The Black Cauldron (1985)

In the land of Prydain, a teenaged boy (Grant Bardsley) working on a small farm owned by a sorcerer (Freddie Jones) daydreams of becoming a famous warrior. The boy is assigned the task of protecting an oracular pig from the clutches of the evil Horned King (John Hurt) but when he fails at that and the pig is kidnapped, he is determined to recover the pig at any cost. Based on THE CHRONICLES OF PRYDAIN by Lloyd Alexander and directed by Ted Berman and Richard Rich. This slender fantasy of bravery and adventure was Walt Disney's most expensive animated project at the time and its box office failure nearly put its animation department in jeopardy. Although family friendly, the film was considered darker than most Disney animated films and was cut by 12 minutes before its release. Still, a scene of long dead warriors returning to life could be very disturbing to the under 7 set. Curiously, a sequence where a man (Nigel Hawthorne) turned into a frog hides in the cleavage of a witch's ample bosom was deemed innocent enough for the kiddies! I could have done without the furry creature Gurgi (John Byner) who suffers from an overabundance of adorability. There's a fine score by Elmer Bernstein. With Susan Sheridan, Billie Hayes and Phil Fondacaro.