Deep Dive Disney: Wes Looks at The Sword in the Stone

This is a first for Deep Dive Disney a film that I actually had not seen prior to viewing it for the purposes of this article. No particular reason for that, this one just sort of passed me by. What this means is, for the first time in eleven articles and over twenty years-worth of films, this will be the first time I’ll be approaching the subject of our article in which nostalgia has not been a factor. As one might imagine from the title, this is a King Arthur Story but a very untraditional one. This is not the tale of a heroic king who does great and noble deeds, all that comes later. All great Kings and Heroes need to start somewhere, and they also need guidance. Merlin the Wizard, who is gifted with the power of clairvoyance, has foreseen Arthur’s great and has taken it upon himself to educate the child and make sure that he develops the intelligence, understanding and compassion necessary for one who has a great destiny. It’s a unique take on the Arthurian legend and it’s a lot of fun. So, let us waste no further time and dive right in to, The Sword in the Stone.

Main Character:

Once again, we have yet another case where the film has two protagonists. Both Arthur, or Wart as he’s referred to in this story, and Merlin are essential to the proceedings of this film. We’ll start with Arthur. If you were expecting a valiant King of Men, then you’re likely to be disappointed. Arthur here is a scrawny kid who has no aspirations than to be squire to his Brutish elder foster brother, Kay. Mind you, this would have been considered a great honor for one living in medieval times and the idea that a scrawny peasant like Arthur has the potential for more doesn’t even enter into his mind. As such, he has a hard time believing Merlin’s claims that Arthur has a great destiny since it’s simply beyond the scope of his understanding, especially since he lacks Merlin’s ability to see the future. Arthur is a likable enough character, but one thing really bugged me, his voice. Turns out Arthur was voiced by three separate actors, and I believe the intent was to show the character’s voice changing as time passes. The problem is, several lines were recorded out of order leading to Arthur’s voice changing constantly throughout the film, sometimes even in the same scene.

Now let’s discuss Merlin, who, upon foreseeing Arthur’s legendary future, takes it upon himself to act as his teacher and employs some clever methods to teach the child lessons about life. Merlin is delightfully humorous and I rather enjoyed his fascination with things that haven’t been invented yet as well as his occasional tendency to forget that certain won’t happen for hundreds of years. With his constant anachronistic references, seemingly limitless magical power, penchant for shapeshifting and even occasional fourth wall breaks, one could almost say that Merlin is a precursor to The Genie from Aladdin. Merlin, as I mentioned, is a firm believer in the power of a good education, feeling it necessary if Arthur is ever going to be King someday. Towards the end of the film, when Arthur expresses joy at being given another chance to be Kay’s squire, you can understand Merlin’s frustration. All Merlin wants is for the boy to live up to the great potential he knows he has and can’t help but be frustrated when Arthur is more interested in a life that will limit it. Together, they actually form a really interesting teacher/student dynamic and I rather enjoyed it.

Villain:

The Marvelous Mad Madam Mim is a rival sorcerer to Merlin who lives in the dark forest. She lacks the gravitas of Maleficent or Cruella before her and she doesn’t really influence the plot all that much, but what she lacks in staying power, she makes up for in enjoyable madness. I mean it, every word out of Mim’s mouth just further proves how completely out of her mind she is, and it’s actually really funny. I actually really enjoyed Mim, she’s like Maleficent’s senile old grandmother. Hell, they both turn into dragons so maybe I’m on to something. Despite being a more comedic villain, Mim is still plenty dangerous with powers to rival Merlin. However, in keeping with the themes of the film, Mim’s undoing is her reliance on brute force as opposed to Merlin’s intelligence and strategy. However, where Mim loses points is the fact that, she’s not really the villain of the film. She’s A villain certainly, but this film just isn’t the kind that has a central antagonist. All Mim really is is a threat that arises during one of Merlin’s lesson. She shows up, does her thing, gets defeated and the film moves on. Still, Mim’s scene is one of the most memorable in the film, so I can see why people like her.

Side Characters:

I liked Archimedes, Merlin’s pet owl. The fact that he and Merlin are always arguing and the fact that Archimedes never admits to his compassion for humans are amusing to me. I especially enjoyed how Archimedes was offended by the idea that humans will one day invent the airplane, since, as a bird, he feels humans have no place in the sky. Ector and Kay, Arthur’s Foster Father and Brother are okay I guess. They provide a nice contrast to Merlin and enforce the fact that Arthur is unlikely to amount to anything beyond squire-hood. They’re jerks, but unlike Aunt Sarah from Lady and the Tramp, they never cross the line into outright villainy.

Songs:

Most of the songs in this one are okay. Merlin’s song about what makes the world go round is fun and Mim’s song is enjoyably demented. However, none of them really wowed me like the Cruella Deville song did last time around. However, I actually really liked the song that opens the film. It’s nothing special on its own, but I appreciate the idea of actually singing the opening exposition as opposed to making children read a wall of text like past films have.

Memorable Scenes:

There’s quite a few here. Pretty much any time Merlin turns Arthur into an animal in order to teach Arthur a life lesson. They turn into fish to teach Arthur a lesson on how to overcome a foe using his wit and intelligence rather than brute strength. They transform into bird to team a lesson in aerodynamics. I honestly forgot what the squirrel scene was supposed to teach because all I fan remember is Arthur and Merlin running into a couple of female squirrels who try to get busy with them. Yikes! However, by far, the scene that steals the show is the magical duel between Mim and Merlin. This scene was an absolute blast. Merlin and Mim use their animal shape-shifting abilities to battle one another. Like I said, Mim relies on powerful animals like Alligators and Rhinos while Merlin’s choice of animal is more situational, choosing a rabbit when he needs speed, a caterpillar when he needs to make himself a smaller target or a Walrus when the situation calls for something with weight. This in turn shows off the previously discussed contrast between the two very nicely. In the end, Mim cheats and transforms into a dragon, something they previously agreed was against the rules. However, Merlin still manages to come out on top by transforming into a germ and making Mim sick. That’s actually really clever, again, highlighting how intelligence and strategy can overcome brute force.

Story:

The idea behind the story is to stress the importance of intelligence and education, as properly educating oneself can open doors for you in the future. Speaking as someone who was raised by teachers, this was a lesson stressed within me from an early age, so I actually really appreciated this film for that reason. Now, I’m well aware that there are plenty of people who have gone on to do amazing things without a proper education and I by no means intend to belittle those accomplishments, but it is still true that an education can create more opportunities for you. That’s really what Merlin is all about here. He sees a boy who has the potential to be one of the greatest legendary heroes that history has ever known, but at this point in his life, his future is limited because he’s never cultivated that potential. It’s kind of a nice message when you think about it. What’s nice is the fact that at no point did this feel like a classroom lecture. Sure, the movie is educational, but it never forgets that it’s supposed to be fun as well.

The Dark Disney Factor:

This one takes it easy on the Dark Disney factor for the most part, even if Madam Mim’s various animal forms can be very frightening. I actually enjoyed how intense some of Merlin’s tests could be, particularly when he makes him fight the enormous pike in the moat. The design of this creature is pretty scary, especially for little kids and the fact that Merlin makes Arthur fight it alone as a tiny little goldfish is pretty nuts. I get that the point is for Merlin to show Merlin how to fight brawn with brains, but the fact that he sent this tiny little goldfish out to fight that monster felt a bit on the dark side in my opinion.

Final Thoughts:

This movie, more than any other we’ve covered so far was a pleasant surprise. The emphasis on the importance of education was appreciated, Merlin made for a likable character and his dynamic with Arthur was very enjoyable and the battle with Mad Madam Mim was an absolute blast! All in all, I’m glad I watched this one, and I’m glad the nostalgia wasn’t necessary for me to appreciate it. Next time, we’ll be looking at a film that I do indeed recall from childhood that also happens to be the final film that Walt Disney himself personally worked on. Join me next time as Deep Dive Disney analyzes The Jungle Book