Editing One Hundred and One Dalmatians (section)

==Reception==
===Critical response===
In its initial release, ''One Hundred and One Dalmatians'' received acclaim from critics, many of whom hailed it as the studio's best release since ''[[Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937 film)|Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs]]'' (1937) and the closest to a real "Disney" film in many years.<ref>{{cite book |last = Eliot |first = Marc |title = Walt Disney: Hollywood's Dark Prince |pages = 255–256 |publisher = Birch Lane Press |isbn = 978-1559721745 |year = 1993}}</ref> [[Howard Thompson (film critic)|Howard Thompson]] of ''[[The New York Times]]'' wrote, "While the story moves steadily toward a stark, melodramatic "chase" climax, it remains enclosed in a typical Disney frame of warm family love, human and canine." However, he later opined that the "[s]ongs are scarce, too. A few more would have braced the final starkness."<ref>{{cite news |last = Thompson |first = Howard |url = https://www.nytimes.com/1961/02/11/archives/disney-film-on-dogs.html |title = Disney Film About Dogs |newspaper = The New York Times |date = February 11, 1961 |access-date = September 16, 2017 |archive-date = September 7, 2018 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180907183242/https://www.nytimes.com/1961/02/11/archives/disney-film-on-dogs.html |url-status = live }}</ref> ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' claimed that "While not as indelibly enchanting or inspired as some of the studio's most unforgettable animated endeavors, this is nonetheless a painstaking creative effort."<ref>{{cite magazine |url = https://archive.org/details/variety221-1961-01/page/n363/mode/2up/ |title = One Hundred and One Dalmatians (Color) |magazine = Variety |page = 6 |date = January 18, 1961 |access-date = February 22, 2020 |via = [[Internet Archive]]}}</ref> A review in ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' magazine praised the film as "the wittiest, most charming, least pretentious cartoon feature Walt Disney has ever made."<ref>{{cite magazine |url = https://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,826879,00.html |title = Cinema: Pupcorn |magazine = Time | date = February 17, 1961 |access-date = September 16, 2017 |archive-date = April 27, 2017 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170427095800/http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,826879,00.html |url-status = live }}</ref> ''[[Harrison's Reports]]'' felt all children and adults will be "highly entertained by Walt Disney's latest, a semi-sophisticated, laugh-provoking, all cartoon, feature-lengther in Technicolor."<ref>{{cite magazine |url = http://www.archive.org/stream/harrisonsreports43harr#page/n13/mode/2up |title = One Hundred and One Dalmatians An All-Cartoon Feature |magazine = Harrison's Reports |volume = 43 |issue = 3 |page = 11 |date = January 21, 1961 |access-date = February 22, 2020 |via = Internet Archive}}</ref> Dodie Smith also enjoyed the film where she particularly praised the animation and backgrounds of the film.<ref name="SincerelyYours"/> Phil Thomas of ''[[Empire Magazine]]'' gave the film 5 stars out of 5, and said "One of Disney's finest, most underrated moments."<ref>{{cite news|author=David Hepworth|url=https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/one-hundred-one-dalmatians-review/|title= Hundred and One Dalmatians Review|date=January 1, 2000|access-date=May 12, 2025|work=Empire Magazine}}</ref>

Contemporary reviews have remained positive. Reviewing the film during its 1991 re-release, [[Roger Ebert]] of the ''[[Chicago Sun-Times]]'', while giving the film three stars out of four, asserted that "it's an uneven film, with moments of inspiration in a fairly conventional tale of kidnapping and rescue. This is not one of the great Disney classics - it's not in the same league with ''Snow White'' or ''Pinocchio'' - but it's passable fun, and will entertain its target family audiences."<ref>{{cite web |url = https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/101-dalmatians-1991 |title = 101 Dalmatians |last = Ebert |first = Roger |website = [[RogerEbert.com]] |date = July 12, 1991 |access-date = September 16, 2017 |archive-date = September 17, 2017 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170917080624/http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/101-dalmatians-1991 |url-status = live }}</ref> ''[[Chicago Tribune]]'' film critic [[Gene Siskel]], in his 1991 review, also gave the film three stars out of four.<ref>{{cite web |url = https://www.chicagotribune.com/1991/07/12/boyz-n-the-hood-visits-las-mean-streets/ |last = Siskel |first = Gene |title = 'Boyz N The Hood' Visits L.a.'s Mean Streets |newspaper = Chicago Tribune |date = July 12, 1991 |access-date = September 16, 2017 |archive-date = September 17, 2017 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170917080807/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1991-07-12/entertainment/9103180951_1_tre-styles-boyz-hood |url-status = live }}</ref> Ralph Novak of ''[[People (magazine)|People]]'' wrote "What it lacks in romantic extravagance and plush spectacle, this 1961 Disney film makes up for in quiet charm and subtlety. In fact, if any movie with dogs, cats, and horses who talk can be said to belong in the realm of realistic drama, this is it."<ref>{{cite magazine |last = Novak |first = Ralph |url = https://people.com/archive/picks-and-pans-review-101-dalmatians-vol-36-no-3/ |title = Picks and Pans Review: 101 Dalmatians |magazine = People |date = July 29, 1991 |access-date = September 16, 2017 |archive-date = September 17, 2017 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170917075943/http://people.com/archive/picks-and-pans-review-101-dalmatians-vol-36-no-3/ |url-status = live }}</ref> However, in 2011, Craig Berman of [[MSNBC]] ranked it and its 1996 remake as two of the worst children's films of all time, saying that, "The plot itself is a bit nutty. Making a coat out of dogs? Who does that? But worse than Cruella de Vil's fashion sense is the fact that your children will definitely start asking for a Dalmatian of their own for their next birthday."<ref>{{cite web |url = https://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/44260962/ns/today-entertainment/ |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20121005004001/http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/44260962/ns/today-entertainment/ |url-status = dead |archive-date = October 5, 2012 |title = Someone save Bambi's mom! Worst kid films |publisher = MSNBC |access-date = April 13, 2014}}</ref>

On the [[review aggregator]] website [[Rotten Tomatoes]], the film holds an approval rating of {{RT data|score}} based on {{RT data|count}} reviews, with an average score of {{RT data|average}}. The website's critics consensus reads, "With plenty of pooches and a memorable villain (Cruella De Vil), this is one of Disney's most enduring, entertaining animated films."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/101_dalmatians|title=One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961)|website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]|access-date={{RT data|access date}}|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161109021553/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/101_dalmatians|archive-date=November 9, 2016|url-status=live}}{{RT data|edit}}</ref> {{Metacritic film prose|83|10|ref=yes|access-date=3 November 2024}}

[[Cruella De Vil]] ranked 39th on [[AFI's 100 Years... 100 Heroes and Villains|AFI's list of "100 Years...100 Heroes and Villains"]].<ref>{{cite web |title = AFI's 100 Years...100 Heroes & Villains |url = http://www.afi.com/Docs/100Years/handv100.pdf |work = afi.com |access-date = March 31, 2014 |archive-date = March 28, 2014 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140328082215/http://www.afi.com/Docs/100Years/handv100.pdf |url-status = live }}</ref>