The Adventures Of Robin Hood

The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)

Runtime: 102 minutes

Directed by: Michael Curtiz... and William Keighley

Starring: Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland, Basil Rathbone, Claude Rains, Patric Knowles

From: Warner Bros.

In short, this is a classic movie I had seen a few times before, but the last viewing was years ago. I figured it was time to finally review it here, especially considering that de Havilland is now 100 years old. The Letterboxd review is below: 

I had seen this movie a few times before, albeit the last viewing being a long time ago. As it was on TCM last night I figured it was time to give it a viewing. Plus, it was appropriate to see a movie with the lovely Olivia De Havillland, who is now 100 years old; someone from the Golden Age of Hollywood still around today is a commendable feat, as there aren't many who fit in such a category. The whole feud with her sister Joan Fontaine is unfortunate (I haven't really looked into what it was about; recent, De Havilland referred to Fontaine as “Dragon Lady”, so there's no love lost) but as a whole I have no complaints with her.

As for Errol Flynn, I know that my mother through a combo of old theatrical showings and television saw at least a few of his movies and ever since she has been a fan. I won't say for how many decades she's been a fan, lest I give a general idea of her age. Considering that he was a dashing and handsome man, no surprise that he was a big Hollywood star for almost a decade, before scandal and such rumors (some probably true) about such things as drug abuse and dalliances with underaged women. But I did not focus on that as I rewatched this movie. Instead I noted how charming Errol was as the lead and how he had obvious chemistry with Olivia; no wonder they famously appeared together in a total of eight movies.

As for this picture, it's the standard Robin Hood legend with the expected Hollywood touches. All the characters you expect are there, like Friar Tuck, Prince John, and Little John... YYYYEEEAHHHH, WWHHHATTT? The sets are all lavish as are the outdoor locations, it looks great in Technicolor and many different colors of the rainbow are shown throughout. It's a talented cast with actors like Basil Rathbone and Claude Rains, but it is Flynn and De Havilland who were the standouts. It is a classic tale where you have very entertaining action scenes featuring such things as swordplay and the bow & arrow; you can't get more appropriate for such a legendary tale and not to sound cliché but this seems like the sort of thing you could have only gotten back in the days of old.