DVD review: Robin Hood ***

Robin Hood  ***

Stars: Russell Crowe, Cate Blanchett, Max von Sydow, Mark Strong, Matthew Macfadyen
Director: Ridley Scott
Rated: PG-13
Runtime: 140 minutes
Action/drama/history

Forget all notions of merry men in tights robbing the rich to give to the poor — this is a dark, gritty look at Robin before he was in da hood. Russell Crowe’s flawed, angry portrayal is a million miles from the legend made famous by Errol Flynn and Kevin Costner.

He teams up once again with Gladiator director Ridley Scott but they pair don’t just dish up Maximus in tights.

It’s an engaging origins story that teams action with romance, drama, history and political intrigue.

It’s 1199 and following King Richard’s death, Robin Longstride (Russell Crowe), a weary soldier in the royal army, is returning to England after a decade fighting in the Crusades.

On the way, he and his companions encounter the bloody aftermath of an ambush and Robin promises the dying knight Robert of Loxley (Douglas Hodge) he will return his sword to his father in Nottingham.

Here, Robert’s father Sir Walter (Max von Sydow) begs him to pose as his prodigal son — complete with ready-made wife in the form of Robert’s widow, Marion (Cate Blanchett)— to protect his land from being confiscated by King John (Oscar Isaac).

The king’s sadistic servant Godfrey (Mark Strong) is pillaging towns across England and using brute force to collect Royal taxes.

But the treacherous marshal is using the exercise to turn the people against the weak king and pave the way for a French takeover.

Can Robin navigate the tempestuous waters of politics and the Royal court to save England, a country on the verge of civil war, from invasion?

Like all Ridley Scott movies, this has a long runtime and includes numerous sub-plots. The battle scenes are spectacular, notably a Saving Private Ryan-style beach showdown at the finale.

Crowe and Blanchett are on their usual fine form and have some hilarious exchanges but there is not enough depth to Robin to make you cheer for him in a Maximus or Braveheart way.

Historians may balk at this version of the legend’s origins but it should win a thumbs-up from film fans.

Watch if you liked: Gladiator, Braveheart.