Leofwine_draca
A swashbuckling adventure story filmed in shocking Technicolour - where every hue and shade seems to be saturated to the max - THE BANDIT OF SHERWOOD FOREST is one of those Hollywood romps where a studio backlot attempts to stand in for merry olde England. It's all completely preposterous of course, and the Slovakian-born Cornel Wilde (playing the son of Robin Hood) is probably the least convincing British screen hero of them all.With the original Robin Hood story mined out by Hollywood producers, THE BANDIT OF SHERWOOD FOREST takes to the next generation for its story of derring do and good vs. evil. Wilde's Robert must contend with an evil 'Regent' (THE BODY SNATCHER's Henry Daniell, once again typecast as a hammy villain) while romancing a beautiful lady (Anita Louise).The expected swashbuckling scenes up and down staircases are present here, along with trick shots and archery scenes, but it all feels very familiar and more than a little passe. THE BANDIT OF SHERWOOD FOREST feels very much like a second-tier production and those glorious colours are the best thing it has going for it.
zardoz-13
Two competent Hollywood helmers—George Sherman of "Big Jake" and Henry Levin of "The Man from Colorado"--teamed up for the above-average Columbia Pictures' release "The Bandit of Sherwood Forest," yet another saga about Robin Hood and his merry men in their battle with an autocratic tyrant. Scenarists Wilfred H. Petitt of "A Thousand and One Nights" and Melvin Levy of "The Robin Hood of El Dorado" have adapted Paul A. Castleton's 1941 novel "The Son of Robin Hood" in a rustic outing that tampers with British history. The chief difference is Robin Hood is gray-haired, and Will Scarlet, Allan-A-Dale, Little John and Friar Tuck appear a mite long in the tooth, too. The son of Robin Hood, Earl of Huntington, must now eclipse his father's legendary standing. Whether he is romancing a lady or crossing swords with the dastardly foe, Cornel Wilde appears to be in his element. He has no end of self-confidence, and his superb skills as an archer, an equestrian, and a swordsman testify to his expertise with these weapons of warfare. Mind you, Wilde is no Errol Flynn. He lacks Flynn's charisma. Moreover, he doesn't have any outstanding scenes. Nevertheless, Wilde was a champion fencer on the U.S. Olympic fencing team during the 1930s, and he appears to be performing his own fighting in the finale when he battles bad guy Henry Daniell. Unfortunately, the dames here are nothing delectable. Wilde's romantic interest, former Warner Brothers starlet Anita Louise is a decent actress but no pin-up girl. Jill Esmond makes only a minor impression as the Queen Mother. "The Bandit of Sherwood Forest" opens with green clad archers on horseback of every description assembling in the eponymous woods to hear an elderly Robin Hood (Russell Hicks of "Tarzan's New York Adventure") address them about the tyranny that has loomed up in the personage of the Lord Regent, William of Pembroke (Henry Daniell of "The Sea Hawk"), who intends to repeal the Magna Carta. Later, after Pembroke has abolished the Magna Carta, Robin Hood delivers a passionate speech at the Council of Barons in Nottingham Castle against Pembroke's actions. The other barons capitulate to Pembroke, but Robin refuses to accommodate him. Consequently, Pembroke banishes the former outlaw and confiscates his wealth. Robin warns the Queen Mother to watch over her son because Pembroke may try to kill him. Naturally, the Queen Mother refuses to believe that Pembroke could behave so monstrously.Meantime, the wily Pembroke plots his strategy. First, he separates the Queen Mother from the young King of England (Maurice Tauzin of "The Piped Piper") and orchestrates the demise of the monarch at the castle. Pembroke plans to have the young king plunge to his death from the tower where he has arranged for the youngster to lodge. Pembroke's best-laid plans go awry when the Queen Mother (Jill Esmond of "The White Cliffs of Dover") and Lady Catherine Maitland (Anita Louise of "A Midsummer Night's Dream") escape from the castle. Pembroke dispatches search parties, but they return to the castle at dusk. Instead, Robert (Cornel Wilde of "High Sierra") stumbles upon them in the woods. Lady Catherine and the Queen Mother try to masquerade as scullery maids. Robert doesn't believe a word of it, especially after he gets a glimpse of Lady Catherine's silk stocking. Eventually, our hero discovers the identities of the women, and Robin sends Allan-A-Dale in the guise of a minstrel to the castle. Allan-A-Dale eavesdrops on Pembroke and the Sheriff of Nottingham as they discuss murder.Before this can happen, our heroes masquerade as religious figures who request shelter for the night at Nottingham Castle. Lady Catherine poses as the ill Prioress of Buxton. Initially, Fitz-Herbert (perennial villain George Macready of "Gilda") believes that the appearance of church people will derail their plans. On the contrary, argues Pembroke, the church people will serve as "witnesses to the fact that the king died by accident." Later, Fitz-Herbert leaves with a regiment to scour the countryside for the heroes when he runs into the real religious figures. Although they manage to rescue the king, Robert, Lady Catherine and Allan-A-Dale are captured. Pembroke plans to hang them, including Lady Catherine. Robert demands his right as a nobleman in the law of trial by combat. Pembroke accedes to Robert's wishes and then locks the protagonist up with no food or water for three days. The sly Pembroke also orders Fitz-Herbert to assemble the archers and have them ready to fill Robert with arrows if he gains the upper hand. Little do the villains know that Lady Catherine has been sharing her food and drink with Robert while he maintains a starved attitude. Meantime, Robin and his men take the king to safety and infiltrate the castle while Robert and Pembroke clash swords. Clocking in at a trim 86 minutes, "The Bandit of Sherwood Forest" is a brisk swashbuckler on a budget. Presumably, neither Sherman nor Levin collaborated on this epic. The question is who replaced whom? Interestingly, when the arrow sinks into the screen credit for the two directors, it lands solidly on George Sherman's name. Sherman may have been the alpha director. Undoubtedly, Sherman and Levin helmed separate scenes, perhaps like director Michael Curtiz did after he replaced William Keighley on "The Adventures of Robin Hood." Incidentally, lenser Tony Gaudio photographed not only the Flynn classic, but also he was one of three photographers on the Wilde version. Lensers George Meehan of "The Black Parachute" and William E. Snyder of "Creature from the Black Lagoon" also received credit as directors of photography on "The Bandit of Sherwood Forest." Some of the casting choices are quite novel: western tough guy Ray Teal plays Little John and Edgar Buchanan portrays Friar Tuck. The scene where Buchanan's Friar Tuck tangles with Robert has got to be the only time that Buchanan worked up a sweat on screen. Typically, Buchanan specialized in slippery, conniving, sedentary supporting characters, but here he displays incredible agility.
christebaldi
This movie was released in the 1940's starring Cornell Wilde; Anita Louise; Jill Esmond; Edgar Buchanan; Henry Daniell and George Macready.The story deals with the legend of Robin Hood. On this occasion it is the son of Robin Hood, namely Robert, played by Cornel Wilde, who is the hero.Obviously, since Robin Hood lived in the days of Richard The Lion Heart and King John, one must assume that the young King is King John's son Henry III, who ascended the throne during his minority. The kingdom during this time was ruled by Regents culminating in Simon de Montfort, when the King achieved his majority.But historical fact aside, the film is an enjoyable piece of escapist adventure, which is sadly lacking from our screens today.If you get a chance try viewing The Rogues of Sherwood Forest released through the same stable - Columbia 1950 starring John Derek and Diana Lynn. Interesting to note that this too is the son of Robin Hood but in the time of King John played by George Macready who also appeared in the Bandit of Sherwood Forest
