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The Fox and the Hound

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The Fox and the Hound

G

Released Jul 10, 1981

1h 23m

Kids & Family

Drama

Animation

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

75%

Tomatometer

28 Reviews

78%

Popcornmeter

250,000+ Ratings

After his mother is killed, Tod the fox (Mickey Rooney) is taken in by the kindly Widow Tweed (Jeanette Nolan). He soon befriends the neighbor's new hound dog, Copper (Kurt Russell). The two are inseparable, but their friendship is hampered by their masters and by the fact that they are, by nature, enemies. They grow apart as they grow older; Copper has become a strong hunting dog and Tod a wild fox. The pair must overcome their inherent differences in order to salvage their friendship.

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Critics Consensus

The Fox and the Hound is a likeable, charming, unassuming effort that manages to transcend its thin, predictable plot.

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Rob Humanick

Slant Magazine

A work of both learned, assured poise and triumphant freshman determination, not far away from other benchmark-status works like Snow White or Pixar's Toy Story.

Aug 10, 2011

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William Thomas

Empire Magazine

All charmingness aside, this cute but rather thinly plotted yarn exposes the cracks that were present in the pre-renaissance Disney empire.

Rated: 3/5

Sep 3, 2008

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Dave Kehr

Chicago Reader

Against all odds, a tear or two is effectively jerked, and there was enough skill on display to encourage some hope for the new generation of Disney animators, who made their debut here.

Sep 3, 2008

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Mat Brunet

AniMat's Review (YouTube)

Sometimes, all you need to make a movie is two characters from opposing backgrounds forming an unlikely bond. It’s not enough to make a great Disney movie, but it still gets the job done.

Rated: 7/10

Jan 20, 2023

Full Review

Carson Timar

ButteredPopcorn

While it is impossible to claim the film is an all-time masterpiece, especially for this era of Disney, this is a thematically rich and crafted feature with real value.

Jan 14, 2023

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Richard Holliss

Starburst

The Fox and the Hound is a kind of an experiment... certainly a promising one, if a little disappointing.

Jul 27, 2022

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Nicholas B

The Fox and the Hound is a heartfelt four-star animated film that I really enjoyed. With its touching story of friendship, beautifully crafted animation, and emotional depth, it delivers a memorable and meaningful experience. The bond between Tod and Copper is both charming and bittersweet, making it a nostalgic and impactful Disney classic.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

05/25/25

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Kevin P

Underrated Disney gem about two best friends from worlds apart that starts off adorable, but ends in tragedy with a touch of hope in the end.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/21/25

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Indigo O

True classic! I watched it over and over as a kid. Love the animation, and the story itself is beautiful. I like the ending message-- it not being a perfectly happy ending.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/01/25

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Jay W

I love "The Fox and the Hound". It is sweet, heartfelt and at times it can even be frightening. The ending of this movie is one of the most powerful moments in all of animation. This movie has made me laugh, gasp and cry. I love the animation; I love the music and I love the story of friendship. So, what holds this one back from being a (10/10) animated film? Simply put when this film is about the fox and or the hound, it is great stuff. Whenever it wanders to other stories, it is an immediate step down in quality. When the movie cuts to Dinky and Boomer chasing after Squeaks the caterpillar, I feel my time is being wasted. Even when I was a kid watching this movie, I hated these discount Tom & Jerry segments. In other negatives, there are some character moments that should have been dialed up a bit more to hit their emotional potential. There could have been more scenes between the title characters to really establish their friendship. And I acknowledge the plot hole of...just how long does one hunting trip last? Disney animation was going through a bit of turmoil inside at this point in history. Don Bluth and 17 animators had recently left the company to make their own quality animated films. This left this film in an awkward limbo, with a few too many cooks in the kitchen. Some scrapped ideas included a singing flamingo. There is a 10/10 movie in here, it just doesn't fully develop. Take out the scenes with the woodpecker and caterpillar, kill off a character and add a little more of the Fox and Hound, then we would have tight 70-minute animated gold. As is, it is still a great animated movie. In general, I think it is overlooked, as far as being one of Disney's best. It's one of my favorite animated films, and it will be forever won't it? Yeah...forever.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

11/30/24

Full Review

Nick S

Felt like it overused cheap emotional heart-breaking tropes that Disney likes to use... Otherwise it's good, semi-classic Disney movie.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

11/26/24

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Kaito K

One of my favorite movies of all time Period

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

11/23/24

Full Review

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Ted Berman

Director

Richard Rich

Director

Art Stevens

Director

Mickey Rooney

Adult Tod

Kurt Russell

Adult Copper

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Synopsis

After his mother is killed, Tod the fox (Mickey Rooney) is taken in by the kindly Widow Tweed (Jeanette Nolan). He soon befriends the neighbor's new hound dog, Copper (Kurt Russell). The two are inseparable, but their friendship is hampered by their masters and by the fact that they are, by nature, enemies. They grow apart as they grow older; Copper has become a strong hunting dog and Tod a wild fox. The pair must overcome their inherent differences in order to salvage their friendship.

Director: Ted Berman, Richard Rich, Art Stevens
Producer: Wolfgang Reitherman, Art Stevens
Screenwriter: Ted Berman, Larry Clemmons, Vance Gerry, Steve Hulett, Earl Kress, Daniel P. Mannix, Burny Mattinson, David Michener, Peter Young
Distributor: Buena Vista Pictures
Production Co: Walt Disney Pictures
Rating: G
Genre: Kids & Family, Drama, Animation
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jul 10, 1981, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 1, 2014
Box Office (Gross USA): $23.6M
Runtime: 1h 23m
Sound Mix: Mono
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.37:1)

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