Robin des bois: Prince des voleurs

I have seen this movie over 10 times. Years later it's still stands strong. It's an awesome movie that I WILL watch again.

Escaping death in Jerusalem, Robin of Locksley returns to his England home with Moor companion Azeem in tow. However he finds his home burnt to the ground, his father slandered and murdered and the poor marginalised to within an inch of their lives. Branded an outlaw by the evil Sheriff of Nottingham, Robin flees into Sherwood Forrest where he brings together a group of ragtag rebels "led" by a man called John Little. As his popularity grows, Robin becomes a massive thorn in the side of the Sheriff, forcing him to take harsher action.

Younger viewers coming to this film on television may not appreciate that this film was made at a time when the presence of Kevin Costner was a bonus and indeed almost a selling point. Yes, I know this sounds like crazy talk from an older man who has seen too many movies to be good for him but it is true and Robin Hood is a fine example of a so-so film that was built partly on his star power. Of course the downside of this is that the film itself is not that good because it has his and others' names to let it carry it. The plot is well known but rather annoyingly touched with modernisms and Americanisms to the detriment of the telling (whether this be the accents, the errors or just the attitude). This also contributes to the lack of depth in the film and generally, although it looks slick, it doesn't provide anything in the way of emotional engagement – despite the fact that it spawned the manipulative and saccharine Bryan Adams hit that seemed to taint everyone's wedding back in 1992.

The direction is glossy but it cannot get to the heart of anything and Reynolds also fails to get that much out of his cast. As a result Costner simply trades on his rather stiff charm, occasionally enjoying himself but generally taking the whole thing too seriously. Rickman effortlessly dominates the film by chewing the scenery in each and every scene – his colourful performance makes Costner (who can be good) look as stiff as a board. I've never seen the appeal of Mastrantonio at the best of times and this is not the best of times. She is dull and pretty poor all round. Freeman is a good face but is a modernisation too far. Slater is pointless although support from Wincott, Blessed, Brimble and a few others is good if not that great.

Overall then this is a rather joyless spectacle but one that is glossy enough to perhaps do the job for undemanding viewers. It isn't that much fun and the attempts at emotional engagement are mostly cloying and sentimental. The cast are mixed but the only one able to inject life into the rather stiff material is Rickman, who easily livens his scenes but cannot carry the film. Worth a look if you are in a undemanding mood but just don't expect anything more than the blockbuster basics.

Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves was one of the best films of 1991, a triumph even over the special effects hype of Terminator 2: Judgement Day.

Despite the critics' complete and utter distaste for the film, I found it fun, well-acted, and fast-paced. Great performances abound including Morgan Freeman as the Moorish warrior Azeem, Alan Rickman as the hysterical Sheriff of Nottingham, and Kevin Costner as our stalwart Robin of Locksley.

There are great action sequences including the battle against the hired Celts and Nottingham's soldiers and the final confrontation at the climax of the film.

Finally, don't be put off by Costner's lack of an English dialect. It doesn't hurt the film at all, and is just something critics were instantly attracted to, as it is their job to find faults.

Highly recommended.

Although i turned my nose up at this film when first watched fifteen years ago, a second appraisal and a few grey hairs later forces me to see it for what it truly is; a great swashbuckling comedy romp.

As the pace built, my unease at the somewhat incongruous accents dissipated and i was left to enjoy a great film with some fine performances. Notably from Michael McShane as Friar Tuck and Alan Rickman as the evilly comic Sheriff of Nottingham.

The pace of the film rarely slackens, building up to a rip roaring finish.

Enjoy.

Robin Hood:Prince Of Thieves is an all-star rehash of one of cinema's oldest and most popular stories. Kevin Costner takes the title role and proves to be handsome enough and swashbuckling enough to do justice to the role during the action scenes. However, during the film's quieter moments, Costner's American accent grates a little amid the Sherwood Forest surroundings.

The story doesn't particularly need explaining, but for people who have lived on Mars for their whole lives here it is. Robin of Locksley, a young soldier, returns from the Crusades to find the city of Nottingham and its surrounding area terrorised by the evil Sherrif of Nottingham (Alan Rickman). Robin takes refuge in the nearby Sherwood Forest, where he gathers a band of woodland outlaws who are always stealing money and treasure taken by the Sherrif and giving it back to the poor. His dashing antics impress Maid Marian (Mary Elisabeth Mastrantonio), a childhood friend, and he quickly becomes popular with the poor and honest folk who nickname him Robin Hood - Prince of Thieves.

The film is very old-fashioned, but it occasionally gives away its 1991 release status with modern touches (the fancy camera-work in which the camera is seemingly fixed upon an arrow as it is fired at a target; the introduction of a Moorish warrior character [Morgan Freeman] to broaden the film's cultural reference; Rickman's self-deprecating pantomimic turn as the wicked Sherrif). On the whole, it is an entertaining film with a good balance between the action and the romance. The best performance - surprisingly - comes from Michael Wincott who oozes menace as the Sherrif's despicable cousin Guy of Gisbourne. There are some quite significant factual errors, the best (by "best" I mean "funniest") of which is when Robin and his Moorish companion stand at the foot of the white cliffs of Dover and Robin tells him: "by nightfall we will dine with my father!" Quite a feat, since Nottinghamshire is about 200 miles away and this pair are travelling on foot!