Robin Und Marian

Oh what a wonderful idea. A new telling of the Robin Hood legend with his merry men, Maid Marion, and the villainous Sheriff of Nottingham thrown in. The twist was that the characters were all older and starting to slow down and realize their youthful adventures were long past them. The core of the story is the bittersweet love story between the title characters.

The true core of the film and what makes it so special is the casting. Sean Connery plays Robin Hood as the hero we all know who is slowing down despite his attempts to keep going. Audrey Hepburn is perfect as Marian. She reminds us of her eternal beauty and how truly a good actress she was. This was her first theatrical film in 9 years and it's a shame she was so little seen in that time. Actually, she was little seen after that appearing only in a few more films and none that were very memorable. Nicol Williamson plays Robin's ever faithful right hand man still trying to fight the good fight and always remaining by Robin's side. And Robert Shaw plays the Sheriff in a role he was born to play. The final swordfight between him and Robin is a highlight.

Then we come to the ending. I won't give it away save to say that it's a good, albeit, very bittersweet ending. The point comes across in a way that Shakespeare may have written.

It's a sweet and sometimes exciting film that is most underrated and deserves to be seen.

The film picks up the Robin Hood legend some twenty years after with Robin and his sidekick Little John return to their old Sherwood Forest embittered by King Richard, by the Crusades and their sickening brutality…

They're informed by former friends Friar Tuck and Will that the lovely Maid Marian now lives nearby, where she has become the abbess… And the sheriff is as powerful as ever and rules the country…

Marian greets Robin's return with mixed feelings, and tells him that, in the passed two decades, she worked hard studying herbs and medicines, and she loves her life and she won't give it up…

Of course, after the return of Robin, Marian could not imagine herself living in the world again, or even wanting to… But after he rescues her from his long time enemy, the Sheriff of Nottingham, who tries to arrest her on religious grounds, the two become lovers once again…

As Robin, Connery is a little bit in love with death… He flirts, he teases, he challenges his strong enemy to a single combat to the death...

As Marian, Hepburn felt so little for so long

I was about to say that you'd never in a million years get a Hollywood Studio today to make a movie about Robin Hood, Little John and Maid Marian in late middle age, twenty years after their youthful adventures, but then I thought, "Oh, no, you'd still sell it - it's got Sean Connery attached!" Not far short of thirty years on, he has scarcely changed in the interim and could easily take the same part at the age of 73. There'd be no place for the excellent Nicol Williamson, the reassuring Denholm Elliott or the phenomenal Robert Shaw in such a script, of course.

That said, I first fell in love with this movie when I was quite young (I'm still only 38 at the time of writing), and was amazed some years later when it was re-shown on television to see it summarised in the Radio Times as apparently a weak effort. I couldn't disagree more with that assessment; the wonderful, wonderful script by James Goldman, perfectly balancing a late blooming love story with shades of regret, humour and action, is brought to life by this cast-iron cast.

Upon re-viewing, I realise I had neglected Robert Shaw as the Sheriff of Nottingham. My favourite kind of villain is the one who regards his adversary as kind of an old friend, and Shaw pulls this off really well. In the scene when he first meets Robin after the latter's return from the wars, he makes it clear that he has to take Marian, but he says, "God go with you." Nowadays, it's almost shocking to see Robin almost casually killing the guards who have been sent to attack him, but then Shaw's Sheriff views the dead bodies and gives them their due as soldiers: "Take up their limbs and bury them." Shaw does most of his acting with his eyes, and you can see the whole life of regret, valueless death and his own lost advancement, in them.

The love story is beautifully handled, but it has to be said that the chief and most memorable relationship in the movie is that between Robin and Little John.

The opening of the movie is something else that would never survive a modern cut: an entire sequence set at the time of the crusades with an incredible cameo by Richard Harris as his namesake, the Lionheart, along with other British stalwarts like Esmond Knight, Bill Maynard and Peter Butterworth. These characters are all amazingly well fleshed out, considering they take no part in the main body of the story. This is one of the few portrayals, if not the only one, of Richard the Lionheart which clings closer to what was probably his true character - far from the heroic king, kept hostage and kept from his beloved England by the war with the Muslims, the real Richard never spent much time in England even after his return from the Crusades, preferring to prosecute a war of conquest in France (he probably only spoke French). This Richard is not driven by religious righteousness, but by the greed which was the real motivation for the wars of the day.

The main portion of the film, however, is set in a recreation of twelfth century England, in its heartland - a land of decay and poverty being overtaxed by grasping landlords - a perfect backdrop for a story of regret and opportunities missed.

I was so happy to notice that the overwhelming majority of reviews for this film was positive. I have always regarded Robin and Marian as an under-rated classic. In it we have two major film actors at their best in legendary roles with a different spin: Robin and Marian, famed medieval lovers, separated for many years, then reunited in middle age. Sean Connery and Audrey Hepburn perfectly embody these roles with a depth of realism. They take these mythical figures and make them live. Marian was the perfect role for the 46 year old Hepburn to portray, and no doubt it was the quality of the script and the fascinating premise of the story which were able to lure her back to the silver screen after a nine-year absence. (Unfortunately none of her subsequent film roles were of this caliber.) The supporting cast is solid, a real ensemble of some of the greatest British actors. Richard Lester's direction is masterful. The screenplay brings great romance and irony to the relationship of Robin and Marian. The cinematography is beautiful without painting the tragic nature of the tale in rosy hue. The music of John Barry, as is always the case, wonderfully accompanies every mood and moment of the story.

This is a lovely tale chronicling the autumn days of Robin Hood's life and his rekindled romance with his lost love, Marian. The only reason I didn't rate it higher is that I was hoping for more scenes with Robin & Marian together, as opposed to the men's exploits. The movie relates Robin's story from an unusual perspective, not as the legendary dashing young archer & outlaw, but as an aging hero with some physical infirmities, making him all the more appealing. But Robin Hood still has some fight left in him...

The much older Robin has returned from the Crusades to Sherwood Forest, accompanied by his faithful friend and constant companion, Little John. His old love, Marian, is by this time a nun, in fact the Mother Superior of an Abbey. Politically, King Richard the Lionheart and his brother, Prince John, are basically greedy idiots and definitely no asset to the peasants. Robin's old nemesis, the Sheriff of Nottingham, is as menacing as ever, and Robin must again summon a band of loyal followers (including his old cohorts, Will Scarlett and Friar Tuck) to protect the innocent from the Sheriff's tyranny.

The two stars are perfect in this mature love story, with its dramatic ending that I won't give away here. Sean Connery makes a sympathetic and compelling but weary hero, as Robin comes to grips with his aging, his physical limitations, and his mortality. Audrey Hepburn with her ageless beauty is radiant, dignified, and graceful as Marian. The pair are absolutely beautiful together on screen.

Actually, the most engrossing relationship in this film might just be between the two old adversaries, Robin and the Sheriff of Nottingham, who form a sort of bond and develop mutual respect. Robert Shaw is absolutely perfect in his role as the Sheriff, who seems almost sympathetic & honourable here, not quite his usual completely villainous self. Their struggle culminates in a dramatic sword duel. Another relationship well developed is the one between Robin and his faithful friend, the gentle giant, Little John, who is portrayed by Nicol Williamson. Richard Harris plays the malevolent King Richard, though I am uncertain as to the historical accuracy of the depiction.

This movie has beautiful cinematography and musical scoring. Though Robin is no longer the daring young adventurer of old, this story is much more compelling than some other adaptations, notably the vastly inferior Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves, starring Kevin Costner. Perhaps less exciting derring do than other tales, this film (to its credit) tends to humanize the mythical medieval hero. It is a touching, bittersweet, and melancholy tale of autumn in Sherwood Forest...for Robin's band of Merry Men, his lady, his foe, and especially the legendary hero himself.