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Product Description: Disney's animated version of the classic tale of Robin Hood who steals from the rich and gives to the poor.
No Track Information Available
Media Type: DVD
Artist: DISNEY
Title: ROBIN HOOD
Street Release Date: 11/28/2006
Domestic
Genre: CHILDREN'S VIDEOAmazon.com: A minor classic from Disney, this 1973 all-animal, all-animated musical version of the familiar story is more charming than one might expect. Perhaps it's the warm, chummy take on key relationships within the legend--the way Robin Hood (Brian Bedford) gets twitterpated whenever the subject of Maid Marian (Monica Evans) comes up or the way best pal Little John (Phil Harris voicing a variation on his own Baloo from The Jungle Book) admonishes the Sherwood Forest hero, "Aw, Rob, why dontcha just marry the girl?" (Then, of course, there's the canny "casting" of the romantic leads as foxes: Robin the sly one and Marian the, well, foxy one.) The rest of the vocal cast is lively and eclectic: Peter Ustinov, Andy Devine, Terry-Thomas, George Lindsey. Roger Miller provides the songs and voice for the minstrel character Allan-A-Dale. The film is ably directed by Wolfgang Reitherman, whose decades of work in Disney's animation division helped create the studio's rich legacy. --Tom Keogh
Customer Reviews:
- Very appreciated!!!!: This movie was very intertaining! I work in a daycare and the children really enjoyed this movie!
- 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.
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).
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.
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.
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! - The animated "Robin Hood": I really enjoyed this movie. The impressions are wonderful, and the character acting is immensely enjoyable! The tunes are catchy little ditties that you'll find are great ones to hum or even sing while you work. All-in-all it is a heart-warming and upbeat film that will bring a smile, and willing laugh, to every child's face no matter what the age!!!
- Decent Disney film: This film was done of course, in what I would call `Disney's Off Years".
Not up to their usual standards, was not a huge hit. Could have been if improvements in script & characters.
It is only a good film.
Bringing Phil Harris as "Little John" & making "Little John" a bear just because of the success with 1967's `The Jungle Book" "Baloo" character.
ONLY a 1 disc version of the film.
Some extras but nothing major. No Making Of or anything like that.
And, something I HATE in DVD packaging. THESE HORRIBLE CASES WITH THE LITTLE OPEN UP FLAPS!! THESE NEED TO BE DONE AWAY WITH!!
- Never showed up.: I love this movie. I had tried buying it here at Amazon used and the product never showed up. I paid for it and complained to Amazon but was told to e-mail the seller directly, which I did to no avail. Great movie but they stole my money. The only time I've ever had a problem with Amazon.
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