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IMDb > The Princess and the Cobbler (1993)

The Princess and the Cobbler (1993) More at IMDbPro »

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Overview

User Rating:
7.3/10   783 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 11% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writers:
Richard Williams (screenplay) &
Margaret French (screenplay) ...
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Contact:
View company contact information for The Princess and the Cobbler on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
25 August 1995 (USA) more
Plot:
The film tells a story which takes place in an oriental city from the tales of thousand and one night... more | add synopsis
NewsDesk:
Watch This: The Thief and The Cobbler
 (From Cinematical. 26 November 2008, 11:32 AM, PST)

User Comments:
The Coolest! more (39 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Vincent Price ... Zig-Zag the Grand Vizier (voice)
Anthony Quayle ... King Nod (original version) (voice)
Hilary Pritchard ... Princess Yum-Yum (original version) (voice)
Windsor Davies ... Chief Roofless (voice)
Paul Matthews ... Mighty One-Eye (original version) (voice)
Joan Sims ... Nurse / Mad Holy Old Witch (original version) (voice)
Clinton Sundberg ... Dying Soldier (voice)

Donald Pleasence ... Phido the Vulture (voice)

Sean Connery ... Tack the Cobbler (voice) (unconfirmed)
Felix Aylmer ... Narrator (original version) (voice)
Kenneth Williams ... Goblet / Tickle (voice)
Stanley Baxter ... Gofer / Slap (voice)
George Melly ... Dwarf (voice)
Eddie Byrne ... Hoof (voice)
Thick Wilson ... Hook (voice)
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Additional Details

Also Known As:
Arabian Knight (USA) (recut version)
Once... (UK) (working title)
The Amazing Nasruddin (UK) (working title)
The Majestic Fool (UK) (working title)
The Thief Who Never Gave Up (UK) (working title)
The Thief and the Cobbler (USA) (recut version)
more
Runtime:
72 min | 91 min (working print) | Australia:77 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Originally conceived by Richard Williams as an attempt to make the greatest animated film of all time, it later became his own "reason for living." After failing to secure funds from private investors or a studio to make the film, Williams decided to finance the film on his own, taking small jobs on television commercials or Saturday morning cartoons and using the proceeds to hire his own group of animators. The production moved in fits and starts until the success of Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988) allowed Williams to make a deal with Warner Bros. to finance and distribute the film. As the production continued, however, it became obvious that Williams would not meet the 1991 release date originally set by the studio due to numerous delays, not the least of which were the director's insistence on absolute perfection and hesitation in using storyboards - two circumstances which often resulted in whole sequences being scrapped and re-shot. With Warner Bros. nervous over the release of Disney's Aladdin (1992), which resembled _Thief and the Cobbler, The (1993)_ in story, tone and style (many of the animators on the Disney feature had also worked for Richard Williams), the studio turned over completion of the film to the Completion Bond Company, which promptly fired Richard Williams and brought on animator 'Fred Calvert (I)' to finish the film as cheaply and quickly as possible. Calvert heavily re-edited the film and altered the story, bringing in Matthew Broderick, Jennifer Beals and Jonathan Winters to re-dub the lead characters. Eventually distributed by Miramax, the film was cut even further before debuting in theaters (See the Alternate Versions page for more details). Though bootleg copies of Richard Williams' original work-print continue to circulate and several restoration attempts have been proposed, an official "Directors Cut" has yet to be released. more
Quotes:
The Thief: [falls into slingshot with one golden ball] No guys. Come on. I'm not tall enough to ride this ride. Aaaand I suffer from dizzy spells, honest. Aaaaaand I'm pregnant! more
Movie Connections:
References Bronenosets Potyomkin (1925) more

FAQ

Will Disney ever do a restored version of this movie?
Why did Tack suddenly got a tan?
more
7 out of 10 people found the following comment useful.
The Coolest!, 22 August 2001
9/10
Author: GHCool from Studio City, CA, USA

My friend and I are huge Vincent Price fans. We're trying to see every movie Price has made. We heard that in 1995 an animated movie called Arabian Knight with Price as the evil Zigzag. We read about its troubled production and I must say we were not expecting much.

When we rented it we were utterly amazed. This film is wonderful! The animation is astounding. Roger Williams is one hell of an animator. Sure, it has problems, but while watching it I thought to myself that if this movie were completed in the late 1960s or early 1970s, it would have been gone down in history as one of the greatest animated films of all time. It would have become a cult classic with a HUGE following!

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more (39 total)

Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for The Princess and the Cobbler (1993)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Wayyy too much like Aladdin. xthexragdollx
Does anyone know why? (slight spoiler) filmfan17
IMDB won't change the title! pmccart
Australian Version MrFreedom
Tack is not Sir Sean Connery Jjam819
Just saw the Recobbled Version... treebeard822
more

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