Just as funny as we remembered it being.

The Sword in the Stone is one hour and nineteen minute long and made its movie debut on December 25, 1963. The movie tells the story of a young boy named Arthur who would become future king of all England. The movie opens with the death of King Uther Pendragon dies and leaving no heir to the throne. There is a Sword in the Stone in London with the inscription the reads "that whoever pulls it out is the rightful King of England." Many men tried to pull the sword but failed. The sword is left there for years and forgotten. Fast forward to a number of years and Kay and Arthur (also known as Wart), who are foster brother, are on a hunting trip in the woods. Arthur causes Kay to miss the deer he was going to kill. Kay winds up shooting the arrow into the woods. Kay is angry with Wart and gives chase. Wart runs into the woods to retrieve Kay's arrow. Arthur finds Kay's arrow in a tree and when he tries to retrieves it falls through a hay roof and lands in Merlin's home. Merlin is tells Arthur that he has a great future ahead and takes it upon himself to tutor the young boy. The two head to Arthur's foster father home and at first Ector refuse to let Merlin stay. After Merlin causes a blizzard in the summer, Ector relents and gives him the guest quarters. Merlin and Archimedes (Merlin's talking and educated owl companion) would be the two who would educate the two. One day while Wart, Merlin and Archimedes are taking a walk around the castle, Merlin turns Wart into a fish as well as himself so they both can explore what lies beneath lake. Merlin teaches Wart how to swim like a fish and during the learning period they come across a pike fish (a fish with teeth). Merlin gets caught in a helmet and is unable to come to the boy's rescue. Arthur has to defend for himself and at one point is able to trap the pike. It is Archimedes who saves Arthur and Merlin emerges from the moat as a human and changes Arthur back into a boy. When Arthur tries to tell Ector and Kay what he has experience but the both don't what Arthur is saying. Ector gives him six demerits and sends Wart to the kitchen for cleaning duties to work off the demerits. Later that day Merlin appears and asks Arthur if he would like to be a squirrel. Arthur would like to but tells Merlin he can't because he has to work off his demerits. Merlin cast a spell in the kitchen so the dishes can clean themselves and the two head out to the woods to become squirrels. They both encounter the opposite sex and try to shake them off. While trying to escape from the female squirrel, Arthur gets his tail stuck in a branch and a wolf heads after Arthur. The female squirrel comes to the rescue and the wolf falls into a river below the cliff. Both Merlin and Arthur become human again and the female leave crying. When Arthur arrives back at the castle back at the castle Ector accuses Merlin of using black magic to wash the dishes and Merlin vanish into thin air. Arthur defends Merlin but Ector punish the boy and tells Kay that a new squire is going to London with him. Later that evening Merlin appears and tells Arthur that he is sorry but things can only look up and that starting tomorrow his education will begin. At Merlin's quarters, it is discovered that Arthur can't read or write and Archimedes winds up teaching the boy to read and write. During spelling lesson Merlin tries to fly a model airplane but his long beard causes the plain to crash. Archimedes is beside himself with laughter and Arthur looks out the window and wonders what it is like to fly. Merlin turns Arthur into sparrow and Merlin and Archimedes quarrel over who would be a better teacher to teach Arthur how to fly. Archimedes wins the debate and during the course of his lesson a giant hawk gives chase to those two. Arthur falls down a chimney shaft while trying to escape from the hawk. Arthur winds up at Mad Madam Mim's cottage. Mim find that Merlin has an interest in the boy and that is bad in her mind. It is during this time that Archimedes flies back to alert Merlin on what has happen to the boy. Just as Mim was about to eat Arthur, Merlin arrives to rescue the boy. Mim challenges Merlin to a Wizard's Duel. During the duel Mim cheats and turns into a dragon and captures Merlin. It is Merlin who has the laugh last. Merlin turns himself into a rare germ that makes Mim breaks out into spots and suffers from hot and cold flashes. Merlin wins the duel and the trio head back to the castle. It is late winter and the boy who replaces Arthur as Kay's squire comes down with the mumps. Ector tells Arthur that he is now Kay's squire. Arthur rushes to tell Merlin about the news, but is so upset with Wart that he accidently shoots himself to 20th century Bermuda. At the tournament Arthur tells Kay that he left his sword at the inn. Arthur heads back to the inn to get Kay's sword, but the in is lock. Archimedes sees a sword in a stone and pulls it out of the anvil. Arthur heads back to the tournament to give Kay the sword. Kay realizes it is not his sword and Ector realizes it is the Sword in the Stone. Ector asks Wart where he got the sword and Wart tries to explain. The crowd head back to the place where the sword came from. Ector puts the sword back into the anvil and just as Wart is about to pull the sword Kay pushes him aside and tries to pull it out himself. Several other men gather around to try to pull the sword but fail in their attempts. It is Sir Bart says let give the boy a try. Wart goes to the stone and pulls the sword from it. Sir Bart asks for the boy names and tells him it is Arthur. Sir Bart yells "Hail!! King Arthur!!" In the closing scene Arthur convinces himself that he is not ready to be king and tries to escape but is unable to. Arthur cries out for Merlin and Merlin enters the movie again saying the 20th century is a mess and they can have it. Archimedes tells Merlin the Arthur has pulled the sword from the stone and he is now king of all England. The films end with Merlin telling Arthur's future and his Knights of the Round Table and the picture fades with Merlin trying straightening a crown that is too big for Arthur. This movie would be the last movie release when Walt Disney was alive. Walt would be involved with the Jungle Book but died a few days before it release. Overall the movie is good but I just thought the ending could have been better. The Sword in the Stone gets a B+.

Chapter Selection
Bonus Features
A) The Sword in the Stone-Scrapbook
B) Music Magic: The Sherman Brothers
C) Higitus Figitus-Sing-Along Song
D) That's What Makes the World Go Round-Sing-Along Song
E) Film Facts
F) All About the Magic-Original Walt Disney TV Show
G) Knight For A Day-Goofy Animated Short
H) Brave Little Tailor-Mickey Mouse Animated Short
Sneak Peeks
A) Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
B) The Hunchback of Notre Dame II
C) 102 Dalmatians
D) The Emperor's New Groove
Set Up
Play

Excellent movie, better than expected!

Started getting back into the Disney spirit a few years ago because of the classic movies and cartoon shorts and shows from my childhood (except the live action sitcoms).

Anyway, this movie is celebrating 60 years of great Higitus Figitus magic and mayhem! Everything I love about this movie and other Disney DVD from the 2000s is magic, and we can all believe in magic like Merlin, and follow our dreams like Wart.

I must have watched this movie dozens of times in the first 5 or 6 years of my life, but as I watched it again at age 31 for the first time in many years, I realized how much The Sword in the Stone really is a part of who I have become. With the luxury of hindsight, I can now see how much Wart's (borderline naive) enthusiasm, his resilience to challenges, and his faith in all that is good, seems to have shaped my own view of life.

Archimedes the owl plays the role of the practical cynic, and while his knowledge and intelligence is valued by Merlin the Wizard, Archimedes' crusty skepticism is dislikable enough to encourage one not to give too much heed to naysayers and conventional wisdom. Wart's mentor Merlin, though scatterbrained, gets the important things right, like genuinely caring about people, giving of his self in service, and prioritizing things of lasting value--like wisdom, empathy, and righteousness--over the day-to-day urgent distractions that can easily crowd out time for the truly important. Merlin's primary objective seems to be the worthy cause of helping Wart to gain perspective and understanding by viewing the world through different points of view. These experiences help Wart (young King Arthur), to quickly gain the wisdom and judgement that would later become import to him as a leader.

Though I've been too cheap to buy many Disney movies, I splurged and got this because I wanted my kids to have these same good influences I did while their young minds are still so impressionable. As Mormon founder Joseph Smith said, "teach them correct principles, and they govern themselves." With so much smut out there in entertainment, we need more media (The Sound of Music, animated Robin Hood) that teaches correct principles.