Tags: Robin Hoodery
Quoting generously from my longish
Robin Hood review, Carl Olsen of
Ignatius Insight Scoop adds:
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C- |
**½ |
+1-2|
Teens & Up*
Once again a peasant hero reminds us that no man is a knight or peasant but thinking makes him so, and a blacksmith or a stonemason can, and in all likelihood will, shape the destiny of nations. Would you be astonished to learn that there is a proto-feminist heroine who dons armor for the climactic battle? That not only is Richard the Lionheart’s brother John a degenerate, perfidious schemer, Richard himself (briefly seen at the end of
Kingdom of Heaven at the outset of his crusade) is a cruel and venal marauder, as bereft of honor as of funds?
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The last really solid Hollywood take on the traditional Robin Hood mythos (not counting the Kevin Costner folly, because, well, it doesn’t count) was
over 70 years ago, and is essentially the only one in its class (unless you want to
go back to the silent era). A revisionist take on Robin Hood would be one thing if the traditionally heroic Robin Hood could be taken for granted as a cultural reference point. What have we come to if we can
only view a legendary icon like Robin Hood through skeptical, revisionist lenses?
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A- |
***½ |
+1|
Kids & Up*
The best version is the 1982 TV movie
starring Anthony Andrews (“A.D.”) as Ivanhoe, Olivia Hussey and James
Mason (“Jesus of Nazareth”’s Virgin Mary and Joseph of Arimathea) as the Jewess Rebecca and her father Isaac of York, and Sam Neill (Jurassic Park), John Rhys-Davies (The Lord of the Rings), and Stuart Wilson (The Mask of Zorro) as villainous Norman knights.
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B+ |
*** |
+1|
Kids & Up
Director Richard Thorpe and star Robert Taylor would re-team the following year for the Arthurian epic Knights of the Round Table, but that film is a pale imitation of Ivanhoe,
which boasts better spectacle and action (highlights include the
opening tournament, the rousing seige sequence that is the film’s
centerpiece, and a gripping climactic duel scored by ominous drums), a
more interesting romantic triangle, and better villains scheming to
usurp the king’s throne.
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B |
*** |
+1-1|
Teens & Up
Loosely based upon a story by children’s author William Steig (
Sylvester and the Magic Pebble),
Shrek is a satiric, updated fairy-tale love story, sort of like
The Princess Bride, if André the Giant had been the hero, and had worn Lou Ferrigno body paint. And if Princess Buttercup did
Matrix-style wire-fu and knocked out bad guys.
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A+ |
**** |
+0|
Kids & Up
Not only does it terrifically succeed where movies like Mel
Brooks’ Robin Hood: Men in Tights miserably fail, The
Court Jester also as merry, high-spirited, and wholesome as
the adventures it parodies, with none of the cynical, anarchic
spirit (or content issues) of the likes of Monty Python and
the Holy Grail.
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B |
*** |
+1|
Kids & Up
Oo-de-lally! As post-
Sleeping Beauty Disney animated features go,
Robin Hood is a fine entry, better than
The Sword in the Stone or
The Fox and the Hound but not as good as
The Jungle Book or
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh.
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A+ |
**** |
+1|
Kids & Up*
The story is the classic Robin Hood tale, and it’s all here:
the fateful shooting of the King’s deer; Robin’s ignominious
duckings upon his first meetings with Little John (Alan Hale) and
Friar Tuck (Eugene Pallette); Robin’s penchant for entertaining
wealthy victims in high Sherwood style before relieving them of
their gold; the trap archery contest which a disguised Robin wins
by splitting his opponent’s arrow; the return of Richard (Ian
Hunter) from the Crusades disguised in monk’s attire.
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A- |
***½ |
+1|
Kids & Up*
Silent action king Douglas Fairbanks Sr. is
the most exuberantly athletic of Robin Hoods, for sheer
physicality perhaps outdoing even
Errol Flynn’s definitive
performance.
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