Adventures of Robin Hood [HD] (HD DVD) DVD

The Adventures of Robin Hood
In order to avoid the material copyrighted by Douglas Fairbanks Sr. for his 1922 Robin Hood, the scripters of this Flynn version relied on several legendary episodes that had never before been filmed, notably the battle between Robin and Little John (Alan Hale Sr., who played this part three times in his long career) and the "piggy-back" episode between Robin and Friar Tuck (Eugene Pallette). The film ties together the various ancient anecdotes with a storyline bounded by the capture in Austria of Richard the Lionheart (Ian Hunter) on one end and Richard's triumphant return to England on the other. Robin Hood is already an outlaw at the outset of the film, while Maid Marian (Olivia de Havilland) is initially part of the enemy camp, as one of Prince John's (Claude Rains) entourage. Marian warms up to Robin's fight against injustice (and to Robin himself), eventually becoming a trusted ally. James Cagney was originally announced for the role of Robin Hood, just before Cagney left Warner Bros. in a salary dispute. William Keighley was the original director, but he worked too slowly to suit the tight production schedule and was replaced by Michael Curtiz (both men receive screen credit). A lengthy opening jousting sequence was shot but removed from the final print; portions of this sequence show up as stock footage in the 1957 Warners film The Story of Mankind. The chestnut-colored Palomino horse ridden by de Havilland in the Sherwood Forest scenes later gained screen stardom as Roy Rogers' Trigger. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Cast Errol Flynn as Robin Hood Olivia de Havilland as Maid Marian Basil Rathbone as Sir Guy of Gisbourne Claude Rains as Prince John Patric Knowles as Will Scarlett Eugene Pallette as Friar Tuck Alan Hale as Little John Melville Cooper as Sheriff of Nottingham Ian Hunter as Richard I the Lionheart Una O'Connor as Bess Herbert Mundin as Much-the-Miller's-son Montagu Love as Bishop of the Black Cannons Leonard Willey as Sir Essex Robert Noble as Sir Ralf Kenneth Hunter as Sir Mortimer Robert Warwick as Sir Geoffrey Colin Kenny as Sir Baldwin Lester Matthews as Sir Ivor Harry Cording as Dickon Malbete Howard Hill as Captain of Archers Ivan Simpson as Proprietor of the Kent Road Tavern

Crew Carl Jules Weyl - Art Director Fred Cavens - Consultant/advisor Howard Hill - Consultant/advisor Milo Anderson - Costume Designer Michael Curtiz - Director William Keighley - Director Ralph Dawson - Editor Erich Wolfgang Korngold - Composer (Music Score) Leo F. Forbstein - Musical Direction/Supervision Perc Westmore - Makeup Tony Gaudio - Cinematographer Sol Polito - Cinematographer Henry Blanke - Producer Hal B. Wallis - Producer C.A. Riggs - Sound/Sound Designer Norman, Reilly Raine - Screenwriter Seton Miller - Screenwriter Walter Scott - Book Author

The Adventures of Robin Hood
The Adventures of Robin Hood is one of the screen's greatest adventure films and an excellent example of how the studio system's production-by-committee method could create synergistically what, in that era, likely could not have been created by any single force. The hero behind the camera is co-director Michael Curtiz, who was installed by the corporate chiefs at Warner Bros. midway through production. Curtiz had little to do, though, with the impeccably selected cast. Errol Flynn may not have been the studio's first choice, but he is the screen's greatest Robin Hood. Among the film's many pleasures, you can watch for the meticulous attention to detail that was a hallmark of Curtiz's work. Incidentally, if you're wondering how the special effects were done on the split arrow stunt, there were no special effects. The astonishing shot was performed by professional archer Howard Hill who needed only one take. ~ Richard Gilliam, All Movie Guide
 

Carl Jules Weyl: Academy, Best Art Direction (winner) Erich Wolfgang Korngold: Academy, Best Score (winner) Ralph Dawson: Academy, Best Editing (winner)

Academy, Best Picture (nominated) Film Daily, 10 Best Films (winner) Library of Congress, U.S. National Film Registry (winner) New York Times, 10 Best Films (winner)

General Specifications: Language Options: English, French, Spanish Subtitle Options: English, French, Spanish Sound Processing: DD2: Dolby Digital Stereo DD1: Dolby Digital Mono Additional Features: Commentary by film historian Rudy Behlmer Leonard Maltin Hosts Warner Night at the Movies 1938 featuring vingage newsreel, musical short Freddie Rich and His Orcherstar, classic cartoon Katnip Kollege and Angels with Dirty Faces theatrical trailer 2 in-depth documentaries: Welcome to Sherwood: The story of The Adventures of Robin Hood Glorious technicolor, Celebrating this revered color filmmaking process Outtakes Robin Hood Throgh the Ages: Excerpts from the 1912 first screen adaptation, Douglas Fairbanks' Rousing 1922 silent and this 1938 version - Dubbed in German A journey to Sherwood Forest: Basil Rathbone and Erich Wolfgang Korngold home movies shot during production 2 classic cartoons: Rabbit Hood and Robin Hood Daffy Splitting the Arrow: Historical art, costume design, scene concept drawings, cast & crew, publicity & poster galleries 2 Vintage short subjects: Cavalacade of Archery and The Cruise of the Zaca Breakdowns of 1938: Studio blooper reel 3 Audio-only bonuses: Music-Only Audio Track showcasing the film's Oscar-winning**score The Robin Hood Radio Show Erich Wolfgang piano sessions Errol Flynn gallery DVD Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1: Pre-1954 Standard MPAA Rating: PG DVD Discs Included: 1 DVD Sides: 1 DVD DVD Region Code: Content Length: 102 min