The Town Herald

The netpaper about Elftowners, by Elftowners, for Elftowners.

Robin Hood Prince of Theives

featured review Guest Submission by [Chimes]


‘Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves’, written by Kevin Reynolds in 1991, tells the well-loved tale of Robin Hood. A daring outlaw faces off an evil foe who threatens Robin himself, his love, and even his King and country. A love story entwined with the finest of swordplay and action, it delves into the depths of good and evil and also looks into human relationships.

With an impressive cast and an extraordinary soundtrack, orchestrated and conducted by Michael Kamen, you can’t go wrong. Not only does the film exploit the well-loved fairytale--or folk tale, whichever you prefer--it also uses its highly popular theme song to its advantage. Bryan Adams topped the charts with his song ‘Everything I do (I do it for you),' and its success helped boost the success of it origin; the music video included clips of the well esteemed film, thus earning it even more attention. The song is perfect for the love story between Robin Hood (Kevin Costner) and Maid Marian (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio); as sung by a man it seems to be more from the point of view of Robin, depicting his all out devotion for the love of his life. This point is surely backed up by Kevin Costner’s impressive portrayal of Robin and his intense feelings toward Marian.

The storyline is definitely not lost in the action of the film; its messages are carried throughout the film, never faltering. Though the film is action packed and seemingly serious in nature there is always that little bit of added humour, from silly little rhymes to daring, unbelievable stunts that only the stupidest or maybe the bravest would perform, each adds to the humour especially with the comments made afterwards.

This film is not solely for the males as the action would suggest, nor is it solely for the females as the love story suggests. This film is dynamic enough to suit the needs of both sexes, including the need for eye candy. For those so inclined, it’s the delightful form that is Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, though the ladies are slightly luckier with the hunky Kevin Costner as the lead. Even if he isn’t your thing, there is always Christian Slater, who plays the charming, if not slightly cynical Will Scarlet. At first we see him as a shallow, boyishly handsome rogue but as the film progresses we find that there is more to young Will than meets the eye.

Along with the well-known, widely popular, classic storyline of Robin Hood this film also has hints of other plots: the bonds between families and people, those striving for power by way of evil, and slight hints that even in the time of the crusades there was racism, by way of a comment to the Moor, Azeem (Morgan Freeman) of Robin’s late father’s servant, Duncan. There is truly more depth to this film than just a folktale and a love story.

The villain of the piece, the Sheriff of Nottingham, is brought to life by Alan Rickman, and what a brilliant villain he makes too; with violent mood swings and a sinister plot, he plays the part perfectly. With every major villain there is a right hand man, or woman in this film's case. Mortiana, played by Geraldine McEwan, is the witch that lives in the lower section of the Sheriff’s castle, hinted to being the Sheriff’s mother she aides him in his plot to take over England. Her character is chillingly frightful and spookily superstitious, filled with deceit and denial, perfect for the right-hand woman of the villain.

The films slogan accurately represents its story and has its own metaphorical oxymoron; "For the good of all men, and the love of one woman, he fought to uphold justice by breaking the law." This slogan hits the hearts of both men and women alike, to the women it will show the lengths one can go to for love, and for the men it shows a rebeliousness that every man feels at some point in his life.

It has a fitting setting for its time period, whereas some films mismatch their settings and storylines. This film has the perfect setting and uses it well, with no modern blunders, such as someone wearing a watch or there being a group of modern day houses in the background. When watching the film you almost feel as if you are back in the times of the crusades.

Though its visual effects are slightly dated due to its age it can still hold a torch to the most modern of films, with no animation necessary. Exhilarating explosions, the most memorable scene in the film is accentuated with the use of its no-animation-necessary explosion. If said explosion were to be aided by the use of technology it wouldn’t be nearly as dramatic, especially with Kevin Costner standing in front of it.

To conclude, with its action packed, romantic story line, its well developed characters, its complimentary setting and stunning visual effects ‘Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves’ is a must see for people of all ages, though some of its characters and scenes may be a bit too extreme for little eyes. I would highly recommend this film to film lovers worldwide. In my book, it’s a five star.     

Rating; 5/5.




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