The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)

 

The Adventures of Robin Hood: Summary and initial thoughts

Ah, Errol Flynn. One of Old Hollywood's kings of cool is at the top of his form in this classic swashbuckling adventure film. At least, he is after he changes out of his first costume. I'm not sure why, but Errol Flynn spends the first part of this film clad in lime green and shiny gold medallions. Like a Peter Pan pimp.

After he trades that carnival costume for Robin Hood's standard dark green, he's good to go.

The story is familiar, and all the classic characters are there: Much the Miller's Son, John the Little, Will Scarlet, Friar Tuck, Maid Marian—the whole kit and caboodle.

Robin Hood recruits and leads a merry band of outlaws and rebels to protect the Saxons from the Normans, to save the peasants from burdensome taxation by Prince John, the evil brother of the missing King Richard.

Unsurprisingly, Mr. Hood makes a lot of enemies for himself in this endeavor, and he finds himself in and out of trouble throughout the film: He confronts Prince John and is ordered to be hanged. He escapes but finds himself stripped of his lands and his title. He falls for a trap disguised as an archery contest, but he escapes spectacularly.

He's a dangerous person to associate with, but he's hardly a liability. He's a man of contradictions, but his skill in extricating himself from slippery situations is unparalleled.

And of course, there is a happy ending: King Richard returns from the Crusades, is returned to the throne, pardons Robin and his men, and arranges for Robin's marriage to Marian. All tied up in a neat little bow.

Why is The Adventures of Robin Hood on the National Film Registry?

The Adventures of Robin Hood was added to the National Film Registry in 1995. Produced by Warner Brothers, this was the costliest film (around $2 million) that the studio had ever produced at that time.

This was also a departure for the studio in terms of content. A lush Technicolor adventure film with strong period production values, it differs starkly from standard Warner Brothers fare for the 1930s, which largely consisted of crime dramas with strong moral messages (see, e.g., Angels with Dirty Faces).

While the moral takeaway from this picture is similar in broad strokes (good triumphs over evil, etc.), the classic "crime doesn't pay" messaging receives a twist in The Adventures of Robin Hood: crime can pay (and may be necessary) if you commit the right crimes for the right reasons.

These twists and departures paid off mightily: The Adventures of Robin Hood was a smash hit, one of the highest-grossing films of the year and one of the most acclaimed. Very few critics had anything negative to say about this film, and at last check, Rotten Tomatoes gives it a 100% rating.

The Adventures of Robin Hood also has an impressive trophy case. It was nominated for four Oscars, including the contemporary equivalent of Best Picture. It failed to snatch that prize, but it won Best Art Direction, Film Editing, and Original Score.

AFI placed it on 100 Years...100 Thrills and 100 Years of Film Scores, and Errol Flynn's Robin Hood ranked high on AFI's list of the best  film heroes.

This production was only the second Robin Hood feature film (the first being a silent film starring Douglas Fairbanks), and it is generally regarded as the best silver screen version of the classic tale. As such, its influence can be seen in countless Robin Hood adaptations since.

Films like The Court Jester and Robin Hood: Men in Tights directly spoof its story and production design (the latter's homage to the shadow fighting scene in the original is particularly recognizable). Cartoon shorts of the era reference The Adventures of Robin Hood, and more recently (by which I mean only fifteen years ago as opposed to fifty), the design for Flynn Rider in Tangled draws heavily on Errol Flynn's look as Robin Hood.

In short, its legacy of influence is undeniable and for good reason.

Final thoughts on The Adventures of Robin Hood

I really like this movie, and it's also a bit of a mixed bag for me. Like I said, Errol Flynn's first costume is beyond impossible to take seriously, but it doesn't stop him from kicking ass and taking names.

The writing toes an interesting line between heavy, even what we might call ham-handed symbolism and theatrics on one hand and some sophisticated, highly quotable moments on the other ("You speak treason!" "Fluently...": side note, his eyebrows as he says this second line tell a whole story).

The action, though? That's excellent, without exception, and I defy anyone who's watched a handcuffed Errol Flynn Errol Flynn stunt double leap from atop a gallows and onto a horse to contradict me. For that scene alone, would watch again. This was actually one of the few stunts Flynn did not perform himself, which is also impressive.

In sum, anyone who is familiar with classic Robin Hood material won't find much that is new here in terms of story, but for those who enjoy that material, this is a meritorious addition to the Robin Hood canon.