ROBIN HOOD; intriguing but flawed

rating: 3

On paper, this film has a lot going for it. Ridley Scott, master of all that is bizarre and bombastic, at it's helm; Russell Crowe at his side again, in fighting fit form once more; and action screenwriter extraordinaire Brian Helgeland penning the script. Most exciting of all, however, are the few closely guarded twists and turns within the Robin Hood mythology that this film was rumoured to have at its core. Of course, as well as being exciting, all of these things have their down sides. For those who may have forgotten, the list of sins committed by these merry men include such atrocities as 'Kingdom of Heaven', 'The Postman', and 'A Good Year': so all anticipation must be tinged with a little nervousness. The story is an interesting take on the back-story of a legend, dragging the myth into a semi-accurate context in which Robin Longstride fought beside Richard the Lionheart during the crusades, and in which a subsequent series of complicated but nonetheless believable events eventually launched him into a battle against invading French fleet and, ultimately, saw his betrayal and outlawing from society. The visual style, meanwhile, is a pleasing mixture of 'Braveheart' and 'Gladiator', a combination that produces the kind of shiny historical epic which could one day become a holiday mainstay. The everyday village and forest scenery was suitably medieval without being tacky or showy, and the battle scenes retained the standard sword-fighting melee whilst integrating all of the trappings we've come to expect from contemporary films about warfare: slow-motion splatters of fluids, fast-motion swings of weaponry to emphasize their force, and close-ups of overreacting extras who scream blue murder and hurl themselves backward beneath the force of a towering blow from their A-list foe. It's nothing original, but it is the well sculpted a series of shots you would expect from a filmmaker as accomplished as Scott. I have to add that it was also quite nice to watch an action film where the British are the good guys for once. It is weird to write this, but when a group of English civilians were rounded up and burnt inside a hut I was quite pleased. Usually mass burnings invoke a sort of awkward mix of shame and self-loathing as I watch my 'countrymen' burn innocent folks alive (curse you The Patriot); but this time I could join the indignation of the audience with a carefree conscience. Sadly, however, all of these positive qualities were tainted by some pretty flagrant failings in the fabric of this film. The story, though intriguing in its interpretation of the complex history of Robin Hood, was made unnecessarily complex. Some critics have been suggesting that this made the film boring or wordy: I'd argue otherwise. Firstly, because the action, cinematography and occasional witticisms kept the tempo remarkably high. Secondly, because convoluted meanderings of the plot do something worse - dilute the substance of the film. Rather than being built up as a hero with a connection to the common man, Robin Longstride is oddly saddled with a depression related to a childhood trauma. This not only reduces his machismo, and his supposed charm being deployed on Maid Marion, but also adds a weak and underdeveloped lot in which he comes to terms with his past. Worse still, in a painful pitch for a sequel, the story destroys all attempts at historical accuracy by seeming to imply that Robin's stonemason father drafted the Magna Carta; an insane stretch of artistic license which threatens all of the good work of the many many costume designers, art directors and historical consultants deployed to achieve the look of this film. Add in an odd bunch of feral teenage outlaws in the woodland who serve little purpose in this film (though no doubt they'll be explained in a sequel, if one is commissioned), some ham-fisted speeches making the medieval politics 'relevant' to modern day issues and Scott's usual ravings against the perils of an overbearing government and there's precious little time or space left for the development of a free-flowing narrative. The subsidiary characters are similarly diluted by this excessively detailed back-story. Marion is a predictably muddled combination of pretty love interest and feisty heroin, arch-villain 'Godfrey' is a caricature of a baddie whose derivative machinations inspire little more than the occasional cringe, and Robin's 'Merry Men' are merely a loose collection of stereotypes. The result is that there's little to emotionally connect with. In fairness I've probably ended up more negative than the film deserves. The interwoven elements of the Robin Hood myth collected here are intriguing and, importantly for a story so often (re-)told, different. They're also supplemented by action sequences of standard Scott quality, and some impressive cinematography and art direction. The trouble is that there's so much stuff crammed in here that the filmmakers forget to tell a truly engaging story. That might just be the mistake that causes this myth to miss out on the sequel it so desperately craves.