Review of The Black Cauldron (1985) by Conner R — 14 Apr 2011

The film's ambition is evident. It is the only Disney's animated canon feature I know beside "Sleeping Beauty" to be very wide-screen. The animation is nothing short of fantastic. The music is not memorable but stirring and atmospheric. The scenery in general has the old-school lushness coupled to homeliness that disappeared with the advent of computer in animation. There really is a sense of magic in this, of the fantasy adventure vibe true to its literary source rather than Disney but that is not a criticism. That scene with the fairfolk is just both cute and beautiful.

The problem I think is the characters, or rather the arbitrainess about them. They are a likeable company but perhaps owing to the film probably being a gallop through the novels a lot about them doesn't seem to matter. Eilonwy has a magic bauble - right - but so what? it almost doesn't even appear again after it was introduced. And why is she a princess? or how? I'm sure you could ask why being some peasant girl should matter but in the fantasy genre being princesses has implication on the story and so if what you are doesn't matter you'd just be a peasant girl - or a nobody bard like the bard guy. And how come there are people who know where the legendary Black Cauldron is when the Horned King doesn't? And in that case why would the oracular pig be so important? especially when he doesn't even get to show anybody anything significant? And what on earth are the three witches and the Horned King himself anyway? For a fantasy set in a massive war it is strange how there doesn't seem to be anything around apart from landscapes, a couple of characterized characters, and a bunch of faceless evil henchmen. The way the landscape morphs is theatrical rather than cinematic so the fantasy world which normally is a proper expansive space for the imagination to run feels actually rather small, as often a few steps take them into a completely new backdrop. (That said this happens with dramatic pathetic fallacy so it is not gratuitous.).

With the strict obligation to never be rated above PG and, it seems, to never last longer than 80 mins Disney's animated features could never make the most of this potentially rich subject. The storytelling is as tight as always and the characters are a great bunch to ride along with, but it unfortunately feels restrained and incomplete; "The Sword in the Stone", the most similar in feel, manages to feel larger and grander in spite of being consciously a downbeat derivation of the Arthurian legend. Fairy tales gracefully told with strong and perfectly crafted visual and audio is THE recipe for the Disney animated features if they are going to stick to their self-imposed circumscription.