The Sword in the Stone (45th Anniversary Special Edition)

Released in 1963, "The Sword in the Stone" was based on the novel of the same name by T.E. White, and tells how the great wizard Merlin took under his wing the future King Arthur, at this point a young lad nicknamed Wart. Feeling no need to wait five more years for a round-number, watching this 45th Anniversary Edition DVD of "The Sword in the Stone" really strikes me as being a third tier Disney animated feature film. It occurs to me that whereas with some of the best children's films, animated or otherwise, you can claim that it is too good for kids (mainly because some of the best bits are way over the heads of the little folk), that is not the case with this one. With the lessons on perspective taking Merlin puts Wart through there is certainly something for kid's to take away from watching the movie. But adults? Not so much, which would explain why watching the film again many decades later did not match up with fond memories of originally seeing it in the theater. This time around I was rather put off by many of the comic twists with Merlin, and found the final joke of the film with the character in Bermuda shorts to be the lamest of all Disney endings. The last Disney animated feature released when Walt Disney was still alive, it is part of what is called the "English Cycle" of Disney animated films that includes "Alice in Wonderland," "Peter Pan," "The Jungle Book," and "Robin Hood," all of which are superior, to greater or lesser degrees, than this one. This would tend to reaffirm the notion that this is a lower tier animated Disney movie, but the key word there is "Disney," which means the bottom of their barrel is still located up there in the penthouse.

The fact that there is but a single DVD this time around is another clear indication that this is not a top tier Disney film, because it lacks the sheer quantity of stuff from "Vault Disney" that we find on the recognized classics. The high points of the special features are the bonus shorts, which start with Goofy's "A Knight for a Day"(1946), directed by Jack Hannah, where Cedric (Goofy) replaces his master, Sir Loinsteak, in the joust against Sir Cumference (best pun on the whole DVD). But then we get the classic Mickey Mouse cartoon "Brave Little Tailor" (1938), directed by Bill Roberts, that was nominated for the 1938 Academy Award for Best Short Subject (It lost to Disney's "Ferdinand the Bull"). When animators voted on the top 50 cartoons (shorts) of all-time, this one ended up #26 on the list ("What's Opera Doc?" is #1, Disney's "The Band Concert" is #3, and "Bambi Meets Gozilla " made it to #38, so its a nice eclectic list). The Games and Activities section has viewers solving problems to collect "relics" (shields); my ability to answer history questions far outstrips by swimming ability.

In the "Magic Music: The Sherman Brothers" featurette in the Music and More section they look at the songs that were dropped from the movie, and given the main lesson of the film it is a shame the song "Magic Key" was dropped, because it is really on point regarding the importance of learning. There are also captioned versions of all of the songs in the film, so that you can sing along. In the Backstage Disney section, Walt Disney shows up for an excerpt from "All About Magic," which is not exactly on point for "Sword in Stone" but does cover basic movie magic. The Scrapbook section has concept art, behind the scenes looks, publicity shots, and the Merlin Show attraction at Disneypark Paris, where you can click on pictures to enlarge them. The Film Facts section is rather sparse, consisting of just eight frames of text, again indicating that we are not dealing with one of the shining moments in the history of Disney. Still, the extras are enough to round up on this one, and those trying to put together a complete Disney library will be happy to find that the company puts out above average DVDs of even their average animated films.

I am so disappointed that the team at Walt Disney are releasing their videos full screen. I have the old VHS tape and the gold classic of all their films and rebuy them on DVD when they are presented in the original aspect ratio. All films have been made in some form of widescreen since 1953. 101 Dalmations includes a theatrical release in 2.35 but they chose to give us only 1.33 No need to buy. They did the same on The Sword in the Stone. They released Lady and the Tramp and Sleeping Beauty in 2.35 why not these? Such a disappointment to not have these films as originally intended especially since it's 2008! Come on Disney-get with the times!

Released Christmas Day 1963, Walt Disney's "The Sword In The Stone" is the studio's "in-between" film in its "London cycle" (six UK-set films over 20 years, 1952-1972). It retells King Arthur's (here called Wart) apprenticeship under Merlin the Magician and his path to the throne, drawn from T.H. White's 1938 fantasy novel.

The film, re-released on DVD in a 45th Anniversary edition, zigzags through British folklore and character while name-dropping out-of-place modern touches. (Merlin anticipates airplanes and steam locomotives, yes. Merlin in Bermuda shorts calling movies "TV without commercials," no.) It lacks the historic focus, whimsy or cheeky humor of "101 Dalmatians" or "Mary Poppins." Those films preceded and followed "Stone" in release, romanticizing modern-day and Victorian Britain and staying beloved in theater and video re-releases. They, unlike "Sword," stayed cohesive and, well, sharp.

But despite lack of critical praise at release and relative low standing in Disney's canon, "The Sword In The Stone" isn't a total stick in the mud. It features some fine animated sequences (Mad Madam Mim's delightfully cruella solo to young Wart as a sparrow, and her clever, multi-colored wizard's duel with Merlin.) Disney regulars Sebastian Cabot and Thurl Ravenscroft join Alan Napier (remember Alfred the butler from the 1960s "Batman" show?) in a uniformly fine voice cast. Richard and Robert Sherman (honored in a humorous DVD extra) contribute some catchy, nonsensical compositions (led by Merlin counting off like Lawrence Welk and including some trademark bubbles)!

Other DVD extras include medieval-themed shorts (the better being Mickey Mouse's "The Brave Little Tailor"), a DVD art scrapbook and game, "Merlin's Magical Academy" (yours truly's son played it and said, "It was all right.") Overall, "Sword In The Stone" is nowhere near the roundtable of Disney's classics, modern or otherwise. But it's a solid choice for Disney completists wanting a fun video knight.

THE SWORD IN THE STONE has always been my favorite Disney animated film. Why? The answer is quite simple really. I saw it when I was a kid on its initial release in the downtown theater, I had a great time and I have very fond memories of the movie and the entire experience of going to see it with my family and friends. Isn't that what Walt Disney had in mind? It wasn't until years later and I had my own child that I began to realize that not many people even remembered THE SWORD IN THE STONE or knew it even existed. I was rather flabbergasted by this not to mention all the bad press this film had received as I started researching it. My most cherished copy of this film has always been on Laserdisc, but now it looks like THE SWORD IN THE STONE is finally getting some well deserved recognition. I love this film and the artwork is very reminiscent of ONE HUNDRED AND ONE DALMATIANS and the relationship between Merlin and Wart and the development of those characters is pure Walt Disney. Savor the best of times. Thanks Walt.

It is wonderful that this lesser-known film in the Disney vault is getting a special edition. It has the distinction of being the last animated film to be released while Walt was still alive. Narrated by the loveable Sebastian Cabot, it is a truly entertaining tale about magic and coming-of-age. Central to the story is the relationship between Merlin the magician and a boy named Wart, the future King Arthur. Merlin grooms the boy and takes responsibility for his education, culminating in the scene where Wart attempts to pull the (unbeknownst to him) legendary sword from the stone. "The Sword in the Stone" cleaned up at the box office but was not really a hit with the critics. However, it holds up very well, and despite what others have called "cheap animation," it is a beautifully drawn film that obviously patterned itself after "Sleeping Beauty." The xerox method used in "Dalmatian" is used here again; it doesn't have the same pristine & clean quality of "Peter Pan," yet it does preserve the fresh sketch quality of what was originally drawn. Just a difference in style; neither better nor worse. The film also received an Academy Award nomination for Best Score, although the songs in the film are definitely less than memorable.

Extras include the usual Backstage Disney assortment, such as from "Walt Disney Presents: Fantasyland - All About Magic," an excerpt from the BW TV Show, with Walt having a ball going through the Magic Room of the "basement," playing with all kinds of different parlour tricks. The decapitated princess is a little eerie, but it's all very fun. Nice cameo by Snow White's Magic Mirror, too. The Production Notes section gives fun facts about the development of the film (including the fact that Bill Peet based his characterization of Merlin on Walt!). There is also a wonderful scrapbook gallery of images from concept to publicity, with explanatory text. 2 bonus color movie shorts: Mickey Mouse in "The Brave Little Tailor" and Goofy in "A Knight for a Day." For the music sections, the Sherman Brothers are in a featurette "Music Magic" where they discuss the development of the songs for "Sword in the Stone," as well as tunes that were discarded. The songs from the movie are also able to be accessed directly from this section by name. The least of the extras on this DVD is the Merlin's Magical Academy Game. Your basic answer a few questions to "win." There are also a few parts to the game where you must hit the arrows on your remote control to match the arrows on the screen; this part is a little confusing, as there is no way to know if you are playing correctly or not; the arrows do not change color or shape when you hit them, so until you get to the end of the game, you have no idea if you are doing it right. And the "prize" at the end is a little bit of a snoozer, just like the game itself. Overall though, the extras are more than what has been advertised and a very nice selection, too.

Definitely a nice special edition!