resulting in some boring word exchanges. The animation is fairly good in places. Whatever charm this animated version may have, it is wasted on me and anyone who actually read any books from the immortal "Chronicles of Prydain".

64 This is GREAT animation!
Of all the animated films Walt Disney Pictures has produced over the last 60+ years, "The Black Cauldron" is perhaps the least well-known. Upon initial release it was a commercial disaster, and was greeted with a cool reception by critics. That was July of 1985. It is hard to decipher, however, why the film has been Disney's "black sheep" aside from its non-performance at the turnstiles. Viewed on its own terms, it is a marvelous animated film, kept too long from its potential admirers. It is for one thing based on Lloyd Alexander's masterful pentology "The Chronicles of Prydain". Those who crave a great Arthurian legend (and in this age of Harry Potter mythology seems to be the greatest fad ever wrought upon mankind) this film should not be missed. It is admittedly not of the calibre of the books upon which it is based- the main action of the animated feature borrows sequences and characters from the stories which were never directly associated with one another- this is the film's most noteworthy fallacy. Also, it is not-repeat NOT- a musical, one of the very few Disney films driven by action instead of music. I'd be wanton to consider this a fault. Charming as Disney tunes are, there ought to be exceptions, and this is one example of an exception to the rule unfairly judged. The characters themselves are quite enjoyable- Taran is a bit bland, but Eilonwy, Gurgi, Fflewdur Fflam and Creeper are first rate animated heroes. The Horned King is voiced and depicted expertly and arouses genuine terror. This movie is quite distinct from the earlier Arthurian legend animated by Disney ("The Sword In The Stone") but it is clearly related to Disney's first television success, "The Gummi Bears" likewise set in similar times and with the same characters under different guises (Cavin IS Taran, Calla IS Eilonwy, and Toadie is most definitely Creeper!) This film will be enjoyed by many generations of children and adults- thankfully Disney has decided to make it available at last to its future audience.

65 Disappointing and quite mediocre
The Books should not be ignored. This sorry film is just horrible. Where are the battles and drama I'm hungry for. I've read the books. Doly can do so much more than grumble. Taran has a horse. The horned king is not the original villian. For the love of Prydain. Avoid this movie like a bad habit.

66 Unusual
Unusual for me to give a Disney animated feature only four stars, but I feel that's about right. This is definitely a good movie worth having, but don't think you're going to see a old classic like Lady and the Tramp, or a modern classic like Aladdin. This is from a somewhat ambiguous time in Disney Animation history. It's pretty evident in the film also, but I think the main problem was the story itself. Well, here's the bottom line, a film like this seems to only appeal to fans of this sort of story, a tale in a sort of Hobbit type setting. A medievel world that really doesn't seem like the real medievel times, and yet is definitely the medievel times of...somewhere. It's hard for most people to be interested in that type of film. You'll find that while stories like the Hobbit are successful, it's really only with a certain group of people. This is why the film bombed, not because of the controversy of it's PG rating. I remember that too, but only the critics ever make a big deal of stuff like that. So the villain was a little excessive for Disney's usual style. The whole film was too dark in my opinion, and that's not because I don't like dark films, it's because it just had a somewhat dim look to it. I'll say this, Princess Eilonwy is probably one of the most captivating of all the Disney Princesses. Too bad she's been so neglected by the Disney Store! Actually, this whole film has been far too neglected, even with it's flaws. The heroes are great, it's just the story, setting, dim picture, and unclear sound (typical of animation from that period)that severely hurts this film. What saves it are the Princess and Gurgi. They make it definitely worth buying and worth naming as a Disney classic. I noticed one reviewer comparing this to the Gummi Bears. Well, I can see his point, but this is also a good example of why it wasn't successful. There are some big differences between the two that made Gummis successful and Cauldron unsuccessful. Both of them have an equally charming and angelic princess that has been neglected by Disney, but the Gummi Bears was so much better because of the clear, bright colors and sound, the strong element of fun and magic brought about by the little bears that were like have 6 Gurgis around, and the Villain who was not always on his game, something that always makes a film better, and one of the main things, Gummis had few if any of those drab English accents that only make a movie like Cauldron less easy to watch. The bottom line is this is a good movie, but don't expect it to be like the usual Disney fare. This is more like taking the Hobbit(yuck) and changing it so that the animation is actually animated, the main characters are actually cute and likable, and, well, that's about it. The Hobbit with better characters and animation. If you liked the hobbit even a little bit, this will be your new favorite movie, if you love Disney animated films, you'll like this movie, but it won't reach the point the others have, but you'll fall in love with the princess. Heck, if you just like cute cartoon girls, get it for her, it's worth it. So...thumbs up, but don't expect too, too much. Still, it's better than the stuff from most other animation studios!

67 Nice try, but no cigar.
There is a lot to say about the Black Cauldron... The music's great, the animation and effects are adequate... the story... what story? In the turmoil that was the "next generation" at Disney, the continuity and heart of The Black Cauldron got lost in the crowd. There are a few funny and scary moments, but for the most part this feature leaves a bad aftertaste. This is what happens when Disney tries to market a PG feature to a G audience... a lackluster product.

If you are an animator or artist, you will find this film interesting. Otherwise, try something else.

68 brilliant
So it's not like the book, not by a mile. But as a disney movie this one is quite a jewel. I remember seeing it in the theaters when I was just a little kid and I was impressed, it was dark and gritty and it was everything a Disney movie wasn't. It left a mark on me that would haunt me for years to come...

As years went by the movie became a vague memory that would always be there on the background. every now and then it would pop up and it made me think "whatever did happen to that movie?"

And then the moment of truth arrived, I purchased the movie and once more I was impressed. The grim drawings, the visually frightning villain and the intruiging story of the assistant pig-keeper named Taran. I never did understand why this movie was banned from the stables by Disney, it might not be what they are known for making, it's still a work of quality.

No collection is complete without this movie.

I only wish Disney would make more of these movies in the future..

69 Here's hoping Disney has restored the cut footage...
...there was about 9 minutes of completed footage cut from the final film that showed the "un-dead" rising from the graves and advancing towards the castle to become part of the horned king's army. BEAUTIFUL stuff--even if it doesn't make the film a great film. The film was also completely re-cut when everything was completed. While most Disney animations go through continuous change up to the end, they have never been "completed" and then "re-cut." The original version was a bit to scary for the suits at the studio. Since it's pretty much been relegated to "ugly-step sister" status, it's a shame they couldn't have at least released the original version. OR--at least, show the extra footage... All that said, it really is just an awful movie, with horrible dialogue, horrible animation, and horrible color.

70 Disney's medieval tale represents the calm before the storm
THE BLACK CAULDRON has achieved cult status only because it is the Disney studio's biggest box-office failure from the "dark ages" of the seventies to the mid-'80s.

THE BLACK CAULDRON may be the most ambitious film in Disney's history (at least of that era), but yet is one of its least memorable endeavours. It's not the worst film Disney has ever made, but it just doesn't rank up with the "classic" characters and stories it is famous for. The only truly memorable character in THE BLACK CAULDRON is the comical little Gurgi, who ironically is nowhere to be found in Lloyd Alexander's series. The producers of the film wisely had most of the characters speak in Welsh accents to ensure authenticity, and not in Californian or Southern accents. The most spectacular moments are when Taran and his friends are confronted by the Emperor King in his dark, creepy castle. But most of the scenes in THE BLACK CAULDRON could have easily been made as a live-action feature, making this animated feature appear a little pretentious at times.

I've read that loyal fans of Lloyd Alexander's work and THE BLACK CAULDRON consider this film a cult classic. I'd prefer to classify it as an interesting curio, and not much more than that.

71 They need to make a live action version!
Okay, so the Disney version of The Black Cauldron isn't exactly like the book. Disney left out LOTS of characters and rather stupidly cut parts out of the personalities of certain characters (read: Eilonwy and Fflewddur). However, if you have never read the book, you will definitely enjoy the movie. The story is basically about a young boy who goes on a quest to find an oracular pig and a magical cauldron that must be destroyed, or else the country of Prydain will be in mortal danger. On the way, our hero meets several companions who help him on his journey. The animation was good in this film, but no animated movie can fully capture the essence of Lloyd Alexander's book series. I think that Disney seriously needs to make a live-action movie of TBC and maybe another for The High King. If anyone reading this agrees with me, I'd love to hear from you! Eventually I want to form a petition to send to Disney, but I need your help!

72 The Lost Disney Animated Movie...
Not too many remember when this movie was released... it BOMBED in theatres.
Why?
For starters, no one was ready for a PG rated Disney cartoon... especially one that IS NOT a musical. I think it lasted about two weeks in the theaters, then Disney pulled it.

(Something else people might not realize is that, while a failure in theaters, The Black Cauldron was modified and ported over into TV. It became one of Disney's most successful animated TV series: The Gummy Bears. While Taran, Eilonwy, and Creeper are renamed and not the main characters, they are in there!)

Left in the Disney vaults until 1998, this now restored full-length animated feature is a gem, if not a bit rough around the edges. Without your standard "filler" material of songs and silly dancing, The Black Cauldron uses dialog, stunning animation, and action to keep it moving.

The movie is dark, foreboding, and just plain creepy. It is rated PG, and I DO NOT recommend letting your kids sit in front of this one alone!

But for all its good points, The Black Cauldron strays far from Lloyd Alexander's books, too much is left unexplained, and you never get the chance to really care for any of the characters. Compared to other Disney movies, this is a major change as we're always drawn in and quickly bond with the lead characters.

Oh, and contrary to what other reviewers have said, this was NOT Disney's first PG rated movie. That honor goes to The Black Hole (1979).

While this movie is a must for Disney collectors, the rest of us could pass it up and not miss much.

73 A second opinion
Well kiss my grits! I just fell victim to public opinion. That's something I swore I would never do. Some people don't like to admit if they're wrong. I'm not that kind of person. Sometimes it takes a second, or in this case a third, viewing to jog the old memory and see the true value of a movie. That's what happened to me. Upon closer inspection, this movie isn't all that bad. Okay, it is true that the characters could be developed a bit more, but does anybody really concentrate on development while watching a Disney movie? For an 80s movie, the animation style looks very 70s. The movie also drifts into some bad moments, including the odd fantasy cliche. If you can look beyond those elements, you'll find a movie that's quite all right. The characters also aren't all that bad. This movie plays like The Sword in the Stone, but without the humor. This isn't for the really young kids, however. I wasn't kidding when I said this movie was scary. This movie certainly is better than some of the stuff brought out in the 90s, which seem to rely too heavily on big musical numbers and jokes.

74 So-so, not the worst
When I saw it in theaters as a kid, I thought it was one of the greatest animated movies ever. When I saw it again years later on video, I was like, "What happened?" What I saw on the video was what I didn't see as a kid, a kid who was excited about the fantasy and adventure and the amazing special effects of the movie. I saw a boring, lifeless movie with little or no heart and too much emphasis on being a dark, spooky fantasy adventure. The animators must've forgotten to breathe life into the characters, because almost all of them are unmemorable and shallow. Gurgi steals the spotlight and also proves to be the most heroic, but at first he comes off as just a silly creature and a thief. The villain will frighten young kids, and the movie tries to be scary just for the sake of being scary. There is no real drama here, only eerie effects and lots of living skeletons. Almost all of the conflict is external, and even then it's cheap. Equate The Black Cauldron to the stereotypical villain who laughs cheesily at the captured heroes and reveals his plans to them before trying to kill them, and you're not too far off. Besides the fairy tales, Disney must not have done a fantasy story before because in an attempt to make a dark fantasy tale, they forgot to throw in the things important to all tales. With that said, it's certainly not the worst Disney movie. I think Hercules takes that honor. A lot of people like The Black Cauldron, too, so I'll take my chances and say rent it first. But if you want something more fun, look ahead in the timeline to movies like The Lion King or Aladdin or, for some real gems, look just a few years back for The Fox and the Hound or even earlier for Bambi or Lady and the Tramp.

75 It's lovely, but.....
There is an actually book,' The Black Cauldron,' though the series itself begins with,' The Book of Three.' In my opinion, Disney pasted much of 'The Book of Three' into this movie without really giving it any meaning. It's also missing some very valuable-and lovely-characters. Kind of a disappointment.

76 Great movie, but read the book!
This movie came out just after Micheal Eisner's taking the reins at Disney, and his intervention just before the film's release shows. There are some non sequiters in the film where the over three minutes of last minute edits interrupt the flow. But if you want the full experience, read Lloyd Alexander's books on this starting with the "Book of Three," and then followed by "The Black Cauldron." Alexander's story telling ability conveys far more than even Disney's animation expertise ever could!

77 evil
nothing personal, but I am outraged this movie was totaly inaccurate! they made Gurgi look like a dog when really he is a humble creature of the forest. in the books (in my opinoin) he looks like a monkey. Another thing Taran has black hair not brown. I'll bet anything the makers of this movie have not even seen the cover of the original book. they didn't even have Gwdyion prince of the house of Don (you have to read the book to know what I'm talking about.) IN CONCLUSION I SAY THAT THIS MOVIE CAN ONLY BE DESCIBED AS EVIL!

78 Not too bad
I first just wanted to say, no movie (whether Disney or another studio) will ever be able to capture the magic of the books! The Prydain Chronicles by Lloyd Alexander are nothing short of wonderful!

With that said, the movie itself, wasn't too bad. The animation done in 70mm film (as opposed to 35mm) is breathtaking. I would have liked to see more developed plot and characters. Disney could have developed the characters of Taran and Eilonwy a lot more (Eilonwy is in the books a Princess, but pretends to be an ordinary girl, which seemed unfortuantely the vise versa in the movie). One last point, a reviewer stated that Lloyd Alexander would be rolling in his grave at this movie. Actually, he wouldn't. For one thing, he's still very much alive and writing avidly. And for another, he sold the rights to the film to Disney and had the final say in the screenplay...so for the most part the person who created the books does approve of the movie!

79 What can i say? This movie is just too good.
Well, i have to admit i haven't read any of the books that this movie was formed on (as soon as i get the chance, i'm going too! i can't wait!), but all i know is that i adore this movie. i first saw it when i was only a little kid, like seven or something, and i'm still watching it constantly at sixteen. there's just something enduring about the film, and it seems that the action hardly ever stops. it may be a little too scary for younger kids, though, but i know i love it.

80 Good Movie but READ THE BOOKS - They are MUCH Better...
I really liked this movie, it reminded me of the video game I used to play, The Black Cauldron. However it is really nothing like the 5 books of the Chronicles of Prydain. These books are much more amazing than the movie. The books have many more characters that you never see in the movie, the movie has scenes which NEVER happen in the book. However I give it 4 stars because 1) It IS a good movie still and 2) Because of the fact that the movie is different than the books it kind of creates its own story which is unique and by watching this movie you don't ruin the experience of the Chronicles of Prydain because you can still read the books and they are basically a very different story. THANKS -- Good Movie but Read the Books! Also in response to one reviewer's suggestion that Lloyd Alexander was rolling in his grave, UM, that is pretty hard to do when you are still alive....

81 Ambitious and Different; a nice change!
After "101 Dalmatians" in 1961, Disney was not to release another true "animated masterpiece" until "Little Mermaid" in 1989. That said, "Black Cauldron" is one of the best films of this "inbetween" era. The animation is striking and the storyline (while occasionally meandering) is a compelling and exciting one. I like how the cute characters in the film, like Gurgi and Hen Wen, are ESSENTIAL to the plot, not thrown in just for the sake of having something cute (like in many a Disney film). All in all, seeing this movie as a child validates it to me as one of the true Disney "classics." It's for people like me that this film rightfully deserved its long awaited video release.

82 I love this film to death!
This is an amazing film. Even though it doesn't follow the books (and yes, I have read them) it's still fantastic. The movie has branched off from where the books couldn't have followed. Many of the wonderful characters from the books couldn't have been added due to animation purposes (can you imagine having 30+ characters to animate? To try to do so would have been silly). The characters are Disney-ized but in a positive way and still being faithful to the books. The animation is beautiful, using top-notch technology for it's time (first Disney film to use computer animation). The Horned King and the Cauldron Born are too scary for young childern. But with most things they see on TV today, it shouldn't scare them in the least. The PG rating is a bit harsh. Fans of the book shouldn't judge this film too harshly, everything can't be exactly like the books. It's like messing with perfection.

83 Good but too scary for kids.
The movie has a story line, but the animation was not for kids. My 2 yr. old nephew loves Gurgi but runs to me every time the Horned King comes on. I love this Disney movie, but it loses some of the characters from the book. Plus the use of dark colors contrasts with the lovely plot.

84 deflated...disney sucked the core right out of it
Lloyd Alexander, the author of the actual series that this movie was based on, is probably turning over in his grave because of this. He created his books for children and young adults with care and skill, making it funny, tragic, and even romantic to some extent... all the components that are found in real life, even though it was a fantasy. And to risk sounding like a fanatical hippie, the message it portrayed was deep. I suppose I should be used to disney productions screwing things up by now, but I was appalled at how they took such a wonderful story and boiled it down to such and airhead concepted "adventure."

85 Did the scriptwriter even read the original?
The Black Cauldron is a conflation of the first two Prydain novels, and to get them together, they drop most of the interesting characters. The books were never about just Taran and Eilonwy (sp?), but also Adaon, Annlaw Clay-Shaper, and the other dozen-or-so memorable characters who drift in and out of the narrative. On top of it all, the ending is turned 180 degrees around from the original meaning -- unforgivable. At least with "Hunchback", there were precedents in earlier versions...

86 Um...........huh?
I always wondered why this movie tanked at the box office. Now I know. This floundering animated feature from Disney should never have been let out of the vaults. One of the sub-plots concerns a clairvoyant pig, (!!!) who apparently can foretell the future by sticking it's head in a bowl of water. (How's that again???) Too frightening for children, and too ridiculous for adults, it's unclear which audience this movie was supposed to target. And then there's "Gurgi", one of the most annoying creations ever in an animated film........(let's not even go into that one.....) Your money would be much better spent on one of Disney's tried and true classics; certainly not on this drivel.

87 Best Disney Movie Ever!
If you're looking for a typical Disney movie then this isn't the one to see. It's the only Disney with a PG rating and is very dark. For those who don't like Disney, this is the movie to see. If you're looking for it to be like the books... sorry, but that's not necessarily what movies are about. This is an excellent show! A "spell-binding saga of swords, sorcery, and magic!"

88 ONE OF THE WORST DISNEY MOVIES
This is a rancid excuse for a disney movie{Considering no one, including my parents have ever hear of it}. Disney changed everything around, not living up to the Chronicles of Pridain books at all. And this movie is rated PG???? Could've been alot better.

89 Doesn't live up to the books
This movie completely butchered the books. I mean, they don't even include Coll, Acren, Arawn, and many others. Eilonwy is just a princess, not a princess of Llyr.If I hadn't read the books before I saw this movie, I probably would have loved it, but I did read the books. I really think people should read the books before they go blabbing about how good it is.All in all, don't buy it. It's expensive, has bad animation, nobody looks like they should, Gurgi is all cutesy, and the plot is VERY DUMB. While the books are marvelous, Disney did a cheap job on this movie. Go read the books. By now, you can probably tell that I'm trying to get something across to you:GO READ THE BOOKS!

90 Excellent!!!!!!
I am in awe of this movie! It was my favorite movie as a kid, and it is about time they re-released this masterpiece. It may be no Pinocchio however, but it is one of Disneys best.

91 Good.
This movie is sure not one of Disney's best, but is a quite interesting move from the "Disney-style". I loved its dark atmosphere and the animation was really good. The only problem I see with The Black Cauldron is in the script. It all happens too fast and there are pointless situations that just interfere with the main plot. I think with a better script it would have been a great movie worth 5 stars (despite its PG rating).

92 What an incredible film!
What a masterpiece! Disney has done it again! There are so many wonderful moments in this film! The "Creeper" steals the show! Hats off to Phil Fondacaro!

93 Worth a view!
A different direction for Disney, beautiful but dark, definately a film to add to your collection it is witness that Disney does not do all their animation with formula.

94 go see 101 dalmations!
A very disapointing movie that I think if any child saw he/she would have nightmares for the next week.scary, pointless and somewhat unusual for disney.

95 a deffinent disney masterpiece
Disney's 25 full length animated feature The Black Cauldron(1985),I think lives up to Lloyd Aleander's Chronicels of Prydain books.People should care more about this film,becouse it was the first PG rated, and edited cartoon. It was very expensive and it has some of Disney's best animation.