The Story of Robin Hood (Live-Action)

[ichabod]

<center>The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men (1952)

http://www.moviegoods.com/Assets/produc ... pg</center>

When King Richard leaves England to fight the crusades, the Kingdom is left under the reign of Prince John. The Prince appoints the new Sheriff of Nottingham with the understanding that he wants the people to be taxed for every penny they have. When Robin competes in a public archery tournament and anger the Sheriff, the Sheriff of Nottingham has Robin's father killed. Robin takes to the forest with others who oppose their new ruler.
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Disney's second fully live action film was certainly not tackled lightly. Every time I see this film, I always find it surprising that for a film with a rather low key reputation, it seems as though great expense went into its making.

Filmed on location in England some amazing locations were chosen, the sets and costumes are lavish and detailed and its clear that time and effort was taken. Peter Ellenshaw's wonderful Mattes, the grand scale of the sets and scenes, in particular the archery tournament looks wonderful. The opening scene shows an overhead shot of a large field with hundreds of extras, all in clothing of the period, dozens of tents with flags waving in the wind. This was a production for which Disney pulled out all the stops.

This is a very classic and familiar telling of the story, with all the familiar elements present. However even though it retains a feeling of familarity it does have its own story twists not present in other versions. IN particular at the start of the film we find out the Robin and Marian are childhood friends and we see them interact, before King Richard goes away to fight in the crusades and the 'whistling' arrows are a very clever concept.

The film does has strong performances granted there are a few odd and very minor cases where the acting appears to slightly cheesy, but there is lots of plot, with moments of tension, drama and comedy.

Highlights of the film include the scene in the town square where the ransom to free King Richard is being collected. The Sheriff of Nottingham has claimed he has given everything he has and Robin and his Merrie Men sneak into his quarters, take the money he has been hiding and bring that too to the collection.

Other highlights include Prince John ordering his men to disguise themselves as Robin Hood and his men and ambush the Queen in the hope that the Queen and the rest of the people will think that Robin Hood is nothing but a thief, but Robin and his men manage to thwart the plan.

The climax sees Robin battling the Sheriff trying to climb the closing drawbridge with the Sheriff meeting his untimely demise.

I can't help but feel that following the climax, the film goes on a little too much. After the fight at the drawbridge, the film almost slows down, to a pace which leads to viewer to think that more is coming, and thus when the film ends it seems quite abrupt.

I can understand why this film may seem daunting to some and why many may avoid it as being one of the many of Disney's 1950s pieces the dialogue is very 'Ye Olde English' and even I find it a chore to keep pace at times, so I could understand why younger viewers could find it tiresome.

A few criticisms I have are that I find Alan-a-Dale's presecence at times rather irritating due to the dreary songs he sings, which certainly are not at the usual sing a long Disney level. They are obviously there to provide light hearted comic relief, but for me they fail. Also the film has the typical dramatic background music at moments of tension, which although common at the time I find to be generally overbearing and although intended to heighten and intensify the action, when it is present during scenes which are not that active they grate on me.

Whilst I personally quite like films like this from the Disney canon, I see they are not to everyone's taste in this modern era. Whilst I wouldn't recommend everyone buys this, I'd certainly suggest giving it a chance should it ever appear on TV.

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Next time: Freaky Friday (2003)

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[Luke]

Wish I could contribute something to the discussion, but this is one I haven't seen.

<i>Luke crosses his fingers in the hopes that this doesn't start a trend of "I haven't seen it" posts.</i>

Nevertheless, thanks for sharing your thoughts on this film.

[ichabod]

ichabod crosses his fingers in the hopes that this doesn't start a trend of "Why bother replying then" posts.

[slave2moonlight]

I hate to admit it, but this is one of the few I haven't seen as well. I mean, some of them I haven't seen in a long time, but this one I don't think I've seen at all, which is a shame, because I love the subject matter and have pretty much loved all the live-action "classic Disney" I've seen. As for why bother replying, well, I haven't missed a live-action discussion yet, ha.

[dvdjunkie]

Thank you, thank you, thank you Ichabod!!! As most know this is my favorite live-action Disney film, and it was one of the first one's that I saw in a movie theater as a child. I can remember offering the manager that I would fold popcorn boxes in return for an admission to the theater. It was only 50 cents for kids back then, and I figure that 500 popcorn boxes folded and ready to use would be a great trade. It always worked. I got more paper cuts from those boxes, but I also got to see "The Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men" more times than I can remember.

I own the VHS of this film, and I have since duped it to DVD+RW, hoping that someday it will be released on regular DVD and maybe I will get lucky and it will have some sort of extras.

Thank you again Ichabod for reviewing this movie. I agree with everything that you said about it, 100 per cent, except that I can highly recommend this for all Disney purists who want to collect everything that Disney has to offer.

[MickeyMousePal]

Hey, Disney why isn't The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men on DVD in stores and not only in the Disney Movie Club. I still remember watching The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men a couple of months ago and it was a really great film. Yes, this is an old Disney Live Action film while it's on DVD at the Disney Movie Club it's completely boneless with bonus features.
My mom even remembers watching this movie when I rent it at the library on VHS.

[goofystitch]

My first time seeing this was a few months ago when I bought the DMC exclusive. I love it. In some ways, I even prefer it to the animated version. I liked it WAY better than the Kevin Costner version. There is something fun about the Disney version. I think part of the reason the film is so entertaining is because of the actors. Richard Todd is awesome as Robin Hood and Joan Rice holds is a perfect match. Their playfulness on screen makes the romance aspect of the film seem real. I also love the minstrel. This is my favorate of the four films made in England after the war. I highly reccomend it, even though the DMC exclusive DVD is lacking not only in bonuses, but in chapter selections and picture quality. This film shines through all of the DVDs downfalls.

[slave2moonlight]

I'm just concerned with how this film will compare to the Errol Flynn version when I finally get to see this.

[dvdjunkie]

Don't compare this one to the Errol Flynn version. They are two different tellings of the story of Robin Hood. The Flynn version is a classic and was made 11 years before the Disney one. Richard Todd is not Errol Flynn, and trying to put him up there with one of the greats will not make you give the Disney version an equal chance.

[MichaeLeah]

I am with ichabod and dvdjunkie on this one. The Story of Robin Hood is a great Disney film. Other than the nostaglic value that makes me so fond of the animated version, this live-action take is superior in every way. I finally got to watch this when I tracted down the VHS at the local library. I have since jumped at the opportunity to grab the Exclusive DVD. The story is put together very well and it includes some nice jokes such as the introduction of Friar Tuck.

I think some people might complain about the films use of middle English but I think its use helps the film to be faithful to the period setting. (Although the dialect isn't actually as old as the original setting.) The DVD fails to compensate for this weekness because the dialogue is too quiet and muffled. If they don't fix the sound some kids aren't going to be able to understand the dialogue. I would also be great if they clean up the picture. The film includes a lot of beautiful scenery in the forest and it would be nice if they could clean it up.

I think this film is terrific and I would recommend it to anybody. It is much more intense and violent than most of Disney's later projects. It is a shame Disney basically quit making these kinds of films after Rob Roy.

I haven't seen The Sword and the Rose, Rob Roy, or The Fighting Prince of Donegal. After the massive release of the True-Life Adventures, these titles will be among very few older titles that haven't been released on DVD. I can't wait to watch them. My enjoyment of Treasure Island and The Story of Robin Hood makes me optimistic about those films.

[slave2moonlight]

I haven't seen The Sword and the Rose, Rob Roy, or The Fighting Prince of Donegal. After the massive release of the True-Life Adventures, these titles will be among very few older titles that haven't been released on DVD. I can't wait to watch them. My enjoyment of Treasure Island and The Story of Robin Hood makes me optimistic about those films.

Oddly enough, those films you listed, along with Robin Hood, make up most of the classic Disney films I have yet to see. For some reason, I don't think they showed those very often on the Disney Channel, which was my main source for classic Disney growing up. I think they might have shown the Sword and the Rose and Story of Robin Hood, but I don't think I ever saw them in their entirety or I don't remember them well. It will be nice when I finally get to see them all!

dvdjunkie, I received your pm, but I was not able to reply as the pms are disabled for newer members. I tried to e-mail you back about it to the e-mail address I saw in your profile.

However, as this is a Robin Hood film, I think it's pretty justified to compare it to other Robin Hood films, ha. Luckily, I like most Robin Hood movies I have seen.

[goofystitch]

MichaeLeah wrote:

I think this film is terrific and I would recommend it to anybody. It is much more intense and violent than most of Disney's later projects. It is a shame Disney basically quit making these kinds of films after Rob Roy.

I haven't seen The Sword and the Rose, Rob Roy, or The Fighting Prince of Donegal. After the massive release of the True-Life Adventures, these titles will be among very few older titles that haven't been released on DVD. I can't wait to watch them. My enjoyment of Treasure Island and The Story of Robin Hood makes me optimistic about those films.

I have seen all of those except for "The Fighting Prince of Donegal" because I'm in the middle of watching every film made during Walt's time in chronological order and I haven't gotten there yet. "The Sword in the Rose" is fantastic! Disney really needs to get that film on DVD and if you love "The Story of Robin Hood," you will love "The Sword and the Rose" It stars Richard Todd (Robin Hood) and I forget her name, but she later played Mrs. Banks in "Mary Poppins." It's a period adventure film like Robin Hood.

However, it is easy to see why "Rob Roy" was the last of these films made. It also stars the couple from "The Sword and the Rose," but there are a lot of downfalls in that film. The thick Scottish accent makes it hard to understand the dialogue and the plot moves very slowly. It completely lost my interest and I honestly couldn't tell you what it was about because I was so lost. So basically, if you can only obtain a copy of one or the other, go with "The Sword in the Rose." I highly reccomend it.

[NarniaDis]

I love this film - Im one of the few that still owns the late 80s/early 90s VHS, and I refuse to part with it....

A great film by Disney standards and completely enjoyable even when compared the the Errol Flynn version

[ichabod]

You know I've just watched my VHS, taped from a TV recording around about mid 2005 and I was very surprised. Whereas the review of the DMC version says the picture isn't all that great, the VHS has a much better picture quality. Comparing the same shots from the recorded-from-TV VHS with the caps from the review, obviously assuming they are an accurate representation of the DVD, the colours on my VHS are much brighter and sharper. There were only two very short scenes where I noticed any grain, and was quite literally agog at how wonderful it looked. The print that was used in the TV broadcast was almost certainly restored. And considering that the DVD print, is supposedly the same as the restored laserdisc, it looks as though efforts to improve the film have been done since the laserdisc was released.

Well at least it shows that if the film should ever get a proper release there is a much better print sitting around somewhere, who knows perhaps Disney deliberately used the older print for the DMC exclusive to save the newer restoration for a proper release.

[blackcauldron85]

I haven't seen any of these period films ("The Story of Robin Hood", "The Sword and the Rose", "Rob Roy", etc.).

You all seem to like them, but you mentioned how some may find them dull in some spots (I guess that's what you meant). I really like Disney's live action comedies & musicals- the dramas are the ones I'm unsure of, since I haven't seen many at all especially.

Are there many comedic moments (in "Robin Hood", as well as the other early period pieces)? I know you all can't read my mind to know if I'd like them, but I've read the reviews, and your comments, and I guess I need more feedback as to the pros and cons of these films...

Thanks!

[ichabod]

I wouldn't say these films were dull, but many could hold that opinion. Like a number of older period dramas the films are driven by plot and character. Usually it is the relationships and interactions between the characters which take centre stage. Similarly some may not have the time to take in the performance, and usually most Americans (sorry to generalise but it's true) throw in the towel at the hint of a real British/Irish/Scottish accent and may find it hard to sit through. And when I say real British/Irish/Scottish accents most Americans aside from the ones that regularly watch BBC America do tend to think that British/Irish/Scottish all sound like in the movies, either all posh like the Queen or some kind of deformed cockney like Dick Van Dyke (Just for those reading this who believe cockneys sound like DVD in Mary Poppins, you're quite wrong!). Now since these films were made in Britain with largely real British actors you largely get real British accents which may at times leave you thinking "What?" I'm British and even I sometimes struggle to understand what's being said.

The cast for these films were usually very renowned and respected actors, usually classically trained or stage actors. These films can seem very much like a classic stage play, quite Shakespearean in some ways.

They are very different from the majority of films made by Disney and not the sort of film that has been made at all in the last 40/50 years.

It's hard to think of a well known film to compare them with, as I don't know what you've seen. But you want to be thinking along the lines of "Gone With the Wind" type films. Whilst there is drama and action and comedy, like sword fights, attacks upon castles, armies of men on horseback etc. as I said above it takes a back seat to the main focus of the relationships.

There are comic moments in the films, but not the comedy you get in modern films. It's usually more subtle and depending on your PoV you may not even think it is comedy.

I think these films are spectacular for many reasons. As you can see in my original post above, these films often had a lot of money spent on them and have very lavish sets and amazing production values. The only way to know for yourself though is to take the plunge and see.

[blackcauldron85]

Thanks, Ichabod! Well, I love "Gone with the Wind" (one of the few non-Disney movies I own, but on VHS), and if these films are anything like that, then I'd probably like it. In general, I do like period pieces, but I was just worried about the dullness of them, as I said.

I'm mainly asking because I'm figuring out my finances for next year, and I don't know if I should start filling in gaps in my DVD collection, starting with the live-action films that I don't have (or should I start from the few animated films I don't have, like "Recess: Miracle on Third Street"). So, if the DMC has a great deal next year, I may buy it with some others...

Again, I appreciate your feedback!

[WilbyDaniels]

i really enjoy your reviews of disneyfilms. keep'em coming

[Flanger-Hanger]

Just saw this film and thought it was good (much better than Disney's dull animated film version) but just felt it couldn't compare to the 1938 movie, which to me is the definitive Robin hood film.

What I did like was an attempt to have an original way for the Sheriff to die. Instead of copying or trying to top the original 1938 duel, the drawbridge death was used instead. Only problem was that it happened so fast it just came off as anti-climatic to me (or maybe it was the cutting and shots used in the scene).

[Barbossa]

They switched the yellow border on the cover to a dark blue, as shown on Amazon, anybody know why?:
http://www.amazon.com/Story-Robin-Hood/ ... 485&sr=1-1



Anybody know how many movie rewards points this one is worth? I'm going to guess 75.

It's odd that it's coming out on Sunday.

I was going to order this one through DMR, but since it's out in stores tomorrow, I'll just buy it. That way I can save my points on other stuff, and gain some in the process.