Animation Celebration Saturday - Robin Hood

Disney, 1973
Voices of Brian Bedford, Phil Harris, Peter Ustinov, and Terry-Thomas
Directed by Wolfgang Reitherman
Music and Lyrics by Roger Miller and others

If you thought a gangster Robin Hood was strange, how about an all-animal version? Disney's animated retelling has a fox as the famous outlaw, with other animals common in English and American folk-lore as Prince John, Little John and the residents of Nottingham. Is it worthy of the Golden Arrow? Let's take a carriage ride through Nottingham Forest, where two laid-back rogues are about to robe one unknowing royal, and find out...

The Story: Robin Hood (Bedford) and his buddy Little John (Harris) are the most notorious and beloved outlaws in cash-strapped Nottingham. Obnoxious and childish Prince John (Ustinov) is tired of their antics, especially after they rob his coach and leave him in the mud. Lovely Maid Marian (Monica Evans) just hopes he remembers her. John uses her feelings for him to trap him during a contest for a golden arrow. Robin and John not only manage to escape, but take Marian, her lady-in-waiting Kluck (Carole Shelley), and half of Nottingham with them.

Angry with their song that makes fun of him and with losing to Robin again, Prince John triples the taxes way beyond most of what the village can pay. Almost everyone, including narrator Allan a Dale (Roger Miller), lands in prison, and Friar Tuck (Andy Devine) is going to be hung for treason. Robin and Little John have to get past the Sheriff of Nottingham (Pat Buttram) and rescue Tuck and the townspeople, right under the prince's furry nose.

The Animation: This is where the movie falters. While the designs are colorful and fun, the troubled production is evident in sketchy animation that's quite obviously reused from other films. If you're a Disney fan, you'll recognize Marian's dance moves during "The Phony King of England" as being the same as Snow White's from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, for instance, and some of the others from The Aristocats. It's nothing flashy, but it's pretty par for Disney for the 1970's and early 80's.

The Song and Dance: What this movie has going for it is a hilarious script and some very funny performances. It had originally been developed with a western setting; they switched to a more traditional English locale too late to take an all British cast. As odd as the mix of western and British actors sounds, it actually works out pretty well. Devine makes a great feisty Tuck, and Buttram gets some of the best lines in the movie as the law-wolf everyone loves to hate. On the British side, Bedford's having a grand time as Robin, Shelley's even better as the toughest hen in Nottingham, and Ustinov and Thomas are hysterical as the sniveling villains.

I also like how simple this version is. Even the Errol Flynn film pads out the story with Robin's origins. Here, we start right in the thick of things with Robin and John robbing from the rich to give to the poor, with no added fluff. It's really kind of refreshing, especially compared to more recent, darker live-action retellings.

Favorite Number: Though Marion's ballad "Love" got the Oscar nomination, the movie does better by its chorus numbers. "The Phony King of England" is so funny, you can understand why John was offended by it. Robin and Little John get a great introduction in the opening song "Oo-de-Lally," where we get a close look at both their friendship and how they manage to out-run the prince's guards.

Triva: According to the current DVD release, the movie was supposed to have a darker ending, with Marian pleading for Robin's life in the castle after Prince John's men have fished him out of the moat.

As simple as it seems, Robin Hood went through one of the most troubled productions of any Disney animated film. It started out as another English medieval animal legend, that of Reynard the Fox, right after Snow White came out in the 1930's. Original director Ken Anderson wanted to put it in the Deep South, but too many comparisons to Song of the South nixed that idea. He also wanted to make things a bit darker and more epic with the Merry Men and with the Sheriff as a cranky goat instead of a more stereotypical wolf. Reitherman insisted on turning it into a buddy picture and the more comic tone.

This was the first Disney animated movie released on home video as part of the original "Classics" line.

What I Don't Like: I wish they'd found room for more elements from the human-based Robin Hood legends, including the Merry Men and Guy of Gisborne. Marian (and Lady Kluck) disappears all together after "The Phony King of England," despite the big build-up with their romance. They should have found some way to incorporate those two into the finale, even if the original ending was a bit too dark for this movie. There's the problems with the reused animation, too.

The Big Finale: One of the funniest scripts and casts in any Disney animated film goes a long way to make up for the so-so animation and production problems. I consider this to be one of the most underrated movies in the entire Disney canon. It's a great choice for families, younger kids who are just learning about the Robin Hood legends, or folks who grew up watching this on video or on The Disney Channel as a kid like I did.

Home Media: Thankfully, Disney took this one off the Vault list a long time ago. I own the current 40th Anniversary DVD. It's also on Blu-Ray and most streaming platforms.

DVD
Blu-Ray
Amazon Prime