The Sword In The Stone (1963)

 

Genre: Family/ Musical 

Time: 1h 19mins

Directors: Wolfgang Reitherman, Clyde Geronimi, David Hand

Quick Summary: A poor boy named Arthur learns the power of love, kindness, knowledge and bravery with the help of a wizard called Merlin on the path to become one of the most beloved kings in English history.

You know I'm shocked about a film about the beginning of King Arthur and Merlin for it to be so boring. 

I think young kids will probably enjoy the silly antics Arthur and Merlin get up to as various animals since they're all pretty hectic and have the same formula of messing around and learning to be the animal they are, and then they are chased by a predator, so then they work together or Arthur uses his brain to work out how to get away. That's really it for most of the film. It's funny too because this starts off with the story of "the sword in the stone" and then forgets about it until the last ten minutes.

Merlin himself is so relatable as an adult as well as Archimedes. Both of them are charming and Grumpy in their own ways, and the way they bickered between themselves really brought up the mood of the duller segments. Merlin himself is whimsical and quirky, making any situation fun by livening things up with magic or pulling harmless tricks on people to get them to be nicer. Most of the time his magic goes wrong which results in some form of slapstick bit which is bound to make kids laugh, or like me, an adult with a kid's sense of humour. Archimedes is sarcastic and pessimistic, seeing the danger in most of the things Merlin tries to do. Honestly, I just loved how grumpy and tired he was all the time.

Like I said, this is pretty boring. Aside from one song sung by Merlin, "Higitus Figitus", the rest were pretty dull. This film isn't really up to Disney's old standard and it's obvious there are a lot of corners cut. I mean the sketchy animation worked in 101 Dalmations because there was style to it, where this feels rushed and lazy in places. The only real interesting part of this was the magical fight between Merlin and Madam Mim. While Madam Min was also pretty funky and a bit out there, nothing could top Merlin's wit and quirkiness. It was so fun watching them quickly change from one animal to another trying to beat the other by transforming into the bigger animal. After this fight, it goes back to being rather dull. 

This had the potential to be a grand journey of learning and growth for Arthur, but they chose the humourous slapstick side of the story. It's obvious they wanted this one out as quick as they could. Even now after a few days, this isn't very memorable. If it wasn't for the humour, my attention would have been blown to Bermuda. 

5/10

"Arthur: Oh, Merlin! You're back from Ber... Ber... Ber... 

Merlin: Bermuda? Yes, back from Bermuda and the 20th century, heh-heh. And, believe me, you can have it. One big modern mess!"

"Merlin: Blow me to Bermuda!

[Merlin suddenly blasts off like a rocket]

Arthur: Where... W-where did he go?

Archimedes the Owl: To Bermuda, I suppose."

"Merlin: Now, now, Mim, Mim, no... no dragons, remember?

Madame Mim: Did I say no purple dragons? Did I?"

The themed food me and my Partner made: 

Chicken leg Roast and Honey cake