Product Description

The Swashbuckling legend of Robin Hood unfolds in the 12th century when the mighty Normans ruled England with an iron fist.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #18783 in DVD
• Released on: 2004-05-11
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Color, DVD, Full Screen, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English, Spanish
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 104 minutes

Amazon.com
Film buffs may remember the tangled tale of competing Robin Hood projects in 1991. Kevin Costner, riding high from his Oscar wins for Dances with Wolves, had his pick of projects at the time, and he juggled his interest in parallel Hood films that were under development at different studios. Costner chose Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, of course, directed by his friend Kevin Reynolds, while the other production (the one described here), attached to veteran British director John Irvin (The Dogs of War), ended up on cable television with another Yank, Patrick Bergin, in the lead. Comparisons were inevitable, even though the two films were very different from one another. A little harder edged and more surprising than Reynolds's work, the Irvin-Bergin movie made all that medieval heroism seem more an effort of the heart than previous versions. Roughing things up a bit is Uma Thurman as a bratty Maid Marion, not quite the traditional damsel in distress of yesteryear. Irvin keeps the adventure quotient up, but this is simply a darker, grittier variation on the old tale. With Jürgen Prochnow, Jeroen Krabbé, and Conrad Asquith. --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews

The best Robin Hood yet filmed...
Patrick Bergin is a dynamic Robin Hood, hitting the mark with the perfect mix of arrogance, compassion, charm and devil-may-care, hell-bent glory-seeking. Sure, there's a list of noble reasons why Robin Hood takes to the forest to fight Norman oppression and protect the unfortunate Saxon serfs from tyranny. But let's face it, Robin is a hero who enjoys what he does. He loves nothing more than laughing at danger and tweaking the nose of authority. It's easy to see that Bergin enjoyed the part, and his pleasure translates to the screen, making it an enjoyable romp for viewers.

Bergin shares Sherwood with a fine cast. Uma Thurman is a surprisingly strong Marian. Owen Teale is an excellent, fun-loving Will Scarlett, and David Morrissey is the best Little John I've seen yet. Jeff Nuttall is also a picture-perfect Friar Tuck. On the Norman side, Jurgen Prochnow is the malicious knight, Sir Miles Folcanet, who pursues Robin through the forest, and Jeroen Krabbe is Baron Daguerre, a greedy lord with a conscience. There's a brief, but impressive, appearance of Edward Fox as the would-be King John.

The movie boasts excellent swordplay, good costuming, authentic-sounding accents ... and some great pagan symbolism.

This film also has immense respect for the history behind the legend. While we may not know much about the real Robin Hood -- if there even was one -- we do know a lot about the time period in question, and Irvin keeps his cameras focused on the truth of feudal Britain. This is a Robin Hood I can believe in without reservation.

Very Historically Accurate and Well Done English Film!
For students of medieval history, this English version of Robin Hood is a VERY accurate re-telling of the classic Sir Robert Hode, 4th Earl of Huntington (a real person) legend. Reminiscent of the swashbuckling classics made in the thirties and forties, this film transports you back to 12th century England, when the mighty Normans ruled with an iron hand. Sir Robert Hode (Patrick Bergen) is a Saxon nobleman who insults the sinister knight Sir Miles Falcanet (Jurgen Prochnow) and is branded an outlaw. Clever and quick witted, he changes his name to Robin Hood and a legend is born. Robin becomes an outlaw hero, celebrated across the land for his dashing heroism. He ambushes the tax collectors of the greedy Baron Roger Daguerre (memorably played by Jeroen Krabbe), and gives the money to the poor. Then with his true love, Maid Marian (Uma Thurman) about to be married to Falcanet, Robin and his band of loyal men embark on their boldest adventure yet, to storm the Baron's castle and rescue Marian from a fate worse than death. Well written and adapted for the screen, expertly cast, (too many memorable performances to mention here) and superbly directed by English director John Irvin, this relatively low budget production has never received the accolades it deserves. This movie is a thrilling medieval adventure filled with action, romance and humor. If you saw the disappointing "Hollywood formula" American version with Kevin Costner, but prefered the original with Errol Flynn, and missed this one, give it a try! It is an opportunity to be transported back to another place and time, to see an accurate glimpse of medieval history come alive on film. A must see film for all history buffs... Excellent!!!

Far above Costners
This film is one of the best RH films done it certainly is far superior to the joke that Costner did!
I do have a correction that is pretty important, there is no Sherriff of Nottingham or Guy of Gisborne in this version. The Director chose to use the conflict of Norman Vs Saxon as the stronger plot drive and instead had two noble Normans playing the heavys. While it was a surprise to me the first time I watched the film I understood the choice. It makes it much easier for veiwers to see what was the actual conflict of Robin Hood, and not have too many people thinking of Alan Rickman or Basil Rathbone's potrayals of the heavys from the two more well known versions of RH.
Worth seeing, far more historically acurate than either of the other films and Uma's Marion could go head to head with Oliva's and totaly wipeout MEM from Prince of Thieves, or as I call it Robin Hood: Dances With Arrows.