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You’ve most likely heard all kinds of stories about England’s great King Arthur and his famous Knights of the Round Table. But Disney’s animated adventure The Sword in the Stone tells a completely different side of King Arthur’s story—starting when he was just a scrawny young boy.
It’s a dark time in England’s history. The king has died, and there’s no heir—and the whole country is waiting for the one man who can remove the enchanted sword from its place in a huge stone to become their new king.
Meanwhile, somewhere in the English countryside, a young orphan known as Wart (Ricky Sorenson) dreams of serving as the squire for a great and powerful knight. But the powerful wizard Merlin (Karl Swenson) has a completely different future in mind for the boy—so he arrives at the castle to teach Wart all about the power of brains over brawn.
The Sword in the Stone tells a random little story that features a whole bunch of amusing characters. Though it’s supposed to be the story of the legendary king, it isn’t exactly heavy on plot. Mostly, it just meanders around, following Wart and Merlin on their various adventures as Merlin teaches his lessons by turning his young pupil into various creatures.
The story that it does tell, however, is an inspiring one—much like a boy’s version of the Cinderella story. Wart is a lovable young character who works hard—and who thinks he’s dreaming big. But with the help of the grandfatherly old wizard—and his cranky owl, Archimedes (Junius Matthews)—he learns that there’s much more to life than jousts and sword fights and being a knight (or, I suppose, to make things a little more up-to-date, the captain of the football team).
Though the story itself isn’t exactly solid, the sing-along songs and the silly characters manage to make up for it. From Wart’s strict guardian, Sir Ector (Sebastian Cabot), and his dopey son, knight-in-training Kay (Norman Alden), to the batty Mad Madam Mim (Martha Wentworth), who challenges Merlin to a wacky wizard duel, the characters make The Sword in the Stone a cute Disney classic.
So while The Sword in the Stone isn’t the best film in Disney’s animated collection, it’s a fun little adventure nonetheless. And it’s sure to entertain your kids while teaching them the importance of using their brains.
Blu-ray Review:
The Sword in the Stone is now a half-century old—and Disney is celebrating with a new 50th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray/DVD combo release.
The Blu-ray disc includes many of the extras featured on the DVD release (see more on that below), along with a few additions. There’s a never-before-seen alternate opening, “Where Wart Meets Merlin,” presented through narration and storyboards. You can watch Walt Disney himself perform some silly magic tricks in an excerpt of All About Magic. And you can sing along with the songs with the new sing-along mode.
Of course, one of the highlights of the new Blu-ray release is the film’s digital restoration. So if a couple of new features don’t sell you on the Blu-ray edition of this lovable adventure, the hi-def restoration might.
DVD Review:
The 45th Anniversary Edition of Disney’s The Sword in the Stone may not be a massive, two-disc set that requires a map to find your way around, but it still offers plenty of extras. On the disc, you’ll find a couple of knight-themed shorts, lyrics to the songs, a game called Merlin’s Magical Academy, and plenty of tidbits about the movie—including a feature with Disney’s musical duo, The Sherman Brothers. The extra features don’t make the DVD a must-have, but they’re worth checking out after you finish watching the movie.
