Robin Hood, o Justiceiro

This was the first version of Robin Hood that I and my siblings saw, so we judged other versions based on this Disney take. I was 9 when I saw it with my younger brother. We loved the whistling arrows warning system used in this film and we found Richard Todd, a dashing, swashbuckling Robin, in fact we became huge fans of all his works. One of our favorites was Disney's "Rob Roy, The Highland Rogue" actually filmed in Scotland. Disney was not a miser when it came to his "pet projects" and Rob Roy was one of them. The Story of Robin Hood was no exception and it was filmed on location in England, even though some shots look like matte prints. The cast, too was impressive, with James Robertson Justice a perfect, burly 'Little John', Martita Hunt as Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine, James Hayter a robust 'Friar Tuck', Peter Finch as the nasty Sheriff of Nottingham, Elton Hale a charming 'Allan-a-Dale', the great Michael Hordern in a small role as 'Scathelock' and Bill Owen as 'Stutely'. The production is top notch and the film very memorable, and to me, very nostalgic.

I watched it again last night after reading an unfavorable review. I thought it was very entertaining and very well acted. Who cares if Richard Todd wasn't 6'2"? He was indeed athletic (in his autobiography, Caught in the Act, Todd said he did his own stunts), handsome, possessed a beautiful speaking voice, had a twinkle in his eye and had daggers in them when he confronted Peter Finch at the drawbridge. Excellent job.

Errol Flynn's Robin was excellent, too. But the '38 version was big budget. Disney was able to do a lot with a lot less. I love both versions. Flynn is king of the big-budget Robins; Todd is king of the smaller production. Richard Greene was a good television Robin.

Another reason I call it a draw is because of what Todd's Robin, Rob Roy, Dambuster meant to me as a kid. He indeed was a role model. And Disney's productions were wonderful. Others I still consider heroes of the 50s include Gordon Scott and Steve Reeves. I'm sure millions of other kids from that decade would agree.

In those days, adventure, fair play and knowing right from wrong were big themes. Todd et al sure knew how to convey them.

This was an outstanding film, with superb acting, a wonderful musical score, and colourful scenes that unfold from the Disney picture book of life in the middle ages. I remember seeing it around 1956 as a 10 yer old, and was fascinated by the lives of the outlaws, sheltering in the glades of Sherwood Forest from the wicked Prince John and his cunning assistant the Sheriff of Nottingham.

The script was tight and delivered in impeccable olde English by actors who often went on to become household names in the acting profession later on in life. The beautiful scenes of woodland glades, the sun shimmering brightly as it cascaded through the trees into the outlaws' camp, brought to life the story of their fight for freedom and justice, and added a strangely surreal visual effect.

There are a number of memorable scenes, friar tuck singing with himself as he munched his capon pie among the most notable. The most captivating for me, however, was the sight of Tuck walking behind Robin and Marian out of an eerie Sherwood Forest, with the lilt of Alan A Dale's voice as he sang a pleasant, melodic little tune .

Yes, a very pleasant, uncomplicated film.

As with 1938's "The Adventures of Robin Hood" w/ Errol Flynn and Olivia de Haviland Disney tries at making it's own version of the famous Robin Hood legend and succeeds admirably! Richard Todd is the perfect Robin Hood being a classic 1950s heartthrob and sporting a 50s haircut to boot and Joan Rice is a sweet and convincing Maid Marian. The script also presents a clever touch at including a wandering minstrel who weaves the story together in song. The only flaw I found was the overly-bright lighting causing the cinematography to be suffering a budget. But other than that, "The Story of Robin Hood" is very well-written, well-directed, well-acted and well worth the purchase of the video.

1st watched 9/13/2013 -- 7 out of 10(Dir-Ken Annakin): *DVD I watched entitled just "The Story of Robin Hood"* Entertaining and informative telling of the Robin Hood story does a good job of keeping your interest and helping the viewer to understand why Robin became the outlaw Hood, and placed himself in the position of the leader of the group in the Sherwood Forest.(Aka. The Merrie Men) This is a Disney live action movie that actually has less fluff than others and is pretty straight-forward in the telling of the tale. Richard Todd plays the main character as a playful yet purposeful hero of the poor folk in the area after King Richard goes on a crusade and his brother takes advantage of his position by over-taxing everyone and trying to rid the forest of what he considers riff-raff(the Forresting folk). The first culprit of his arrows is Robin's father(thus providing the primary purpose of Robin's exile and revenge mindset initially). Quickly though the stealing from the rich and giving to the poor became a necessity for the poor folk to survive. The sheriff of Nottingham is the primary vehicle for brother Richard's type of thievery and justice, and eventually Maid Marion(played by Joan Rice) finds out what's going on and begins to help the Merrie Men. This live action piece seems to be a possible guide to the later animated Disney film, but some of the stronger emotional pieces were removed. I haven't viewed many of the versions of this story, but this is the best I've encountered so far because you understand Mr. Hood's plight and purpose. There is a little fun to be had with the Merrie Men and Robin & Marion's teasing, but primarily the completeness and clarity of the story is what makes this film work.