The definitive telling of an oft-told tale, Disney's family-friendly animated adventure exhibits plenty of energy, wit and style.
Comment
03/04/08
101 Dalmatians (1961)
97
%
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:36
Fresh:35
Rotten:1
Average Rating:8/10
Consensus: With plenty of pooches and a memorable villain (Cruella De Vil), this is one of Disney's most enduring, entertaining animated films.
Runtime: 80 mins
Genre: Childrens
Synopsis: When the wicked Cruella de Vil and her henchmen kidnap Dalmatian puppies for their cherished spotted fur, it is up to the puppies' parents, Pongo and Perdita, and some brave farm animals, to free... [More]
Starring: Rod Taylor, Lisa Davis, Cate Bauer, Ben Wright
Director: Wolfgang Reitherman, Hamilton Luske, Clyde Geronimi
Reviews for 101 Dalmatians
Top CriticBrilliant entertainment.
01/26/06
Top CriticDog-lovers, in particular, will go ga-ga for this, but this remarkably fresh and funny period tale (set in England, fact fans) has all the ebullience and lovability of its titular characters.
01/01/00
Top CriticIt is the wittiest, most charming, least pretentious cartoon feature Walt Disney has ever made.
09/04/08
Top Criticgood enough to merit repeated viewings. Particularly if you're two.
03/30/08
What has truly kept 101 Dalmatians alive ... is Cruella De Vil herself, one of the most deliciously nasty characters in Disney's oeuvre.
03/29/08
Capturing the essence of Dodie Smith's wonderful children's book, this unforgettable animation. It is one of my favourite animations of all time.
03/23/08
"Cute and cuddly" pretty much sums up this canine caper - once you get past the idea of a lady looking to make a coat out of dalmatian puppies.
03/18/08
The Platinum Edition (Mar 4, 08) has numerous bonus features, such as Virtual Dalmatians, which allows you to adopt, name, and care your own virtual puppy with 101 possibilities, and Puppy Profiler through which you can find out which do you're most like
03/05/08
Three hundred artists worked on this project for three years and came up with one of the best feature cartoons ever produced by Disney Studios.
03/04/08
Top CriticWhile not as indelibly enchanting or inspired as some of the studio's most unforgettable animated endeavors, this is nonetheless a painstaking creative effort.
03/04/08
Top CriticFor years... "101 Dalmatians" was my favorite. Looking back on it years later, it still is.
03/04/08
Cruella De Vil is so much a tour de force that she single-handedly snatches the movie away from any retroactive comparisons to post-classical Disney features whose sloppiness is the is their only saving grace.
03/03/08
101 Dalmatians holds up well after all these years and continues to provide some rousing good fun.
02/22/08
This was the last Disney animated feature (1961) that Uncle Walt lived to see through personally; it can't be a coincidence that it's also the last Disney animated feature of real depth and emotional authenticity.
02/12/08
No review available.
10/10/05
No review available.
01/14/05
They don't make them like this anymore...unfortunately.
05/14/04
No review available.
03/19/04
No review available.
09/18/03
Latest News for 101 Dalmatians
February 13, 2008:
Exclusive sketches from 101 Dalmatians
RT has an exclusive look at some of the early drawings of Cruella De Vil. More...
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