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The Sword in the Stone
The Sword in the Stone
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The Sword in the Stone

The Sword in the Stone

1963
Comedy, Family/Kids
1h 19m
Merlin the Magician teaches a young boy who is destined to be King Arthur. (imdb)

Directed by:

Wolfgang Reitherman

Screenwriter:

Bill Peet, T.H. White

Starring:

Sebastian Cabot, Norman Alden, Alan Napier, Karl Swenson, Rickie Sorensen, Junius Matthews, Ginny Tyler, Martha Wentworth

Genres:

Comedy, Family/Kids, Adventure, Animation

Country:

USA

Language:

English
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The Sword in the Stone

1963
Comedy, Family/Kids
1h 19m
Your probable score
Ratings & Reviews Cast Collections Similar Stats Trailer
Avg Percentile 52.42% from 2513 total ratings
Ratings & Reviews Cast Collections Similar Stats Trailer

Ratings & Reviews

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beedubBeeDub
Rated 16 Apr 2021
85
62nd
Hockety pockety wockety wack.
Rated 16 Apr 2021
paxtonPaxton
Rated 13 Dec 2019
76
71st
It works as family filler time. The magic fight is a show stopper and, to be honest, once you realize it's floating around Youtube in its entirety watching the movie itself is an unnecessary endeavor. Mentally prepares children to be obliterated by Willow.
Rated 13 Dec 2019
arossaross
Rated 23 Jan 2024
63
20th
A classic animation style and some fun moments aren't enough to save this movie. How can you get bored during something that is 80 minutes long? The story really doesn't work. The sword in the stone bit is introduced briefly at the beginning and comes out of nowhere at the end. This is really just a few lengthy scenes of Arthur being turned into an animal and running away from things.
Rated 23 Jan 2024
myfavchordsmyfavchords
Rated 02 Jul 2023
72
34th
This film does have some dated material, was there really need to have 2 horny female squirrel characters? There are some fun scenes in this movie and kids should enjoy it. Overall I would recommend this film to anyone who likes classic animated movies. .
Rated 02 Jul 2023
silpSilp
Rated 28 Oct 2017
100
97th
A childhood obsession. The movie I've seen every day, for years, unrelentlessly. The ÜberVHS. The curse of my family. The thing that made my world go round.
Rated 28 Oct 2017
macswellMacSwell
Rated 02 Mar 2015
85
87th
A lesser effort in the Disney canon, this excellent take on Arthurian legend is nevertheless a real delight. It's well-animated and highly creative, with some fantastically zany sequences involving dancing furniture, animal transformations and, best of all, a priceless wizard duel.
Rated 02 Mar 2015
davidjohnsonDavidJohnson
Rated 05 Apr 2012
59
34th
Pretty forgettable Disney animated film. Not really bad, but just not memorable at all. I was extremely disappointed they didn't focus on the main point of the movie, the sword in the stone. Instead they just mention it at the beginning, and follow up near the end, which makes up about 6 minutes out of over an hour run time. There some neat scenes though, the squirrel scene was cute, and the dish scene was fun. I didn't particularly like the references to 20th century, they seemed out of place.
Rated 05 Apr 2012
jarobmuljarobmul
Rated 10 Sep 2022
67
41st
Not a very interesting story, and whaaat is up with the main character's voice?!?!?!
Rated 10 Sep 2022
ofterdingenOfterdingen
Rated 16 Dec 2017
60
52nd
The sword in the stone part is about 5 percent of the movie. The rest is a silly wizard and his apprentice turning into different animals. Occasionally charming.
Rated 16 Dec 2017
letskillrobotsletskillrobots
Rated 10 Dec 2013
12
27th
Yeah we get it it's about the dangers of unprotected sex. No need to drag it out.
Rated 10 Dec 2013
dunbardunbar
Rated 07 Sep 2010
60
25th
Another fairytale brought to cartoon. A bit simple and short, the characters are a little less endearing than most Disney works.
Rated 07 Sep 2010
martrynmartryn
Rated 25 Aug 2008
75
65th
One of the greatest Disney films of all time. I say that about a lot of Disney films, but this one really does resonate with me due to the fantasy aspect of it. What boy, growing up, doesn't like swords and sorcery, right?
Rated 25 Aug 2008
thedenizenTheDenizen
Rated 14 Aug 2007
75
75th
One of the few animated Disney films I genuinely enjoy. The magic battle between the two wizards was one of the coolest things I'd ever seen when I was a kid.
Rated 14 Aug 2007
forehead1forehead1
Rated 23 Oct 2024
50
48th
Loved this as a young child, but after my first viewing in at least 30 years I’m not sure quite why. Much of the runtime is just Merlin and Wart pratting around as fish, squirrels, birds, etc. and the actual sword in the stone stuff doesn’t appear til about five minutes from the end. Perhaps nostalgia helps push it over the line.
Rated 23 Oct 2024
halfempty3dglassesHalfEmpty3DGlasses
Rated 14 May 2024
21
29th
Containing the most incoherent "plot" of any Disney movie, the history behind this movie is what I found most entertaining with this film. The kid they hired for Arthur's voice got puberty and the kid who replaced him hit puberty, so there's 3 different V/As for the same character. Neato facto. Uhh, this is the Sherman Brothers' first Disney movie, although the music I find forgettable, but that might be the movie talking. (Or the chocolate fondue, holy crap Lois, a Disney reference)
Rated 14 May 2024
jsoundsJSounds
Rated 09 Apr 2023
35
9th
NOTHING. HAPPENS.
Rated 09 Apr 2023
dullshimmerDullshimmer
Rated 29 Oct 2022
70
17th
There are some fun moments here, I always enjoyed the animal transformations with the high point of the wizard's duel. While these moments are fun, the story lacks any kind of cohesion, there is no sign of Arthur having grown or changed at all through the movie. It also just ends really abruptly. It's okay, but there are better Disney movies and just kid's movies in general.
Rated 29 Oct 2022
kasperlKasperL
Rated 25 Mar 2022
75
77th
With two hugely likeable lead characters and plenty of child-friendly adventures, this is a pretty great family movie.
Rated 25 Mar 2022
glumpy99glumpy_99
Rated 23 Feb 2022
34
4th
Lackluster and by-the-numbers Disney effort; the legend of King Arthur would seem like fertile ground for an exciting fantasy film, but turning the material into a strange, gender-swapped version of CINDERELLA (!!!!) and housing it in some surprisingly shoddy and ugly animation sinks it quickly. Story elements and characters feel like hastily reassembled knock-offs of past successes; sputters to life a little during the climactic duel with Madam Mim, but by then it’s too little too late.
Rated 23 Feb 2022
moraesfelipemoraesfelipe
Rated 27 May 2021
65
61st
Seems too self-contained and flat - older films look spatially more vivid - but music is great and fact that it barely has a plot provides a cool, relaxing collection of quirky vignettes by Merlin (who can time travel and knows everything is gonna happen, specially inventions) - miniaturizing stuff into his sole bag, cleaning Arthur's dirty kitchen, fighting Mim in a shape-shifter duel - and his wisdom teachings about nature and hardships of life to this orphan kid - as fish, squirrel and bird.
Rated 27 May 2021
isitsafeIsItSafe?
Rated 07 Dec 2020
71
64th
A sweet retelling of the classic tale. Employs situational comedy that's either hit or miss.
Rated 07 Dec 2020
quintonjaminQuintonjamin
Rated 30 May 2020
50
35th
Wart becoming king is just thrown on at the end of a few scenes of him learning lessons as animals. Those scenes are somewhat enjoyable though. I wish the songs saved the movie, but they really aren't any good.
Rated 30 May 2020
nathanbatesNathanBates
Rated 07 Feb 2020
60
35th
I remember reading the TH White book and being pretty confused during part 1, as it dealt with Arthur (who we then only knew as Wart) learning with Merlin. This movie borrows from that, but infuses the original with song and dance routines. It harkens back to when childhood movies didn't have to beat you over the head with their message. Unfortunately, this seems to be prep for a second movie that never happened, so there's a lot of plot points that seem to be wasted. Still mildly entertaining.
Rated 07 Feb 2020
future42future42
Rated 17 Nov 2019
30
34th
A cute Disney cartoon, but there is 0 plot. A wizard turns a boy into some animals and then he pulls the sword from the stone the end.
Rated 17 Nov 2019
war_machineWar Machine
Rated 30 May 2019
69
49th
Kingdie-swordappear-sayswhopulloutisking-nonecould-swordforgotten-darkage+artstopsdeerkill+merlinknowsfuture/inventions/discoveriesetc+Mwannateachhim+tourneyforcrown+fish+squirrel-girllikeshimlol-onelikesM:P+girlcriescuzarthumanlol+bird-landsinMadameMim's-meanwitch+merlinsaves-wizard'sduel+shelosingsocheatsasdragon-hebecomesadiseasetowin:P+merlindipscuzmadartwannabesquire+forgotswordsotakesfromstone-putitbacktoconfirm:P+merlinbackfrom20thcentury/helps+animalsgotboring-didntlearncoolenoughshit
Rated 30 May 2019
radumsmnradumsmn
Rated 30 Dec 2017
68
41st
How come back in the day they did not care about character development in animations?
Rated 30 Dec 2017
olliettOllieTT
Rated 26 Jun 2017
25
5th
Lacking in pretty much anything.
Rated 26 Jun 2017
joelwatchesmoviesjoelwatchesmovies
Rated 03 Sep 2016
6
42nd
The book-ending bits after which the film is named end up feeling like unnecessary additions to its central story-a charmingly aimless little tale of a bumbling old wizard taking a gangly young boy under his wing and teaching him life lessons (see his line about love and gravity) through experiencing the lives of three different animals. Full of fun slapstick (see the recurring wolf gag) and whimsical animation (literally-see the live dishes), with one particularly enjoyable wizard's duel.
Rated 03 Sep 2016
vorpalkittenVorpalKitten
Rated 22 Jan 2016
75
40th
[Jan 22, 2016 - 2nd viewing] Dated, obviously, and aimed at children rather than 'everyone' as such movies are nowadays. Not really worth rewatching, though the wizard duel at the end is fun.
Rated 22 Jan 2016
lumpnboylumpnboy
Rated 13 Sep 2015
15
1st
Unwatchable. Literally - this score is based on the slightly less than two-thirds of the movie I saw before being granted the right to stop by the person I was with.
Rated 13 Sep 2015
dorothyozDorothyOz
Rated 23 Aug 2015
70
53rd
Pretty average Disney
Rated 23 Aug 2015
ytadelYtadel
Rated 24 Mar 2015
5
57th
(2014-15 Disneython #12:) Not one of my favorite Disney films. Certainly some charming and amusing bits (mostly involving Arthur turning into various animals), but overall I find the story thin even for its 79-minute runtime. It feels claustrophobic and underpopulated.
Rated 24 Mar 2015
vengefulkbmVengefulKBM
Rated 09 Feb 2015
55
30th
I like the bits with Merlin and Archimedes. I'll pass on all the rest (including the songs, which are some of Disney's worst).
Rated 09 Feb 2015
judge_holdenJudge Holden
Rated 03 Jan 2015
3
32nd
A rather disjointed and aimless Disney "classic". I liked Surfer Merlin, though. I'd chill with that guy.
Rated 03 Jan 2015
amazedemonamazedemon
Rated 18 Aug 2014
59
17th
The Sword in the Stone is one of Disney's more aimless projects, though unfortunately the weak characters don't make up for the lack of narrative. Merlin is crotchety old man whose two teaching gimmick are to turn is pupil into an animal or brag about the future. Madam Mim, who the closest thing to a villain, appear 20 minutes before the end of the film and is basically a non-entity. Squandering both the magic and time-travel concepts, we're just left with a disappointing portrayal of Arthur.
Rated 18 Aug 2014
sirstuckeySirStuckey
Rated 16 Jul 2014
55
28th
Merlin taught Arthur about love by having him get nearly raped. This was the least threatening of all his teaching moments. Merlin is a terrible teacher.
Rated 16 Jul 2014
the_pirateThe Pirate
Rated 05 Jan 2014
59
15th
To be an educated person Arthur, you must know what it's like to be a squirrel and a fish and a bird! Oh yeah, go pull that sword out of the stone will ya? Thanks. WHAT?! Now you're a king?! Whoa!!
Rated 05 Jan 2014
janusjanus
Rated 08 Dec 2013
65
41st
It's certainly charming, and the wizards' duel is one of the best sequences in Disney history, but the values the filmmakers express through Merlin clash badly with the Arthurian legend they indeed go to great pains to put off actually telling. Senseless plotting aside, stylistically the film suffers from too much rotoscoping while benefits from aping Chuck Jones.
Rated 08 Dec 2013
eric_janeric-jan
Rated 05 Sep 2013
75
74th
One of the better Disney movies!!! Loved it :), especially Merlin :D
Rated 05 Sep 2013
synthonosynthono
Rated 08 Jun 2013
82
56th
Minor, but charming.
Rated 08 Jun 2013
temielTemiel
Rated 06 May 2013
87
74th
I love rewatching this. The animation is old-school in the best way, and the movie as a whole is just too much fun not to like.
Rated 06 May 2013
svengaliSvengali
Rated 12 Sep 2012
49
30th
Kyle is a fucking cunt.
Rated 12 Sep 2012
baggerBagger
Rated 01 Aug 2012
60
29th
A watchable film, but hard to rewatch because of some serious pacing issues.
Rated 01 Aug 2012
mervtaylorMerv_Taylor
Rated 16 Jun 2012
85
58th
Pretty cool, aged poorly
Rated 16 Jun 2012
el_pedroEl Pedro
Rated 18 Mar 2011
74
63rd
A charming disney classic with a enjoyingly laughing owl!
Rated 18 Mar 2011
discopunk0discopunk0
Rated 17 Jan 2011
65
32nd
A bit hard to judge; a kids movie I saw ages ago but I think it was okay.
Rated 17 Jan 2011
ununniliumUnunnilium
Rated 24 Oct 2010
66
49th
There's a lot of interesting stuff in here, but structurally, it has no momentum; it feels like four random episodes of The Young King Arthur Adventures. (Which, mind you, is fine if you're looking for random fantasy adventures, as I was as a kid.)
Rated 24 Oct 2010
msterlingMSterling
Rated 21 Oct 2010
90
67th
Classic animation right there.
Rated 21 Oct 2010
slantmagSlantMag
Rated 17 Oct 2010
15
21st
"He had my heart racing like a squirrel. He had my body soaring into the stratosphere like a bird. He had me slippery and firm like a fresh young perch." - Eric Henderson
Rated 17 Oct 2010
begoniabolbegoniabol
Rated 10 Sep 2010
91
96th
I don't care what people think, but I love it!
Rated 10 Sep 2010
thegakrulesthegakrules
Rated 10 Sep 2010
85
85th
Such a fun and classic movie, my son laughs every time we watch it!
Rated 10 Sep 2010
mechatiggerMechatigger
Rated 31 Aug 2010
43
12th
Indifferently animated Disney film.
Rated 31 Aug 2010
jkathrensjkathrens
Rated 28 Aug 2010
80
75th
One of my favorites/standbys as a kid. I was surprised at how little coherence the plot had upon a recent re-watch. All the fun parts were still fun, but the plot felt very "and then this happened, and then that happened... and it's almost over? Okay, he becomes king too."
Rated 28 Aug 2010
nick_cNick C.
Rated 25 Jul 2010
87
26th
Not bad, the characters weren't that great, but it's still entertaining.
Rated 25 Jul 2010
omgfridgeomgfridge
Rated 24 Mar 2010
6
52nd
You watched it as a kid. Nothing much else to see here.
Rated 24 Mar 2010
frederFreder
Rated 12 Mar 2010
75
63rd
Under-rated (even by Freder) rendition of a small section of T.H. White's Arthurian novels, this can be said to be King Arthur filtered through White filtered through Bill Peet filtered through Disney. Still an effective piece of entertainment, with a strong moral sense of destiny and responsibility, and fantasy sequences that are simply GREAT.
Rated 12 Mar 2010
kiralioKiralio
Rated 08 Dec 2009
40
30th
2/5
Rated 08 Dec 2009
cagedwisdomcagedwisdom
Rated 23 Aug 2009
75
65th
One of my favorite films as a kid. It doesn't stand out as much today, a lot of it is a bit bland and the segments seem oddly unconnected, but a lot of it is really pleasant. The animal transformation scenes are very charming.
Rated 23 Aug 2009
dclyde09dclyde09
Rated 19 Aug 2009
80
41st
Uneven Disney Classic but a fun wizard's duel at the end.
Rated 19 Aug 2009
sheynondoahsheynondoah
Rated 02 Aug 2009
90
67th
Loved it as a kid. Ever since watching it, I've always loved King Arthur.
Rated 02 Aug 2009
okkervilOkkervil
Rated 01 Aug 2009
66
60th
Classic Disney.
Rated 01 Aug 2009
funkyastroFunkyAstro
Rated 14 Jul 2009
80
80th
one of my childhood favs
Rated 14 Jul 2009
pigletPiglet
Rated 08 Jun 2009
70
59th
Wonderfull film for the whole family, bit short, if I have to complain about something.
Rated 08 Jun 2009
caocaocaocao
Rated 25 May 2009
71
61st
Written by Bill Peet! Considerable license taken but ... who cares.
Rated 25 May 2009
nandorizzinandorizzi
Rated 04 Mar 2009
75
71st
It is visually beautiful, funny and has a good soundtrack.
Rated 04 Mar 2009
atmclickatmclick
Rated 14 Feb 2009
90
43rd
Probably just nostalgic, but this story of a poor squire who becomes king still inspires and entertains.
Rated 14 Feb 2009
voodoomailvoodoomail
Rated 29 Dec 2008
43
20th
Great animation but the arc of the story is poorly written.
Rated 29 Dec 2008
the_bishopThe Bishop
Rated 19 Dec 2008
74
35th
74
Rated 19 Dec 2008
mentaculusMentaculus
Rated 08 Dec 2008
62
37th
If only the whole film had the charm of the "squirrel" segment, which is glorious. With painfully obvious recycled animation in parts and a lesser soundtrack, you'll be running for your copy of Bambi to cleanse the palette. Merlin was totally an archetype for the Genie 40 years later.
Rated 08 Dec 2008
garlonussGarlonuss
Rated 15 Oct 2008
80
58th
Excellent family fare. Very fun for the kids and Merlin is just fun to watch.
Rated 15 Oct 2008
psychedelicrpsychedelicr
Rated 05 Jul 2008
60
33rd
You know it!
Rated 05 Jul 2008
ofallpiecesofallpieces
Rated 01 Jun 2008
75
42nd
Seriously, Disney scores nearly every time.
Rated 01 Jun 2008
stainStain
Rated 18 May 2008
40
23rd
Not really much fun at all. True to form for this lengthy down period in which Disney couldn't make anything fun or interesting for decades
Rated 18 May 2008
coffeyCoffey
Rated 12 May 2008
85
90th
Total classic and easily my favorite Disney cartoon.
Rated 12 May 2008
junior1919Junior1919
Rated 31 Mar 2008
90
82nd
A childhood favorite
Rated 31 Mar 2008
slrsoapboxSlrSoapbox
Rated 08 Mar 2008
30
8th
The beginning of a long line of mediocre/horrible films released by Disney. Completely awful characters.
Rated 08 Mar 2008
bellamyrbellamyr
Rated 13 Jan 2008
78
49th
From Disney's quiet period. A lesser product from the studios but has some brilliant animation as you would expect and some funny set pieces (such as Merlin's duel). It seems to end rather abruptly, but is good kids entertainment
Rated 13 Jan 2008
fyngyrzfyngyrz
Rated 13 Nov 2007
9
62nd
An excellent film for young children; Disney back when Disney wasn't trying to be (cough) "culturally relevant" or "politically correct." Highly recommended for kids. Adults won't mind it either, though there is some moderately annoying singing in the old Disney tradition.
Rated 13 Nov 2007
shephardShephard
Rated 29 Oct 2007
72
85th
Classic. Funny, entertaining and visually fun. A bit short.
Rated 29 Oct 2007
dustydDustyd
Rated 17 Sep 2007
70
63rd
good
Rated 17 Sep 2007
anjinashanjinash
Rated 14 Aug 2007
50
16th
Another film I loved as a child but fails to capture my imagination as an adult. I suppose it's a good introduction to Arthurian legends for your young one, though.
Rated 14 Aug 2007
tripleshTripleSH
Rated 14 Aug 2007
80
69th
One of the classic and underappreciated Disney films that isn't an overt chick flick. It gets the nod.
Rated 14 Aug 2007
grimsoothgrimsooth
Rated 14 Aug 2007
63
61st
Classic children's tale, deffinatly a favorite when I was a kid.
Rated 14 Aug 2007
rdpRDP
Rated 14 Aug 2007
75
48th
Awesome Disney movie that feels as though it's more an episodic show than a movie. I love the "fight" between Merlin and the Witch.
Rated 14 Aug 2007
battletoadBattleToad
Rated 14 Aug 2007
83
69th
Disney's The Sword in the Stone is a very fun origin story for King Arthur. It's unfortunate that it is often overlooked, because it is one of the most unique classic Disney features. Really good!
Rated 14 Aug 2007
nathan_sNathan S
Rated 14 Aug 2007
4
74th
A childhood favorite. I'm still warm to it, and these days I find that this middle stretch of the Disney canon (roughly the 60s and 70s) may be my favorite, largely because I love the scratchy, impressionist-light aesthetic.
Rated 14 Aug 2007
thedicemanTheDiceman
Rated 01 Mar 2007
55
49th
Amusing disney animation.
Rated 01 Mar 2007
bbbdBBBD
Rated 27 Jan 2007
65
29th
I remember liking this movie as a kid, but not much else. Doesn't really have that "classic" label.
Rated 27 Jan 2007

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