Robin Longstride (Russell Crowe – Gladiator) a soldier in King Richard The Lionheart’s army returns home to England to fulfil a pledge to a dying soldier named Sir Robert Loxley (Douglas Hodge – Vanity Fair). Accompanied by a group of his allies amongst them Will Scarlet (Scott Grimes – ER) and Little John (Kevin Durand – Lost), Robin soon witnesses firsthand the disillusionment of the English people as a new taxation system sweeps across the land crippling the nation. Having made a pact with Robert Loxley’s father Sir Walter Loxley (Max von Sydow – Flash Gordon) Robin now finds himself in the midst’s of a power struggle as England revolts against the King whilst French soldiers lie in wait preparing to invade our shores when the country is at its weakest.
Ridley Scott and Russell Crowe have done a wonderful job in reinvigorating the legend of Robin Hood. This film tells the untold story of how Robin Hood came to be and documents the events that led to him to becoming an outlaw. With strong turns from all of the cast and an impressive desire to deliver action-grandeur to the highest order, Robin Hood is a complete success.
Russell Crowe is in awesome form here and reminds us all why he was such a powerful force in Gladiator 10 years ago. He brings a tortured but gallant Robin vividly to life thanks to a delicately balanced portrayal of a soldier looking for peace and justice in life. His accent may shift a tad throughout the film but it’s of little consequence when he hands in such a magnetic performance. We know that Crowe can handle the physical side of things but he really comes into his own when the film slows down its pace. Crowe reminds us all that he is an accomplished character-actor and works off a wonderful rapport with Cate Blanchet and Max von Sydow. Their scenes together are masterful and set up the tone and structure of this story very well.
Alongside Crow is a distinguished cast of supporting talent who all bring their A-game to the table. William Hurt, Danny Huston and Eileen Atkins are all wonderful but it’s the performances of Mark Addy, Oscar Isaac and Mark Strong that really stand out. Strong in particular, who is enjoying a great run recently and follows up his impressive turns in Sherlock Holmes and Rock N’Rolla with a classic take on the treacherous Godfrey. The ageless Max von Sydow continues to steal every film he is in as Sir Walter Loxley and adds dramatic presence and relevance to even the smallest of scenes. This is key to what makes Robin Hood such a good watch – its attention to detail and its unwavering desire to make every second of screen time count.
As good as all of the cast are, by far the most impressive performance in Robin Hood belongs to Cate Blanchett who breathes new life into the role of Marion. She is outstanding and really deserves praise for the way she handles herself in the film giving us the best representation of the character we’ve ever seen. As mentioned before, her chemistry with Russell Crowe is perfectly balanced as is her scenes alongside Max von Sydow. She also looks amazing and handles the action with a grace seldom seen onscreen.
Ridley Scott knows how to shoot action and Robin Hood is nothing if not epic. From the brutal swordfights down to a breathtaking waterfront battle against the invading French, Robin Hood delivers for sheer entertainment too. His grand-scale vision for this movie is brought even more vividly to life thanks to his use of sweeping landscapes and a haunting musical score. The film never lets up and makes its considerable runtime just fly by thanks to a quick pace but moreso it’s involving script. All credit to writer Brian Helgeland here for making this mammoth task seem so effortless and organic. We have barely scratched the surface to Robin Hood’s story so don’t be surprised to see a sequel in the works sooner rather than later.
Robin Hood is a triumph of classic storytelling done to near perfection by one of the finest directing talents of our time. When Ridley Scott and Russell Crowe are in this kind of form there is nothing they can’t accomplish and with Robin Hood they have given us a film of remarkable depth and vision. Robin Hood holds your attention throughout its 2hrs 20min runtime which just flies by thanks to the undeniable quality on show. With amazing performances throughout, involving dialogue and amazing set-pieces Robin Hood is simply unmissable and marks out one of this summer’s best movies.
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