Thrashbrowns v. Mouse House, Round 15

 The Black Cauldron (1985)

The Story:

Based on the "Chronicles of Prydain" series of novels, this film focuses on a young pig keeper named Taran (Grant Bardsley), who is charged with protecting Hen Wen, a pig with an interesting power. Unfortunately, Hen Wen is captured by minions of the sinister Horned King, who wants to find the Black Cauldron and use it to create an undying army of the dead. Taran unties with Princess Eilonwy (Susan Sheridan), Fflewddur Fflamm (Nigel Hawthorne) and Gurgi (John Byner) to find the Cauldron and destroy it before the Horned King can find it.

Has Thrashbrowns seen this? Why or why not?

This seemed really familiar. Perhaps I saw it as a young kid and forgot about it. I didn't remember any details, but it really felt like I'd seen this at some point in the past.

The Good:

The hand-drawn animation had some interesting effects, like the eerie green glow of the vapors issuing from the Cauldron. The Horned King is pretty scary and kind of badass. And while Gurgi started off annoying, the writers found a way to make him heroic and got me to like him. It was a pretty cool reversal. 

The Bad:

The story and the characters are pretty cookie cutter. Honestly, this felt like an attempt to make a Lord of the Rings-style epic for young kids. And it's not always successful.

Most Annoying Disney-ism:

I feel like I rag on this particular flaw too often, but the cutesy comic relief side characters. Gurgi annoyed me at first, but they gave him a cool arc that won me over. Fflewddur Fflamm was a bumbling neurotic mess that reminded me of the kind of characters Woody Allen always plays. I'm not a fan of the characters Woody Allen plays. Creeper, the Horned King's diminutive sidekick, is just straight-up annoying. I know why Disney movies always have these characters, and they are needed here, especially considering how dark this movie gets. But the execution annoys me.

Does Thrashbrowns get why people love this?

I'm guessing if you see this movie as a kid, it'll make more of an impact on you than it does if you see it when you get older. It is full of cool stuff, the scenes with the Horned King really hook you and draw you in. Plus it does some things that are kind of unique for a Disney animated movie. So yeah, provided you see Black Cauldron at the right age, I get how you could fall for it.

Did Thrasbrowns like it:

Well, it has a lot of flaws, annoying characters, a formulaic plot and the like. In spite of that, I did enjoy The Black Cauldron. I dug the scary parts and some of the clever twists it puts on a familiar story, like making the McGuffin of this story into a pig. Most of all, it made me appreciate the art of hand-drawn animation, which has a personality and magic that I don't see in computer animation. Computer animation always has a sheen that makes things feel kinda lifeless, like you're watching toys instead of characters. Even when you're not watching Toy Story. Hand-drawn animation may not be as perfect, but it has soul.

Up Next:

Another request, Escape to Witch Mountain. See you then!