--- title: "Watership Down: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/watership-down/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/watership-down" critics_score: 70 critics_reviews: 7 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Watership Down (1978): what the critics said Critics' score 70 from 7 reviews: 5 positive, 1 mixed, 1 negative. Most critics regard Watership Down as a rare thing: a British animated film that treats death, tyranny and the brutality of the countryside without flinching, and is admired for exactly that. The praise clusters on the watercolour animation, the score and the film’s refusal to soften the novel’s violence for a young audience. Several reviews note that it still frightens children, and most count that as a virtue rather than a flaw. The voice cast is mentioned approvingly more than once. The reservations are fewer and mostly about audience: Radio Times finds the film hard to place, too dark for the certificate it carries and better suited to readers of the book than to children. The one outright dissent is Time Out, which finds the animation crude, the camerawork flat and the famous voices turning the whole thing into a radio play. The spread is otherwise narrow and warm. ## The Times — Kevin Maher Rating ★★★★★. 22 November 2024. The critic hails the film as a landmark in British animation, a fearless adaptation exploring themes of conflict and civilisation through rabbits, with a legendary voice cast and high-art qualities. They praise its nationally significant status and emotional impact, calling it a giant movie. [Read the review](https://www.thetimes.com/culture/film/article/watership-down-1978-review-high-art-animation-and-a-legendary-cast-x626szghv) ## RogerEbert.com — Matt Zoller Seitz Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 20 February 2025. The critic praises the 1978 animated film for its blend of beauty and unflinching exploration of death, suffering, and life's brevity. He singles out the watercolor visuals, score, and recurring motifs of mortality as especially moving. [Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/features/30-minutes-on-watership-down) ## Sight and Sound Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 12 March 2018. The critic praises the film as a groundbreakingly honest and visceral depiction of the British countryside and its brutal realities, distinguishing it from more romanticised portrayals in children's stories. The analysis highlights how its raw animation style and themes of power, land and survival influenced later rural dramas. [Read the review](https://www.bfi.org.uk/features/more-handmaids-tale-than-peter-rabbit-why-watership-down-remains-terrifying-vision-land) ## The Guardian Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 23 October 2024. The critic finds the 1978 animation retains a bloody force that can still scare young viewers, with its story of rabbits fleeing destruction and confronting tyranny. They single out the simple charm of the animation style, comparing it favourably to a British Studio Ghibli. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2024/oct/23/watership-down-review-charming-rabbit-animation-still-has-power-to-terrify) ## The AV Club — Scott MacDonald Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 5 August 2013. The critic highlights the film's uncompromising and mature approach to animated storytelling for children, praising its brutal violence and themes of loss and survival as elements that force young viewers to confront harsh realities unlike typical kids' films. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/pixar-movies-look-like-child-s-play-compared-to-watersh-1798239735) ## Radio Times — Tom Folley Rating 3/5. The review notes the film's box-office success and dark sophistication despite its PG certificate and difficulty fitting the 'kids' movie' label, praising the ambitious naturalistic animation style, impressive voice cast and faithful retelling. It suggests the unique look will appeal to fans of the book. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-u7ddee/watership-down/) ## Time Out — GB Fi1m's normalised score 20/100 (inferred from the text). 13 March 2014. The review dismisses the film as charmless and lacking terror or tension, criticising the objective camera work, crude animation and reliance on famous voices that turn it into a radio play. It contrasts this unfavourably with the source novel's strengths. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/watership-down) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/watership-down.md