Watership Down

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Watership Down

PG,

1978,

1h 32m,

Kids & Family/

Adventure/

Animation

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Watchlist

Watchlist

85%

34 Reviews

Tomatometer

86%

25,000+ Ratings

Popcornmeter

85%

Tomatometer

34 Reviews

86%

Popcornmeter

25,000+ Ratings

When a young rabbit named Fiver has a prophetic vision that the end of his warren is near, he persuades seven other rabbits to leave with him in search of a new home. Several obstacles impede their progress, including predators, a rat-filled cemetery and a speeding river. Upon arriving at their final destination, a hill dubbed Watership Down, the rabbits find that their journey is still far from over. Realistically drawn, this British animated film carries an emotional weight.

Critics Consensus

Aimed at adults perhaps more than children, this is a respectful, beautifully animated adaptation of Richard Adams' beloved book.

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Kevin Maher

The Times (UK)

Nov 27, 2024

5/5

What follows is a landmark moment in British animation in a fearless adaptation of a Richard Adams novel directed by Martin Rosen, exploring the Homeric themes of conflict, slaughter, genocide and the clash of civilisations, but with rabbits.

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Peter Bradshaw

Guardian

Oct 23, 2024

4/5

A band of rabbits must leave their warren to find safety in a film that, even in a digital age, still has the bloody force to scare young minds.

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Tasha Robinson

The Dissolve

Feb 23, 2015

4/5

It's a work deeply enamored with its source material, and determined to do right by it, even if it means frightening kids, baffling parents, and embracing whatever style works.

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Eddie Harrison

film-authority.com

Nov 25, 2024

4/5

…Watership Down has a violent edge that reflects nature, which some might find at odds with the cutie patootie animation, but surely that’s exactly the point…it’s got a tough, environmentally sound message that was hard-hitting in 1978, and still is now.

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Carson Timar

ButteredPopcorn

Aug 28, 2022

C

Trying to forge a relationship with the film ends up feeling like an overall empty experience.

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Rachel Wagner

Rachel's Reviews (YouTube)

Feb 21, 2019

8/10

I love the book and I think... that this is a worthy adaptation.

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Apr 4, 2019

Beautiful film, very interesting at all times, consistent argument and a very organic development, without any doubt very worth seeing.

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Harry S

Mar 2, 2019

Top Five Animated Films Must Have

Leia S

Feb 26, 2019

Emotionally scarring as all kid's films should be; adversity builds character, even in the form of bleeding rabbits and drug trips.

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Harry R

Jan 17, 2019

Watership down is a 1978 movie based on a 1972 book. The voice acting is great and fits the characters really well. The characters are really good and written very well from Hazel to Fiver. My favourite character would have to be General Woundwort. The animation is really good especially the bright eyes scene. The music is very good especially bright eyes. The story is really good and done very well. The fight scenes are done very well, and I like how they took a risk and added blood into a U rated movie. The film also looks very good from the country side to the underground borrows. Over all I give it a 8/10 - worth paying for two tickets

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Hagrid W

Jan 8, 2019

One of the best movies I have ever seen!!

Jan 4, 2019

Possibly one of the greatest animated films of all time and certainly one that made a big impression on me when I first saw it. Great animation and character development, amazing soundtrack and incredibly emotional storyline that still makes me cry even now aged 48, cannot recommend this film enough.

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Martin Rosen

Director

John Hurt

Hazel

Richard Briers

Fiver

Michael Graham Cox

Bigwig

John Bennett

Capt. Holly

Roy Kinnear

Pipkin

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Synopsis

When a young rabbit named Fiver has a prophetic vision that the end of his warren is near, he persuades seven other rabbits to leave with him in search of a new home. Several obstacles impede their progress, including predators, a rat-filled cemetery and a speeding river. Upon arriving at their final destination, a hill dubbed Watership Down, the rabbits find that their journey is still far from over. Realistically drawn, this British animated film carries an emotional weight.

Director: Martin Rosen
Producer: Martin Rosen
Screenwriter: Martin Rosen
Production Co: Warner Bros. Animation
Rating: PG
Genre: Kids & Family, Adventure, Animation
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jan 1, 1978, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 11, 2017
Runtime: 1h 32m
Sound Mix: Surround

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