Robin Hood
140 mins
Cert: 12A
Dir: Ridley Scott
Rating: 3/5
What would you get if you gave Han Solo a horse, placed him in the medieval era, and gave him a bow and arrow instead of a trusty blaster?
Well, if you’re director Ridley Scott, you’d have Robin Hood. Touting itself as the definitive take on the legendary outlaw, Scott’s story is that of Robin Longstride (Russell Crowe), a Saxon archer in King Richard’s army, though often the focus is more upon the conflict between the English and the French.
Throughout the film, Crowe successfully acts the part of a perfect scoundrel with a heart of gold, and if you can ignore the fact that his accent fluctuates a bit during the film, his dialogue is captivating, if a bit clichéd.
Robin’s companions Will Scarlett (Scott Grimes) and Little John (Kevin Durand) provide a lot of the comic relief for an otherwise serious subject, with screenwriter Brian Helgeland working in a few Welsh and Scottish jokes at the expense of Scarlett and John.
Cate Blanchett portrays Marion Loxley with more ferocity than previous takes on the character and tries her damnedest to make the story between Robin and Marion come together, though what results is a romance that’s rushed and a bit too trite.
If you’re looking for a film with two decent set piece battles reminiscent of Braveheart, bits of snappy dialogue, and a semi cliché debate on governments and their people, you may want to give this a look.
But if you’re looking for the Robin Hood you’re more familiar with, gallivanting about the countryside stealing from the rich and giving to the poor, you may want to wait until the next (albeit rumoured) instalment
