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As usual, my opinion goes completely adrift off the mainstream and I found Ridley Scott’s prequel and reboot of Robin Hood a fantastic piece of überconfident and passionate film-making. Some people complaing that the new grim and determined Robin Hood breaks the tradition of the “merry” men in the forest by creating a warrior driven by vengeance and his ancestors. To me however, that makes sense as the film tackles what happens “before” the merry men settle in Sherwood and become the happy band of thieves as which they have been portrayed since the first Robin Hood outing of celluloid. Without spoiling the film, I can say that Scott includes a clear nod towards the romantic version of Robin Hood and while this side to the legend has no place in this movie, it is not contradicted but merely out of focus. Russel Crowe’s accent is accurate and people who think different should try and research how the English accent sounded in the 12th century (especially a Robin Longstride of Saxon ancestry). The accent and pronunciation was much more muddled with the vowels prolonged and a rolling ‘r’ resembling what sounds Irish today. So well done Mr. Crowe. Sometimes it is good to know your history folks. Of course, Crowe’s Robin Hood is missing the debonair and lighthearted touch of Flynn’s incarnation and is a tad too young, but this reimagining of Robin Hood pretty much ties in with the trend of post 2001-movie making which turned heroes into grim troopers instead of smiling knights in shiny Armour, think Bale in Batman Begins and you know what to expect from Robin Hood. The supporting cast is superb with many familiar faces thrown in the mix and a delight to all movie fans who know more than their share of megastars. William Hurt, Max von Sydow, Eileen Atkins, Mark Addy, oh how the names roll of my tongue. The fight scenes are slick and not overproduced, alas the music is a bit cheesy and some of the “Here come the Hero” moments were a bit cringe-worthy but they were not many. The CGI of the Tower of London was a bit of shame as I was looking forward to seeing the big set but one cannot have everything. Cate Blanchett’s natural beauty makes Robin’s passion both believable without making the role of Lady Marion lovable and some of her scenes in which she tries to oppress her bereavement belong to the most powerful I have seen this year. Mark Strong’s villain was not menacing enough for my taste and I for one did not really but that people would be deceived by him, a shame. Oscar Isaac’s Prince John had a dangerous tendency to borderline between helpless brat and idiotic goof and it is only in the end that Isaac injects some much needed vigor into the role. The “new” story, how Robin became the hood is nicely tied in into the legacy of British History and in tradition with our Britishness, the French are portrayed as horrible people and barbaric soldiers, an unusual mistake for a veteran filmmaker like Ridley Scott and I found it partially quiet inappropriate.

The overall focus of the story looks for the brighter picture and the “personal” story of Robin Longstride becomes the story of a whole nation. The movie takes more than one page out of the “Braveheart” book and once more the fate of one man is exemplary for that of a whole nation.

All in all, one of the best movies this year had to offer thus far and all the minor glitches and some mishaps in the casting are overruled by the sheer energy, verve and love for its subject matter which makes this film a truly remarkable experience of epic proportions.

Ridley Scott a quand même le chic de s’attaquer à énormément de sujets que j’aime énormément. La période romaine, la découverte du nouveau-monde et maintenant le Moyen-Âge en évoquant la légende de Robin des Bois. En fait, le cinéaste place son histoire avant la légende, ce qui en fait un film assez sombre, à dimension parfois historique (tout en gardant énormément de liberté), mais aussi assez décevant quant au fond de l’histoire.
Voyons les points positifs qui sont quand même un casting assez cohérent bien que Russel Crowe ne nous livre pas une performance comme dans Gladiator, un rendu de l’époque moyenâgeuse assez appréciable pour un film calibré Hollywood, des batailles assez bien foutues (bien qu’on appréciera bien plus le travail de Besson pour Jeanne d’Arc), un rythme assez présent en dépit d’un fond qui ne suit pas (j’y reviendrai), une musique très réussie et pour clouer le tout, le meilleur moment du film reste le générique final fait de dessins animés.
Au niveau de l’histoire, ça prend vachement son temps et même parfois plus. C’est lent, mais ça ne manque pas forcément de rythme (merci les différentes batailles). En fait, on se pose essentiellement la question de savoir ce que Scott veut nous raconter. On voit Robin des Bois, il se bat, il rejoint Marianne, il se bat, il se bat encore et toujours, il retrouve des informations sur son père et puis on voit comment il devient hors-la-loi. Ca manque de beaucoup de choses au niveau du fond et on a l’impression que Scott ne voulait servir que du spectacle. A ce niveau c’est plutôt réussi, mais je plains ceux qui ne sont pas fanatiques d’une telle période, ils ont dû s’ennuyer ferme. Enfin, pour en revenir un peu sur quelque chose de plus positif, ça ne m’a pas déplu de voir un côté un peu plus sombre de l’époque et du mythe.
Un moment sympathique, franchement pas inoubliable, mais qui se laisse regarder.

The Magna Carta – one of the most important documents in British history – was thought up by the father of Britain’s most enduring legend. At least, that’s what Ridley Scott’s bloated and ill-judged post-modernist slog through the early years of Robin Hood would have you believe. Rather than solidifying a myth by grounding it in history, it diminishes it, and worse, strips it of everything that made it entertaining.

The plot is a series of serendipitous moments meant to build a sense of momentous destiny, but, in fact, they engender confusionand eventually apathy. Crowe plays Robin Longstride, a longbowman in the army of Richard the Lionheart (Danny Huston, showing more personality than our hero), returning home from the Crusades and indulging in much pillaging of French fortresses along the way. An errant crossbow bolt, empty coin purses, a treacherous ambush in a forest and a dying man’s wish conspire to bring Robin and his companions to Nottingham and Loxley Hall.

There, the now widowed Marion Loxley (Cate Blanchett) and her father-in-law Sir Walter Loxley (Max von Sydow) observe the tyranny of the newly crowned King John (Oscar Isaac), who is foolishly taxing the country into civil unrest. It’s a decision he might regret, as a French invasion threatens to bring an end to his fledgling reign. Unless, of course, Robin can remember the teachings of history and reunite the fractious forces of Britain against this common enemy.

Exciting, non? But gone is the romp and the swashbuckle of previous iterations. In its stead is an hotchpotch of Braveheart’s political naivety, cod-Shakespearean rabble-rousing and wretched social realism. Not so much the dashing outlaw and his band of Merry Men. Think glum Union Steward and his embittered workers. They don’t take kindly to tyranny, but do like a drink, a few chords on the lute, a roll with a wench and then a game of darts. Except these darts are a little bigger and deadlier and fired with a bow that’s taller than most men.

Speaking of which, the Longbow is far from wooden in its performance. Thanks to some plain and precise direction from Ridley Scott, the opening siege is an exciting, albeit brief, demonstration of their devastating power when implemented swiftly. It’s a shame this wasn’t carried through to the rest of the film which moves as surely as the lame and weary, and is just as pallid in complexion.

Scenes such as Robin’s return down the Thames Estuary or his time at Loxley Hall, for all their meticulous period detail, lack energy and urgency. The final battle in the shadow of the Dover cliffs feels like an afterthought. As if it were hurriedly bolted on with no sense of rhythm or geography. Any thrills lost to the disorientation of close-up shakey-cam and slo-mo shots. They’re meant to be iconic – Robin, erupting from the surf, roaring like a lion – but interrupt, rather than being incorporated into, the flow of action.

This enervating atmosphere is carried through to the performances which are, on the whole, leaden. Writer Helgeland’s gift for ensemble casts and colourful supporting players seems absent. Blanchett brings her usual swan-like poise and adds Medieval moxie, but the spark between her and Crowe fizzles more than it ignites. The rest of the cast are disappointingly one-note. Oscar Isaac is a bellowing whelp; William Hurt a sly fox; Strong is duplicitous and bald; Matthew MacFayden a sunken-eyed opportunist; Max Von Sydow an animated octogenarian, and so on.

Which brings us to Crowe. It’d be easy to dismiss his performance as the worst. Instead of the sprightly rogue we expect, Crowe slumps sullenly into a chair, indifferent. His broad Northern accent turns what might be a stirring call-to-arms into a ponderous list of platitudes. In action, Crowe is one of the most believable actors working today, but when the tempo slows, which is often and frustratingly erratic, Robin’s steps feel like a plod. You long for the familiar forests. And then, right at the end, you get them.

The final scene has all the vitality, colour and comradeship the rest of the film lacks. In this emerald Eden we finally understand why Marion loves Robin and feel a genuine sense of adventure. It also proves, once again, the celebrated words from John Ford’s Who Shot Liberty Valance; a masterpiece that illuminated myth rather than concealing it: “When the legend becomes fact, print the legend.” Wise words, especially if you mean to entertain and not bore your audience to tears.

Ridley Scott is a talented director and Robin Hood is a good film. The biggest complaints this film is receiving is that this is not the Robin Hood we grew up with. Robin Hood should be merry and steal from the rich and give to the poor. Do we really need another lighthearted romp in Sherwood Forest with over acting bad guys like the Sheriff of Nottingham? Ridley is more concerned with telling a story that is more serious and showing Robin Hood as a populist hero. If you can come along for the ride and not be biased, you will discover that this film stands on its own merit. This is an exciting and interesting prequel with fantastic battle scenes. My complaint is that it is too safe and not edgy enough.The battle scenes are bloodless and the love scene is Disney safe thus providing no chemistry between the leads. Russell Crowe is too dour and this film would of been better as an edgy R rated film.

Legenda mengenai sang pahlawan rakyat kecil, Robin Hood, kembali diangkat ke layar lebar. Kali ini, kisah legendaris tersebut diarahkan oleh sutradara peraih nominasi Academy Award, Ridley Scott, dengan bintang peraih Academy Award, Russel Crowe, berperan sebagai sang tokoh utama. Seiring dengan perubahan fokus cerita, film yang tadinya akan diberi judul Nottingham ini kemudian diubah oleh Scott menjadi Robin Hood.

Pada awalnya, film ini akan memfokuskan ceritanya pada kisah cinta segitiga antara Robin Hood, Lady Marion dan Sheriff Nottingham. Namun, Ridley Scott kemudian merasa tidak puas dengan naskah cerita yang telah dikerjakan oleh penulis naskah, Ethan Reiff dan Cyrus Voris tersebut. Scott akhirnya meminta bantuan Brian Helgeland untuk merombak kembali naskah tersebut yang akhirnya malah lebih berfokus pada pribadi seorang Robin Hood dan sekelumit kisahnya di masa lalu.

Memulai kisahnya pada saat kerajaan Inggris dipimpin oleh King Richard (Danny Huston) dan sedang memerangi Perancis yang terus menerus berusaha untuk mengambil alih wilayah Inggris. Serangan pasukan Perancis yang membabi buta ternyata berhasil membunuh King Richard di medan peperangan. Oleh orang terdekat King Richard, Sir Robert Loxley (Douglas Hodge), Robin Longstride (Russell Crowe) dan beberapa sahabatnya ditugaskan mengantarkan mahkota sang raja kembali ke kerajaan sekaligus mengembalikan pedang Sir Robert Loxley kepada sang ayah di Nottingham.

Meninggalnya King Richard ternyata membuka jalan bagi adiknya, John (Oscar Isaacs), yang selama ini memang berambisius untuk menjadi raja, untuk menggantikan posisinya. Dengan mahkota yang diserahkan oleh Robin, dengan menggunakan identitas Sir Walter Loxley, John kini resmi memimpin Inggris. Robin sendiri kemudian melanjutkan perjalanannya ke Nottingham untuk menyelesaikan tugas keduanya. Tidak dinyana, ia justru disambut baik oleh ayah Sir Robert Loxley, Sir Walter Loxley (Max Von Sydow), yang menganggapnya sebagai pengganti sang anak dan menjodohkannya dengan menantunya, Lady Marion (Cate Blanchett).

Seperti yang diduga banyak orang, kepemimpinan King John ternyata sangat lemah. Untuk menyelamatkan kekayaan negara, melalui sahabatnya yang ternyata seorang pengkhianat, Sir Godfrey (Mark Strong), ia mengutip pajak terhadap seluruh rakyatnya. Ia juga menegaskan hukuman berat kepada mereka yang menolak melakukan pembayaran. Godfrey ternyata berlaku semena-mena dalam melakukan pengutipan pajak. Hal ini yang kemudian mendorong banyak masyarakat untuk merencanakan kudeta terhadap kerajaan. Robin sendiri sekarang harus bekerja keras untuk melindungi Nottingham dari ancaman Godfrey dan pasukannya.

Banyak orang mungkin mengenal karakter Robin Hood dari film yang berjudul Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves yang dibintangi Kevin Costner dan dirilis pada tahun 1993. Mereka tentu saja akan sedikit terheran-heran melihat apa yang digambarkan Ridley Scott terhadap Robin Hood melalui film ini. Dapat dikatakan, Robin Hood merupakan prekuel tidak resmi dari film tersebut. Film ini menceritakan mengenai perjalanan Robin Longstride sebelum ia mengasingkan diri ke Sherwood Forrest dan dikenal sebagai seorang pencuri yang membagi-bagikan hasil curiannya kepada rakyat kecil dengan nama Robin Hood.

Mereka yang mengharapkan untuk menyimak sebuah cerita sederhana mengenai perjuangan Robin Hood untuk menyelamatkan rakyat kecil sepertinya harus bersiap untuk kecewa. Naskah yang ditulis oleh Brian Helgeland (L. A. Confidential, Green Zone) ini, menawarkan sebuah sudut pandang baru dalam melihat kepribadian seorang Robin Hood. Kepribadian yang, seperti halnya naskah Helgeland, memiliki percampuran antara seorang yang romantis, humoris namun memiliki sisi gelap dan luar biasa keras. Kompleks memang, namun Ridley Scott ternyata cukup berhasil menterjemahkan naskah ini dengan baik dan menyusun setiap detil ceritanya dengan sempurna.

Menempatkan sisi drama di tiga perempat bagian dari keseluruhan cerita, Ridley Scott meletakkan satu-satunya adegan yang dapat dikatakan epik di bagian akhir film, dimana pasukan King John dan rakyatnya berusaha melawan serangan King Phillip dari Perancis yang datang dari wilayah pantai. Adegan ini mungkin akan mengingatkan sedikit pada adegan Saving Private Ryan atau adegan di Elizabeth: The Golden Age. Cukup berhasil, namun sayangnya sangat terasa kurang megah jika dibandingkan film-film bertema sama lainnya.

Satu-satunya kelemahan dari naskah cerita yang ditulis oleh Helgeland adalah terlalu banyaknya karakter yang ingin dimunculkan Helgeland dalam jalan cerita Robin Hood. Ini menyebabkan beberapa karakter seperti dapat muncul begitu saja dan tidak dapat dijelaskan mengenai asal-usul keberadaannya. Terlalu banyaknya karakter yang dimunculkan ini pula yang menyebabkan jalan cerita Robin Hood menjadi sedikit lebih kompleks.

Dari departemen akting, Robin Hood sama sekali tidak memiliki masalah. Russell Crowe memang sepertinya adalah aktor yang tepat untuk mengisi posisi sebagai sang pahlawan legendaris. Tidak banyak bicara, namun memiliki ketangguhan hati yang luar biasa — sedikit mengingatkan pada karakter Maximus yang ia perankan pada Gladiator. Sementara aktris Cate Blanchett juga tampil sempurna sebagai Lady Marion. Penuh keanggunan namun dapat tampil komikal dengan sinisme yang ia berikan ketika pertama kali mengenal karakter Robin Longstride.

Selain Crowe dan Blanchett, Robin Hood juga dipenuhi dengan jaran pemeran yang luar biasa seperti aktor Max von Sydow, Oscar Isaacs (yang perannya sebagai King John ternyata tampil cukup mengesalkan) serta aktor Mark Strong (yang sepertinya akan semakin tenggelam dengan peran-peran antagonis yang mampu diperankannya dengan sangat baik).

Walau tidak dapat dikatakan merupakan yang terbaik yang datang dari sutradara sekelas Ridley Scott, namun Robin Hood tetap saja mampu tampil unggul dan cukup menyenangkan untuk dilihat. Ini dikarenakan Scott mampu menyusun setiap detil yang ada di dalam jalan cerita Robin Hood dengan sangat baik, baik itu dari penceritaan karakter, sinematografi, tata musik, tata kostum maupun penataan latar belakang cerita yang ingin ia tampilkan. Memang, naskah yang menampilkan terlalu banyak karakter dan cabang cerita cenderung akan membuat beberapa orang menjadi sedikit alergi dengan film ini. Apalagi bagi mereka yang mengharapkan sebuah epik action kelas tinggi daripada sebuah tayangan drama. Namun, jajaran pemeran yang tampil memuaskan mampu menutupi seluruh kekurangan tersebut dan menjadikan Robin Hood sebagai sebuah film yang berkelas sekaligus sangat menghibur.

Rating: 4 / 5

Stylish English director Ridley Scott (“Body of Lies” & “American Gangster”) recruits screenwriter Brian Helgeland (“Green Zone” & “The Vampire’s Assistant”) to rob from an original spec script called “Nottingham” by Ethan Reiff and Cyrus Voris to give to this unconventional take on the classic legend which opened the 63rd Cannes Film Festival and became an international box office hit.

The action is moved to late 12th century England as common archer Robin Longstride (Russell Crowe) returns from the crusades to assume the identity of a deceased nobleman to rescue the man’s wife Marion Loxley (Cate Blanchet) from ruin, to protect the newly anointed King John (Oscar Isaac) from the treacherous Sir Godfrey (Mark Strong) and French invasion and to pen the Magna Carta.

Long-time Scott collaborator Russell Crowe (“State of Play” & “Body of Lies”) reunites with the director for their fifth collaboration with a performance which has been widely criticised but which ultimately seems to fall down because despite being an apparent fan the aging antipodean with a dodgy accent seems unsuited to the fairy tale role while co-star Cate Blanchet is completely wasted.

Villain of the month Mark Strong reunites with his “Body of Lies” director and co-star for a fine performance as the treacherous driving force behind the plot whilst the likes of William Hurt, Danny Huston and veteran Max von Sydow round out an impressive supporting cast where newcomer Oscar Isaac makes his presence felt and Matthew MacFadyen is left to await an inevitable sequel.

The filmmaker’s legendary attention to detail continues by fulfilling the stars prerequisite that this be the best depiction of the tale ever done with some magnificent battle scenes including a beachhead denouement straight out of “Saving Private Ryan” by Steven Spielberg but the reunion of actor and director 10 years on fails to recapture the magic of “Gladiator”.

Fellow “Gladiator” alumni on hand include cinematographer John Mathieson and editor Pietro Scalia, who seem a little too desperate to recapture past glories, but despite their now tiresome whizz-bangs even they cannot breathe life into a resolutely downtrodden script which highlights the director’s distaste for the frivolity of previous screen versions being as dull as ditchwater.

“I trust you had an historic evening.”