We are in the midst of Robin mania this weekend with the release of the latest swash and buckle epic from Ridley Scott. It was one thing for Sir Ridley to reteam with his old action buddy Russell Crowe in the saddle as the legendary outlaw, but it is another thing entirely to take Higgins boats, dude them up with wooden planks, pass them off as ancient landing craft and expect the audience to swallow that big fish tale whole.
But maybe we've always had a bit of the big fish tale to swallow whenever we take a bit of time out from our busy days to settle in for another round of Robin and his Merry Men. We never seem to tire of that bandit's noble shennangans up on the big screen. We can't really count Disney's cartoon version here, and his first major live action outting is largely forgotten, unless you are lucky enough to have stumbled upon it on VHS. Then there was that wonderful late in the life tale with Sean Connery and Audrey Hepburn, but it was long on love and short on swash and could have used more than a bit of buckle. Kevin Reynold's 1991 tale was more like Dances with Woodsmen, with Kevin Costner playing around in Sherwood Forest with the rest of the gang, everyone dancing along merrily thanks to Friar Tuck's Famous Mead. I truly loved Morgan Freeman as The Moor, but what really made the film was not the stunt work or the costuming (both grand) but Alan Rickman's Sheriff of Nottingham. Camp, swishy, mad, one hell of a lot of fun.
So, I need to rummage around a bit and see if I can rustle up my remastered copy of Errol Flynn's Robin Hood, that grand old Warner Brother's Technicolor masterpiece. It may not have been historically accurate, but Robin Hood was a legendary guy so accuracy is what you make of it. I think of the film I just rewound this morning and then think of the one I want to unspool tonight and know that there is world of difference between the two. The latter was told to fulfill the audience's need for fantasy, action and adventure and more than just a little bit of romance. The former was there in place to sell an awful lot of products and toys and to massage that old Cal State Fullerton graduate's self focused ego. Oh, heck, I'll go light on the man. It had it's moments, no one likes to flash their backside like Kevin!
Meanwhile, I think once I land in Boise I'll have to grab the paper and see where and when the latest bow string and salmon epic is playing. "Salmon?" you might ask. Yes, looks to be another big, lead, dark and gloomy fish to swallow, albeit an action packed one. Gimme my popcorn, just can't wait!
Action!
But maybe we've always had a bit of the big fish tale to swallow whenever we take a bit of time out from our busy days to settle in for another round of Robin and his Merry Men. We never seem to tire of that bandit's noble shennangans up on the big screen. We can't really count Disney's cartoon version here, and his first major live action outting is largely forgotten, unless you are lucky enough to have stumbled upon it on VHS. Then there was that wonderful late in the life tale with Sean Connery and Audrey Hepburn, but it was long on love and short on swash and could have used more than a bit of buckle. Kevin Reynold's 1991 tale was more like Dances with Woodsmen, with Kevin Costner playing around in Sherwood Forest with the rest of the gang, everyone dancing along merrily thanks to Friar Tuck's Famous Mead. I truly loved Morgan Freeman as The Moor, but what really made the film was not the stunt work or the costuming (both grand) but Alan Rickman's Sheriff of Nottingham. Camp, swishy, mad, one hell of a lot of fun.
So, I need to rummage around a bit and see if I can rustle up my remastered copy of Errol Flynn's Robin Hood, that grand old Warner Brother's Technicolor masterpiece. It may not have been historically accurate, but Robin Hood was a legendary guy so accuracy is what you make of it. I think of the film I just rewound this morning and then think of the one I want to unspool tonight and know that there is world of difference between the two. The latter was told to fulfill the audience's need for fantasy, action and adventure and more than just a little bit of romance. The former was there in place to sell an awful lot of products and toys and to massage that old Cal State Fullerton graduate's self focused ego. Oh, heck, I'll go light on the man. It had it's moments, no one likes to flash their backside like Kevin!
Meanwhile, I think once I land in Boise I'll have to grab the paper and see where and when the latest bow string and salmon epic is playing. "Salmon?" you might ask. Yes, looks to be another big, lead, dark and gloomy fish to swallow, albeit an action packed one. Gimme my popcorn, just can't wait!
Action!
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