Being green is not easy
ROBIN HOOD Cert. 12A
Director Ridley Scott teams up for the fifth time with his Gladiator star, Russell Crowe, in this engrossing and action-packed telling of how the legend of Robin Hood may have come to be.
Robin is presented as a less deliberately likeable fellow than in some past cinematic outings, but Crowe’s careful performance gives him a definite warmth. This also applies for most of the familiar characters, apart from Friar Tuck, who has been cast and portrayed in the most obvious and staggeringly unimaginative way possible. Cate Blanchett shines out, though, in a noble and quietly spirited take on Lady Marian.
The film’s huge budget has been very well spent, with its recreation of late 12th-century England incredibly rich and de-tailed. One of Robin Hood’s most obvious strengths is this deeply immersive sheen, as if 21st-century cameras had been sent back in time to expertly record these legendary events.
