The Black Cauldron Movie Review: Flashback

20
Nov 24
0

The Black Cauldron Movie Review: Flashback

A young boy and a group of misfit friends embark on a quest to find a dark magic item of ultimate power before a diabolical tyrant can.

Why did I come to this movie again?

My friends growing up talked about this movie, so I was pretty sure I’d seen it, but it had been such a long time that I couldn’t remember anything about it. Since I spotted it on a streaming service, I decided to give it another go.

Turns out, I’ve never seen this movie before.

4 of 5

Characters

I spent enough time in my teens reading fantasy books, that I recognized every single trope in this story, and that includes the characters.

You’ve got the young boy who wants to prove his worth by fighting. The princess, who surprisingly isn’t as helpless as most of that era. A strange older man with a mystical secret. A helpless creature that needs escorting. The comic relief. The betrayer who, in the end, saves everyone.

Nothing wrong with tropes, especially in a kid’s show, but I found most of the characters either too silly for my taste or over-the-top.

Again, it’s a kid’s film in the 80’s, so this makes sense. I just didn’t love it.

Taran, the main character, did have a decent character arc.

I’ll probably get hate for this, but I didn’t think Gurgi had enough screen time to impact the story the way they wanted him to.

I realize I’m looking at this through an adult’s eyes. If I’d seen this as a kid, it might be one of my favorite movies.

4 of 5

Did I care what happened?

This film had pretty good pacing, so I was engaged the whole time. There were a few sections that made me roll my eyes.

Because I do enjoy a good fantasy quest, I had fun watching this movie.

4 of 5

Plot Holes

The story felt rushed. After I watched it, I looked it up and found out it contains parts of the first two books of a series with a bunch of stuff left out, while other things were added to make it a stand-alone film.

I got distracted (okay, a little bored) when the group ends up in the underground kingdom of the Fair Folk. One second they were chatting with the fairies, and the next they’re off to get the cauldron. I had to rewind to find the single line of dialogue where Taran decides they should find the cauldron and destroy it. Do they know anything about destroying it? No. Did they ask the fairies what that might entail? No. I figured the princess, who is the smart one, would have inquired about it, but she didn’t.

There were a few other problems that I’ll blame on extensive editing.

3 of 5

How many times did I yawn?

No yawning. I did roll my eyes a few times though.

4 of 5

Cool Factor

The 2D animation was old-school, but very cool. I liked the darker tone and quality of the artwork.

The Horned King and his cauldron born were kind of awesome.

The action throughout the last quarter is excellent.

5 of 5

The End

As I said, Taran has a character arc. He agrees to give away his newfound sword, which makes him into an actual warrior, in exchange for the cauldron, then again for (spoiler alert) Gurgi’s resurrection. These are all very cool moments.

(Writer’s brain alert) I had to remind myself that this was the mid 80s where storytellers often softened the blow of a sacrifice by bringing the character back to life. I’m glad we’re over that, because Gurgi’s sacrifice is honestly cheapened by his resurrection.

Nothing in the end was a surprise.

4 of 5

Overall Enjoyment

Seeing this movie through an adult’s eyes isn’t ideal. It’s made for kids, which means the darkness—while present—has been softened. The fact that it’s almost 40 years old doesn’t help. Our storytelling has improved since then.

I did enjoy it, but I won’t be watching it for my own pleasure again anytime soon.

4 of 5