Movie · 1963 · Animation, Family, Fantasy · 1h 19m · G · English
Curator score: 4.4/10 (281.7K ratings)
Tired of living in a Medieval mess... Merlin uses all his magic powers to change a scrawny little boy into a legendary hero!
Overview
Wart is a young boy who aspires to be a knight's squire. On a hunting trip he falls in on Merlin, a powerful but amnesiac wizard who has plans for him beyond mere squiredom. He starts by trying to give him an education, believing that once one has an education, one can go anywhere. Needless to say, it doesn't quite work out that way.
Ratings
Curator score: 4.4/10
IMDb: 7.1/10
Letterboxd: 3.44/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 65%
Metacritic: 61
TMDB: 7.2/10
Director
Wolfgang Reitherman
Production
Walt Disney Productions
Cast
Sebastian Cabot, Karl Swenson, Junius Matthews, Martha Wentworth, Norman Alden, Rickie Sorensen, Ginny Tyler, Alan Napier, Richard Reitherman, Robert Reitherman, Barbara Jo Allen, James MacDonald, Tudor Owen, Thurl Ravenscroft, Jack Albertson, Fred Darian
Where to watch
Disney Plus
Curator Review
Verdict
A charming but uneven Disney fantasy: the animation, comic wizardry, and Madame Mim showdown are memorable, but the film is more episodic than propulsive and can feel slack between its best bits.
Best for
Disney animation fans
Viewers who like whimsical, low-stakes fantasy
Families with younger kids
Fans of magical duels and character comedy
People interested in early-1960s Disney style
Skip if
You want a tightly plotted adventure
You’re impatient with digressive, sketch-like storytelling
You need constant action or spectacle
You dislike old-fashioned Disney humor or dated gender comedy
Overview
The Sword in the Stone is one of Disney’s most relaxed Arthurian tales, built less like a quest than a string of comic lessons, transformations, and oddball detours. That looseness is part of its charm: Merlin’s time-bending eccentricity gives the film a playful, almost improvisational energy, and the animation has a warm, storybook texture that suits the material beautifully.
Worth noting
When it clicks, it really clicks. The Merlin vs. Madame Mim sequence is the movie’s great set piece, a burst of invention that feels far more daring than the surrounding narrative. The film also has a gentle, cozy quality that makes it easy to revisit, especially if you respond to Disney’s early-60s sketchier look and its fondness for side characters and comic business.
Bottom line
Still, the movie’s biggest weakness is structural. Wart’s journey can feel underpowered, and the title promise is delayed so long that the ending lands with more inevitability than excitement. It’s a pleasant, uneven fantasy rather than a classic of momentum, but its best moments are strong enough to justify the trip.
Top Letterboxd reviews
James (Schaffrillas) (2★) · 1701 likes
It should be illegal for a movie about a wizard to be this boring
Sally Jane Black (4★) · 1279 likes
The duel between Merlin and Madame Mim is possibly the best magical duel in all of film.
Louis Peitzman (3.5★) · 854 likes
Girl Squirrel saddest character in the Disney canon.
robyn (5★) · 852 likes
When I was little my dad taped Robin Hood and this off the telly back to back but he ran out of room on the tape so Sword in the Stone finished when Merlin said "blow me to Bermuda!".
It's nice to see it all worked out in the end!
Quintin (2★) · 589 likes
The wizard duel between Merlin and Madame Mim was really exciting and the animation was impressive.
However, the rest of the film and the story as a whole is pretty horrible. This is the structure:First ten seconds: There is a sword in the stoneThe next hour: Arthur has a shitty lifeLast 30 seconds: Remember that sword we mentioned for ten seconds? Arthur is gonna pull it now.
Disney Animation Ranked
1975 · Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy · 1h 31m · PG · Curator 9.1/10 (1.2M ratings) · Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video, fuboTV, Peacock Premium, BritBox, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Peacock Premium Plus
If the appeal is Arthurian absurdity, this is the definitive comic counterpoint.