Robin Hood - the movie

I just watched the new Robin Hood movie staring Russel Crow. Frankly, I think it was better than Kevin Cosner version, but overall I have to say I was disappointed.

First the good. This movie has a nice theme of freedom, which has made many liberal critics furious. Robin Hood was the ultimate socialist in previous incarnations, and now he is against tyranny, not the rich. A nice change of pace. Closer to the original. But, they make him the driving force behind the Magna Charta, which is silly. The movie included some other favorite merry men like Alan a Dale, and he is singing. That was all good. The French were the bad guys, and that is always a plus in my movie rating system.

Next the bad. The plot was ridiculous. The Magna Charta? Come on. They used the Robin as a crusader again. It was predictable after that. They set up a sequel, which we can all hope never happens.

Robin Hood is a great stroy, and one of my favorites actually. I enjoy the tales, but the movies seldom follow suit. Robin Hood is more a huckster than a revolutionary. He is in for good times and fun sport, which is usually why he ends up harassing the rich. This movie ruined Little John, showed little of the Sheriff of Nottingham, and continued the amalgamation of Will Stutely and Will Scarlett. Will Scarlett is not Scarlett because of his hair, but was rather because of his dress in the ballads and tales of Robin Hood. The movie also insists on a love interest in Maid Marion, who is not part of the original tales. The love story always feels rushed in a story that is really about Robin and his outlaw ways. What role does a woman have in a band of Merry Men who are robbing people anyway?

In the end, I continue to hold out hope that one day a fun movie of Robin Hood will be made that does justice to the actual source material. But that day has not yet come.