Robin Hood Daffy (1958)

User Rating:

8.0/10   

Director:

Chuck Jones

Writer:

Michael Maltese (story)

Release Date:

8 March 1958 (USA)

Genre:

Animation | Family | Short | Comedy

Plot:

Daffy haplessly attempts to prove to the jocularly doubtful Friar Tuck Porky that he is actually Robin Hood.

Plot Keywords:

Robin Hood | Friar | Merrie Melodies | Theft | Daffy Duck

Cast

Mel Blanc

...

Daffy Duck / Robin Hood, Porky Pig / Friar Tuck (voice)

Runtime:

6 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Argentina:Atp | Finland:S | USA:G (1991) | Canada:G (Nova Scotia) | UK:U

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

At one point Porky Pig (in the character of Friar Tuck) is walking in the forest singing the first verse of "The Ballad of Barbara Allen".

Goofs:

Anachronisms: At one point Porky Pig (in the character of Friar Tuck) is walking in the forest singing the first verse of "The Ballad of Barbara Allen". Historians and Musicologists have dated the song only to 1666, not to Robin Hood's 12th Century.

Quotes:

Daffy Duck: But honest and truly I am Robin Hood.
Porky Pig: [sarcasticaly] Sure you are.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Behind the Tunes: Looney Tunes Go Hollywood (2004) (V)

Soundtrack:

Barbara Allen

A funny Daffy cartoon with him in later gormless mode - but very funny for once!

Daffy is a Robin Hood type who fights the sheriff and is famous from his wanted posters. His reputation is given a knock when he falls into a river and is laughed at by a fat friar pig (Porky). All Daffy's attempts to prove himself and impress the jolly Friar just seem to backfire and he can't convince him that he is the Robin Hood that Porky seeks.

I'm a really big fan of Daffy Duck and always feel that he is at his best when he is in his early persona of being manic and wacky. Even when he becomes more cynical and greedy he still manages to be one of my favourite Warner Brothers characters. Here he is very much the butt of the film's jokes - a role that I'm never totally happy to see him in as I do like him as a character more than a fall guy. However here the jokes are funny and imaginative so I didn't mind so much in this case. The character he plays is basically a fall guy but the ways in which he falls had me laughing out loud - whether it was the rope swing or the shaft fight, I was loving it!

I don't like to see Daffy just plain mocked but he takes it very well here and is funny himself rather than just being a patsy. Porky is also good but doesn't manage to steal the show from Daffy in the way he often can in these combination films of theirs. With no other characters to speak of, Daffy carries the film very well and gets the majority of the laughs - I still prefer to see him giving rather than getting, but this is funny nonetheless.

Overall this cartoon is very funny with a good sense of cruel wit running through it. Fans of the original little black duck may be upset to see him take such punishment but I personally was relieved that Daffy managed to make this film as funny as he did.