A Tale of Squirrels & Swords: King Arthur's Journey to Disney
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- Опубликовано: 8 фев 2025
- A video essay examining how Arthurian Legend has grown and changed over centuries of English lore, specifically how it lead us to musical numbers regarding squirrel puberty and a bumbling wizard mentor in Disney’s The Sword and the Stone (1963)
i VERY much so stumbled upon your video and i must say i am so happy i did. I can't believe it is not as viewed as it should be or that i am the first to comment.
It was my favorite movie as a kid, but i rewatched it somewhat recently and couldn't put my finger on the "why" it felt so disjointed now watching it as an adult..as a kid i of course couldn't have cared less haha. I LOVED hearing the heart and passion you put into the video and i hope you continue to put out more videos in the future. THank you :)
Loved your vid! Please make more 👌
In animation schools the world over, the battle of Merlin and Mim is taught :)
We didn't much care about plot when the animation was top notch! But you're right that it's very flawed, I wish it was more cohesive and better remembered
I love this book very much but the most memorable part of the movie to me is the girl squirrel.
Not just a girl - a *redhead* :) Comment for the algo, this was a really well put together and edited video I randomly stumbled on, I hope your channel grows!
I very rarely look at a Disney version and say 'The book was better' - in fact, the only movie I'll say that about is The Black Cauldron - but this movie comes close. In the book Arthur has much more personality - adventurous, imaginative, a little smart-alecky - and Merlin is eccentric and sort of bumbling, but much more supportive and more of a mentor, while in the movie he feels like he barely knows what he's doing, and at times he's really a jerk to Arthur - Archimedes is way more of a friend and mentor to my mind. But on the other hand the book sometimes gets heavy-handed and tries to go off into satire, and some episodes - like the Wizard's Duel - aren't as fun to read as they are to watch. So as with most Disney adaptations I call it (no pun intended) a draw.
I disagree about Merlin's lessons not preparing Arthur for his future as king. While not well execute they all important to become someone good and responsible with the power he will have.
The fish lesson teach him to use his head instead of brute strenght and not rely on Merlin to solve his problem (something Merlin told him in the beginning to the movie).
The incident with the squirrels teachs Arthur about love, and how such emotion can affect someone in positive or negative way. In this case, the female squirrel fell in love with him and saved his life, but felt sadness when discover that Arthur was human. This kind acts as foreshadowing of the tragedy involving Arthur, his wife Gwenaverie and her affair with Lancelot.
His meeting with Madame Mim teaches him that there are people who use magic in different ways. Merlin uses for good. Min uses for evil. When he become king he will have to choose what he will do with such power, which of course is to do good for his people.