Robin Hood [DVD] [1973]

---

---

Customer reviews

review by: H I Hall date: 2009-05-27 rating:
Great Disney Cartoon With A Very Loving Fox Named Robin
I first saw this film when I was a little girl and to this day this film means a great deal to me. The whole story was/is a joy to watch which I never get tired of watching. br /You get everything from the very greedy Prince John and his weird sidekick Sir Hiss, to the most beautiful Vixen, Lady Marian who still loves Robin Hood. br /Robin Hood is a very loving Fox and the voice actors who portray all the characters makes this film come alive. br /This film is my personal favourite as it has romance, humour and most of all a very handsome Fox named Robin Hood. br /If you have never watched this film then you really should as it is excellent. I give this film 10/10 as its fab to watch.

---

review by: date: 2009-04-26 rating:
Deliciously Animated, Great Adaption but a Disappointing Ending
Could Disney ever do wrong during their golden age? As far as their adaption of Robin Hood goes, not likely. This is an absolute gem of a film, both well-written, animated, cast and presented. It takes what is already a well-known tale and adds a real depth to it. The ageless story is presented (and the movie itself acknowledges it, to my delight) in an animal kingdom form. It follows the quest of outlaw Robin Hood as he robs from the rich and gives to the poor under the nose of tyrannical Prince John and the Sheriff of Nottingham. With a little help from his friends - amongst them Little John - he just might save them from the evil lion's tyranny. But of course it's not so easy - nor is his quest for the hand of the fair Maid Marian. br / br /The animation in this movie is absolutely delicious. In the leading hands of such geniuses as Milt Kahl, Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston, I'm not surprised. The old-fashioned Disney style (pencil strokes quite evident) never fails to inspire me, and in fact is at its absolute height here, in my opinion. The character design and animation is all spot-on - Robin is a foxy fox, Little John is a not-at-all-little bear, Prince John is a lion, the Sheriff of Nottingham is an overweight wolf, Sir Hiss is a snake, the royal guards are rhinos and Prince John's squire is a crocodile. All these diverse characters are impeccably believable and entrancing to behold. Both Little John and Sir Hiss might be considered extensions of Baloo and Kaa in the Jungle Book (indeed, both retain their respective voice actors). However, this is only a passing reference, as both characters are strong enough to stand alone (not to mention is Little John more of a straightman than Baloo, and much more responsible). br / br /For the animation itself as well as the whole animal setting, I'd say 5 stars are nowhere NEAR enough. The story is also fabulously written. Believabilty of the characters is stronger than in any Robin Hood incarnation that I've ever seen. You totally feel the despair of the poor people, and absolute hatred for Prince John and the Sheriff of Nottingham - in fact the latter is the character I personally love to loathe. br / br /However, while the story itself is quite strong, the ending is very disappointing to me. If you don't want me to spoil it for you, I strongly suggest you skip the rest of this paragraph. After a heist and a breakout of the royal jail conducted by Robin and Little John, the scene fades away from Prince John's frustration. Then when we take off again, King Richard has returned and our rooster narrator/folk singer says that "he sort of straightened everything out." Given the strong character- and story-build-up, this is NOT something I wanted to hear! The 'show, don't tell' rule that Disney were so good at following is broken here, to my immense frustration. Sure, we see the evil cronies in chains. But given all the loathsome things they do during the course of this film, I wanted to see them humiliated for all to see! By King Richard as well as the rest of the bunch. His return should have been emphasised much better, as a kind of symbol for the people that the bad days will end. The ending, as such, feels like a real anticlimax. br / br /But despite the disappointing ending, the movie itself is a quite impeccable visual work - fluid and eye-candyish 2-d animation with more charm than today's CGI-ridden features can even hope to achieve. Disney's Robin Hood signifies, to me, what animation is all about. And despite my faults with the ending, it remains one of my favourite films of all time - and a film which inspires me in my ambition to become an animator myself. Bravo and thank you for the marvellous job, Disney!

---

review by: date: 2009-04-20 rating:
Disney at it's funniest
The 70's were a dark time for Disney. Cutbacks meant that there had been a rash of poorly animated and written animated features and a whole raft of truly forgettable live action movies. In amongst all the rubbish though, somehow, they managed to produce their funniest ever feature. br /First of all it has to be admitted that those who say the animation was not of the highest are not far wrong. While certainly not of the bog standard so often seen in the 'straight to DVD' releases this is some way short of Disney's best and is a million miles from the 'count every hair' style audiences have come to expect today. br /But to nitpick about it is to miss the point entirely. There are more than enough mind numbingly boring animations to buy that look superb. This is all about great characterization being twinned with a group of great character actors. br /Phil Harris, who voiced Baloo in 'The jungle book', may not have Louis Prima to spark off but he lends a similar attitude to little John. Peter Ustinov excels as the tyrant/ mummies boy prince John and the sight of his tugging his ear while sucking his thumb while mumbling for his mummy is hilarious. br /Carole Shelley gets some great lines as Maid Marions Lady in waiting Lady Cluck and delivers them all in an indignant Scottish brogue. br /Head and shoulders above all the though is the one and only Terry Thomas as Sir Hiss, prince John's right hand snake. His already funny and well loved English cad is given a lisp which becomes more pronounced as the indignities are heaped upon him. Constantly pleading with his master, ( " But thire pleath!"), he finds himself forever at the wrong end of every mistake the prince makes. br /It's not all perfect, as well as the previously mentioned animation, Maid Marion and Robin are a bit wet and fare badly against the other characters. Also the usual lazy Americanization of everything has it's irritating moments, ( my favourite being Robin dressed as a cockney accented stork who is announced as being from Somersetshire),. br /Overall though this is beautifully scripted and delivers laughs by the shovel. If you haven't seen it then give it a go. It's well worth watching.

---

review by: BookWorm84 date: 2009-03-24 rating:
Old Favourite Revisited.
The magic of Disney is in full view here, i only wish they made them like this still! A timeless classic that the whole family will enjoy, you will be humming the theme tune for a long time to come! br /Enjoy!


review by: Jerrinator date: 2009-02-10 rating:
A classic!
I bought this DVD for my 10 year old son who had asked for it, because we used to have it on Video for our older kids. The story line is very good and the jokes are intelligent, and then of course there is the music... Every child should have one in their collection. Superior cartoon, highly recommended.

---

Similar products

Peter Pan (2 Disc Special Edition) [1953] [DVD]
The Jungle Book : 40th Anniversary 2 Disc Special Edition [1967] [DVD] [1968]
The Aristocats Special Edition [DVD] [1970]
Dumbo (Special Edition) [1941] [DVD]
The Sword In The Stone (45th Anniversary Edition) [DVD] [1963]

---

Similar categories

Video . DVD Blu-ray . Categories . Children's . Disney . All Titles
Video . DVD Blu-ray . Categories . Children's . All Children's
Video . DVD Blu-ray . Refinements . Format (binding_browse-bin) . DVD
Video . DVD Blu-ray . Refinements . BBFC Rating (intended_use_browse-bin) . U
Video . DVD Blu-ray . Refinements . Editions (feature_two_browse-bin) . Collector's Special Edition
Video . DVD Blu-ray . Refinements . Region(feature_browse-bin) . Region 2
Video . DVD Blu-ray . Refinements . Release Date (feature_three_browse-bin) . 1970 - 1979
Video . DVD Blu-ray . Refinements . Language (theme_browse-bin) . English

---