The Black Cauldron

Buena Vista Pictures | Release Date: July 24, 1985

5.7	USER SCORE Mixed or average reviews based on 31 Ratings

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FilipeNetoAug 23, 2018

This movie is a rather low point in the history of Disney studios. The story revolves around a king (who looks like the Devil) who aspires to be the lord of all things, needing to get a cursed cauldron that has been hidden because of hisThis movie is a rather low point in the history of Disney studios. The story revolves around a king (who looks like the Devil) who aspires to be the lord of all things, needing to get a cursed cauldron that has been hidden because of his potential evil power. And the only one who can possibly tell him where the cauldron is hidden is Taran, who has in his guard a sow with divinatory powers. Summarized, thus, its not difficult to understand the illogical confusion of this script, nor the terrible way the characters were conceived. The animations are also not very good, with a heavy, strong trace, low light and dark colors. Disney has always used us to exquisitely crafted, visually elegant and bright films. What happened here? Wasn't the theme of the film dark enough? We also have the problem of music. This film, against the habit of this renowned studio, has virtually no soundtrack. To conclude, I leave here a parental warning: this film, although it was intended for young people, is not suitable for impressionable children. At least that's my opinion. Some scenes are strong, sometimes impressive and scary.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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timoneApr 30, 2019

Legend has it, in the mystic land of Prydain, there is once a king so cruel and so evil, that even the Gods feared him. Since no prison could hold him, he was thrown alive into a crucible of molten iron. There his demonic spirit was capturedLegend has it, in the mystic land of Prydain, there is once a king so cruel and so evil, that even the Gods feared him. Since no prison could hold him, he was thrown alive into a crucible of molten iron. There his demonic spirit was captured in the form of a great, Black Cauldron. For uncounted centuries, the Black Cauldron lay hidden, waiting, while evil men searched for it, knowing whoever possessed it would have the power to resurrect an army of deathless warriors... and with them, rule the world...

The Black Cauldron is well known to be a box office failure as for as Disney's concern. The only thing I have it is that I hate box office failures, it's just not good as a movie even for Disney. On the bright side it gained a cult following and it's good to see people really liking the movies that are box office bombs that gained cult followings.

My friends really loves this movie because years ago my best friend Liam Fleming heard me quoting the lines when I was in the front of the taxi.

He heard me quoting:

I shall send of your dastardly deed.
I'm Fflewddur Fflam, minstrel of minstrels! Balladeer to the grandest courts in all the land!
And I, uh, eh? Eh, well, have you forgotten? I have sung in some of the finest courts...
Well, I'm only waiting for an invitation.
Oh, shush. Why do you have to judge every word I say?
(gasps) (whispers) What's that? (screams) HHHHHEEEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLLLLLPPPPP!!!

Me and my two friends joined in and we both have fun together. Jacob Dimmock recorded me quoting what Fflewddur fflam says. Too bad the characters are bland and forgettable even Taran who looks like Wart from The Sword in the Stone. But The Horned King is so horrifying and he's voiced by John Hurt. Nothing too bad about The Black Cauldron, it's just forgettable.… Expand

1 of 2 users found this helpful11

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PanchogulJun 13, 2021

Con razón fue tan mal recibida en su época, es demasiado oscura y turbia para ser una película de Disney, no me extrañaría que les haya provocado pesadillas a los niños en aquel entonces.

No es mala como dicen, pero está lejos de serCon razón fue tan mal recibida en su época, es demasiado oscura y turbia para ser una película de Disney, no me extrañaría que les haya provocado pesadillas a los niños en aquel entonces.

No es mala como dicen, pero está lejos de ser memorable por cosas positivas, la historia y los personajes son bastante olvidables, el villano, aunque tenebroso y siniestro, también es olvidable, aún así es pasable, las hay peores.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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JPKDec 12, 2019

Pretty Forgettable
The Black Cauldron is just a very forgettable Disney film.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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AvengerDragon56Jul 20, 2019

This could have been so much better, but it was badly executed, poorly constructed and tonally inconsistent.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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BrunoVn00May 26, 2019

The Black Cauldron is infamous for being the biggest box office flop Disney Animation Studios has ever made. This is one of the lesser known Disney movies and I watched it looking for a hidden gem, like Treasure Planet or Atlantis, but itThe Black Cauldron is infamous for being the biggest box office flop Disney Animation Studios has ever made. This is one of the lesser known Disney movies and I watched it looking for a hidden gem, like Treasure Planet or Atlantis, but it wasn't the case.
This movie has tons of clichés and it was a pretty generic movie, extremely predictable and none of the characters have an actual character or anything memorable and ended up being pretty stereotypical. The villain was weak and really had no motivation, he was just the typical, generic cartoon villain that wants to conquer the world just cause.
The only thing I actually liked was the animation. This is the first Disney movie to use CGI and in some scenes it shows and I guess for the time it looked impressive, sure now looks outdated but considering that's probably the best they could do at the time, it's impressive. I can't call this movie a schlock because the animation as expected from a Disney movie is amazing, the amount of effort and hours of painstaking work really shows, it seems like the animation director(s) cared and made sure the characters and effects were well animated, I really love 2D animation because when done right, it can lead to beautiful results.
I liked the fact that Disney took risks with the color palette. Insted of the vibrant colors Disney movies usually have, this one has darker, more washed out colors that suit the setting of the movie.

One of the major problems this movie has besides the generic plot and characters is its tone, this movie seems to be made for no one. I don't know if this was made for kids because there are some disturbing and scary images, which I loved because it's not usual in a Disney movie, but I don't think this is aimed towards teenagers or adults either because the writing is so dumb that it will make them roll their eyes out, like I did several times, specially with Gurgi, the worst character of the movie and one of the most annoying characters I've seen in a movie.

Overall, this is a pretty dated, mediocre movie, one of Disney's weakest films with some impressive animation. If you're curious to watch "the film that almost killed Disney", do it, it's not like I don't recommend it.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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PiussioFeb 9, 2023

Animazione impeccabile ma con una storia davvero pessima e personaggi poco caratterizzati.
Da precisare però che questo film è stato segnato da diverse scelte che hanno portato il film ad un processo produttivo disastroso.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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