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Keyser Corleone's Robin Hood Week, Review 2
Robin Hood (2010) - Directed by Ridley Scott
"And the legend begins."
I chose this and the 1922 film to do first for Robin Hood Week because I wanted to start out with an example of a great Robin Hood film and an example of a bad or meh Robin Hood film; then I can compare other movies to these two examples if I have to. I understand there's a lot of criticism toward the 1991 Kevin Costner/Kevin Reynolds film due to its inconsistencies and lead role's acting, but those greatly apply to this movie as well, and I don't hear quite as much criticism. If anything, this is a worse movie than the 1991 film will ever be, so I'll review this one first because I want my readers to realize just how bad a Robin Hood movie can be before I give my compliments to Kevin Costner's film.
Ridley cott's recent origin story for the famous folk hero follows him after the death of King Richard in 1199 as he and his friends return to England to find homes ruined and people taxed by the king's newly crowned brother, Prince John. What the sleazy new king doesn't realize is that one of his closest servants plans on betraying him for French rule, and it's Robin's duty to stop the scandal and try to free the people of England.
This movie was actually pretty boring. It was focusing too hard on a dark and gritty presence when the truth is the overall story and violence were not quite dark and gritty enough to match. The backstory concerning Robin's father was only barely hinted at on several occasions until the backstory is revealed and is completely underwhelming.
The action could occasionally be exciting and fun to watch, but that's easily at the expense of the direction. Ridley Scott's a veteran director who's still occasionally making great movies like The Martian, and yet the direction and cinematography of the action scenes are occasionally clunky. Besides, we don't get enough of Robin's arrows. For an origin story, I'd like to see how Robin actually became so skilled with arrows. That's something a lot of Robin Hood stories don't even bother with. In fact, the only good thing I liked about the trailer for the 2018 Taron Egerton film is that he was being TRAINED to be Robin Hood.
The acting was great. None of the characters failed at their roles, and Russell Crowe delivered the kind of Robin Hood he had to quite well. But this isn't the Robin Hood I love. Why is he around 40 years old, disgruntled, and a wannabe of Wolverine? And why is Marian nearly 40? Some origin story. But the truth is they were still great because Crowe and Cate Blanchett are wondeerful actors. And this version of Prince John is by far my favorite from the many Robin Hood movies I've seen. He was sleazy, like the walking, talking equivalent of a great AC/DC album.
The story, however, needs serious work. For one thing, it can't possibly be canon to the Robin Hood mythos if it takes place after King Richard's death. Robin Hood's story is largely about his allegiance to King Richard. No rightful ruler makes Robin Hood a villain instead of a righteous rebel. What's he going to do? Slay the king? And the characters are unbelievably flat. That's something most Robin Hood movies forget to focus on: the Merry Men and the prince's posse. And this film is one of the best examples of this. Tinker Bell gets more character development alone than all the Merry Men put together. Bu I am glad about one thing concerning the story: the Robin Hood tales are as much about adventure as they are about scandal, and this film balances the two fairly well.
Well, the acting and the action saved Ridley Scott's Robin Hood from being a bad movie, but there's a lot to be bored with in the movie as well. I'd say watch it once just for the acting and action. It's a war movie, so there's going to be a bit of action, and Scott didn't forget the scandal. But seriously, you could easily forget some of the flaws of the 1991 film and the 1973 cartoon if you watch this.
Recommended for Russell Crowe and Cate Blanchett fans who just wanna see their acting, and to serious action fans who just want a bunch of action.
Robin Hood (2010) - Directed by Ridley Scott
"And the legend begins."
I chose this and the 1922 film to do first for Robin Hood Week because I wanted to start out with an example of a great Robin Hood film and an example of a bad or meh Robin Hood film; then I can compare other movies to these two examples if I have to. I understand there's a lot of criticism toward the 1991 Kevin Costner/Kevin Reynolds film due to its inconsistencies and lead role's acting, but those greatly apply to this movie as well, and I don't hear quite as much criticism. If anything, this is a worse movie than the 1991 film will ever be, so I'll review this one first because I want my readers to realize just how bad a Robin Hood movie can be before I give my compliments to Kevin Costner's film.
Ridley cott's recent origin story for the famous folk hero follows him after the death of King Richard in 1199 as he and his friends return to England to find homes ruined and people taxed by the king's newly crowned brother, Prince John. What the sleazy new king doesn't realize is that one of his closest servants plans on betraying him for French rule, and it's Robin's duty to stop the scandal and try to free the people of England.
This movie was actually pretty boring. It was focusing too hard on a dark and gritty presence when the truth is the overall story and violence were not quite dark and gritty enough to match. The backstory concerning Robin's father was only barely hinted at on several occasions until the backstory is revealed and is completely underwhelming.
The action could occasionally be exciting and fun to watch, but that's easily at the expense of the direction. Ridley Scott's a veteran director who's still occasionally making great movies like The Martian, and yet the direction and cinematography of the action scenes are occasionally clunky. Besides, we don't get enough of Robin's arrows. For an origin story, I'd like to see how Robin actually became so skilled with arrows. That's something a lot of Robin Hood stories don't even bother with. In fact, the only good thing I liked about the trailer for the 2018 Taron Egerton film is that he was being TRAINED to be Robin Hood.
The acting was great. None of the characters failed at their roles, and Russell Crowe delivered the kind of Robin Hood he had to quite well. But this isn't the Robin Hood I love. Why is he around 40 years old, disgruntled, and a wannabe of Wolverine? And why is Marian nearly 40? Some origin story. But the truth is they were still great because Crowe and Cate Blanchett are wondeerful actors. And this version of Prince John is by far my favorite from the many Robin Hood movies I've seen. He was sleazy, like the walking, talking equivalent of a great AC/DC album.
The story, however, needs serious work. For one thing, it can't possibly be canon to the Robin Hood mythos if it takes place after King Richard's death. Robin Hood's story is largely about his allegiance to King Richard. No rightful ruler makes Robin Hood a villain instead of a righteous rebel. What's he going to do? Slay the king? And the characters are unbelievably flat. That's something most Robin Hood movies forget to focus on: the Merry Men and the prince's posse. And this film is one of the best examples of this. Tinker Bell gets more character development alone than all the Merry Men put together. Bu I am glad about one thing concerning the story: the Robin Hood tales are as much about adventure as they are about scandal, and this film balances the two fairly well.
Well, the acting and the action saved Ridley Scott's Robin Hood from being a bad movie, but there's a lot to be bored with in the movie as well. I'd say watch it once just for the acting and action. It's a war movie, so there's going to be a bit of action, and Scott didn't forget the scandal. But seriously, you could easily forget some of the flaws of the 1991 film and the 1973 cartoon if you watch this.
Recommended for Russell Crowe and Cate Blanchett fans who just wanna see their acting, and to serious action fans who just want a bunch of action.