Release date: 14 May, 2010.
The cast: Russell Crowe, Cate Blanchett, Mark Strong, Matthew Macfadyen, Danny Huston, William Hurt.
The pitch: The familiar tale of Sherwood Forest’s finest, as it might actually have happened. An archer takes on a royal pretender and Norman invaders in medieval Nottinghamshire.
The strapline: TBA
The buzz: Has it really been ten years since Gladiator? Since then, director Ridley Scott has worked with Crowe on three films – Body of Lies, American Gangster and A Good Year – but this is the pair’s first return to the territory mined to such success in that epic. The original script apparently made Robin the villain and the Sheriff the hero, and rumours circulated that Crowe would play both parts. Thankfully, Scott appears to have gone for a more traditional retelling, courtesy of master screenwriter Brian Helgeland.
Reasons this could be good: Substitute bows ‘n’ arrows for swords ‘n’ sandals and we could be watching a trailer for Gladiator 2, couldn’t we? Indisputably a good thing in anyone’s book. The tale of Robin Hood is ripe for a gritty reboot, but we look forward to seeing how Scott treats the vaguely campy Merry Men. Although he’s arguably a bit old to be playing the outlaw archer, Crowe has just the right mix of gravitas and cheek to bring him to life. And the supporting cast is terrific – we are particularly excited to see William Hurt as one of the bad guys.
Reasons this could be bad: Tell me that’s not a Midlands accent Crowe is putting on in that scrap of dialogue? OK, so we don’t really want a return to the days when Kevin Costner appeared to believe Sherwood Forest was in Utah, but this doesn’t bode well for the tone of Gladiatoresque heroic speeches. Also, don’t forget Scott’s form with rollicking historical epics deserted him for the bloated Kingdom of Heaven. Finally, we know it’s de rigeur for reboots like this to throw out the canon, but it feels wrong for Robin Hood not to be wearing green, doesn’t it? Like Batman without a cape.
We think: Ever since Douglas Fairbanks first pulled on the tights back in 1922, Robin Hood has been one of the most successful Hollywood franchises in history. We’re glad Scott saw sense and chose not to mess with the myth too much. It’s a pity, then, that this trailer is so underwhelming. No action set pieces to speak of, a mere snippet of dialogue, few glimpses of any cast members other than Crowe and only one shot of the famous bow and arrow. We’re still excited by this, but we need some more meat in the next promo.
Music: Hellbent by Groove Addicts, a band which appears to exist solely to provide music for Scott trailers.
Did you spot?: Danny Huston, who plays King Richard? Because we didn’t. That’s former Spooks star Matthew Macfadyean at 1:07 though, pillaging a villager by the looks of things.
Odds of you seeing it: Robin Hood is one of the few unarguable English heroes, so if you have a red and white heart you ought to be patriotically buying your ticket now. Foreigners who liked Gladiator will probably come with you.
