Robin Hood

Random observation: I rather feel like the same people who designed the above poster also worked on this one...what do you think?

When I first heard that Ridley Scott was making a Robin Hood film, I was incredibly excited - especially when I heard that it would be somewhat similar - perhaps an unofficial sequel - to Kingdom of Heaven, which is my favorite Scott film. (Please, if you've never seen the director's cut of Kingdom, do so asap!) And then this teaser trailer came out, and my interest in the movie nose-dived. That has to be one of the worst teasers ever cobbled together for a major film. Thankfully for this movie I stumbled upon a much, much better trailer back in April when I was putting together this post - and my interest in the movie revived. :)

This is most definitley not your traditional Robin Hood story. It's a dark, intense origin story where Scott has attempted to place the character of Robin Hood in a very real historical context. Though not a true sequel to Kingdom of Heaven, it makes an excellent companion film (sort of the "homefront" to Kingdom's Crusade-set action). The film opens with Richard the Lionheart (Danny Huston) leading his weary army back home to England, sacking French castles on the way. If you're expecting a traditional Robin Hood storyline, Scott dispatches that notion pretty quickly as Richard kicks the proverbial bucket and dies enroute. Robin (Russell Crowe) and his men (Little John - Kevin Durand, Will Scarlet - Scott Grimes, and Allan A'Dayle - Alan Doyle) are lowly archers and men-at-arms in Richard's army. With the king dead, the four decide to strike out for home. But their plans change when the come upon Richard's loyal lieutenant, Sir Robert Loxley (Douglas Hodge - almost didn't recognize him, he played Dr. Tertius Lydgate in Middlemarch), tasked with returning Richard's crown to England. Loxley and his men were ambushed and massacred, and he tasks a reluctant Robin with returning his sword to his father, Sir Walter Loxley (Max von Sydow) in - wait for it - Nottingham. :) Robin & company assume the identity of knights in order to make their way home easier - and of course Robin assumes Loxley's identity.

I'm going to stop with the story recap here (that's probably enough of an introduction, anyway) and delve into the characters and acting for a while. I'll save Robin and Marion for last. :) Back in England Richard left behind a very selfish, immature younger brother - John, played by Oscar Isaac - with serious mommy issues. Eleanor of Acquitaine is played superbly by Eileen Atkins. She's regal and powerful and has a wonderful screen presence - an unexpected jewel of a performance. John is, of course, a disaster in the making, and as soon as the crown settles on his head he goes full steam ahead with his plans to tax, tax, tax. Isaac's performance is interesting and makes you wonder how John would've turned out if he hadn't grown up knowing he was viewed as so obviously the lesser brother. William Hurt makes an interesting appearance as the loyal William Marshal, pushed aside by John for disagreeing with his taxation schemes. Marshal is a rather interesting "bridge" character - thorughly loyal to the crown, he also has a very realistic view of the crown's shortcomings when dealing with its subjects.

It's absolutely tragic that this is the only picture I could find of Mark Strong in character as the villainous Godfrey. It really doesn't do the man justice, just so you know. As I discussed with Lori and then some other friends on Facebook, if this movie couldn't feature Richard Armitage as Sir Guy, there's no one I'd rather see stand in the role of Robin's nemesis than Mark Strong. Ever since appearing as Septimus in Stardust, Strong has become the go-to guy to play villains and you can't turn around without seeing him in a new project - Sir John Conroy in The Young Victoria, Lord Blackwood in Sherlock Holmes, and now upcoming appearances in new sci-fi franchises like the Green Lantern. While he makes a habit of playing evil, morally repulsive characters, can we just take a moment to appreciate this:

The man is gorgeous, no? Look at those soulful eyes. *swoon* Give me a second to scrape myself off the floor and we'll get back to the point of this post....okay, yeah, Godfrey. Excellent villain. Strong quite simply owns the screen every time he appears. Intense, magnetic, evil, and brilliant, Godfrey is a worthy villain in the tradition of all on-screen Gisbornes.

While Strong delivers in spades, I have to admit to being disappointed in Matthew Macfadyen's appearance as the Sheriff. Now I have a long history of loving Matthew's screen appearances (click to read my reviews of his performance in Little Dorrit), but in Robin Hood he appears nearly unrecognizable (the hair was gross people, I just need to say it) and for maybe, maybe all of about five minutes of screentime. REALLY?! It was a bit disappointing to say the least. However, I have got to give Matthew credit for giving this largely thankless role a slyly comic turn. In fact, if Ridley Scott ever decided to make a sequel - and frankly, the end of this movie begs for one - I think Matthew's take on the iconic Sheriff of Nottingham role would be a highlight.

Last but certainly not least, this brings us to Robin and Marion (Cate Blanchett). I had serious reservations about Crowe and Blanchett's casting in such iconic roles, but both performances blew me away. I've always been rather ambivalent about Russell Crowe - while I think he's inarguably talented, and I've enjoyed his performances in movies like Master and Commander, I've never been nuts about him like so many people I know. And I've never, EVER gotten the whole Crowe-is-a-dreamy-heartthrob thing until this movie. Oh my word. Excellent job playing the whole strong, man of few words, incredibly charismatic and intelligent type. Wowzers. :) I will say that I thought Robin's backstory and connection to Sir Walter was just a little too convenient, but all things considered it worked.

Here Robin's lady is no maid, rather the widow of Sir Robert Loxley. Married as a self-described "old maid" for only a week before Robert left for the Crusades, Marion has spent ten years trying to keep her father-in-law's estate going, which is a largely thankless job in the face of crippling taxes and thievery from what I'm going to call the "Lost Boys of Sherwood Forest." Like Marian in the lately lamented Robin Hood television show, Blanchett's Marion is a fighter, but infinitely more mature and seasoned by circumstances. I really loved Blanchett's portrayal of Marion, though I do think her fight scene at the end of the film was rather poorly thought out and generally unnecessary (though it did allow Crowe and Blanchett to enact their own version of the famous water kiss in From Here to Eternity, LOL!). Oh, and before I forget, the "Lost Boys" really, REALLY needed to be explained better. Their appearances felt rather random.

I wasn't expecting such a strong romance to develop in this movie. After all, it is a Ridley Scott film, chock-full of the requisite battle scenes and political intrigue. But Crowe and Blanchett have some crazy on-screen chemistry that I never expected to see and it works really, really well. When one brings together two actors of that caliber sparks are bound to fly, right? :) This film gives us the most mature, grounded, real Robin and Marion love story that I think I've ever seen brought to life. The relationship between these two characters grows as much or more with a look than dialogue, and I just loved that. Watching the two of them get to know each other and appreciate each other's character and strengths is absolutely wonderful to see, and the way Crowe looks at Blanchett can steal your breath - he's so. freaking. HOT. in those scenes.

I love Scott's ability to bring this time period to life. It's gritty and violent (though in keeping with the film's PG-13 rating miraculously bloodless), but there's a wild beauty to the scenery that you just want to lose yourself in. I also thought Marc Streitenfeld did a good job with the score - prior to this, I am not familiar with his work. Ridley Scott and company have crafted a fascinating exploration of Robin Hood's origins, but the last five minutes or so of the film will, if you're like me, leave you desperate for a sequel. That's when the storyline heads into more traditional Robin Hood territory. Given how Ridley Scott has set up this world, and the life Crowe and Blanchett have brought to the iconic Robin and Marion roles, I would love to see how this team would continue their version of the Robin Hood legends. After all, King John has to see sense and sign that pesky Magna Carta... ;-)