When Prince John and the Norman Lords begin oppressing the Saxon masses in King Richard's absence, a Saxon lord fights back as the outlaw leader of a rebel guerrilla army.
Norman Reilly Raine (original screenplay: based upon ancient Robin Hood legends), Seton I. Miller (original screenplay: based upon ancient Robin Hood legends)
Sir Robin of Locksley, defender of downtrodden Saxons, runs afoul of Norman authority and is forced to turn outlaw. With his band of Merry Men, he robs from the rich, gives to the poor and still has time to woo the lovely Maid Marian, and foil the cruel Sir Guy of Gisbourne, and keep the nefarious Prince John off the throne.Written by
Little Pine Weasel <kristinat@cerritos.edu>
William Keighley immediately ran afoul of Hal B. Wallis and production executives, as well as the writers, with his insistence on starting the film with a splashy jousting tournament. Opponents of the idea felt that it would set the picture seriously off balance by placing the biggest scene at the beginning, and that the story could hold up quite well on its own without it. Studio production manager Tenny Wright suggested to Wallis that they let Keighley go off to Chico thinking the tournament scene would be used, then reject it toward the end of production. See more »
Goofs
Prince John is shown to be very greedy and an enemy of the people. There is a myth that, contrary to this, he later gave rights to the common folk by signing the Magna Carta. In fact, while the Magna Carta did reduce the powers of the King, it did so in favour of the Barons and the Church. It did not help the common folk. And in any case, neither side kept to the agreement. The historical significance of the Magna Carta is complex and derives more from later modifications. In John's time it was just a failed attempt to broker peace between him and the aristocracy. While the details of his character may be fictionalised in the film, there is truth in the fact that he was relatively unpopular, and that he was trying to usurp his brother. See more »
Quotes
[first lines]
Title card:
In the year of Our Lord 1191 when Richard, the Lion-Heart, set forth to drive the infidels from the Holy Land, he gave the Regency of his Kingdom to his trusted friend, Longchamps, instead of to his treacherous brother, Prince John.
Title card:
Bitterly resentful, John hoped for some disaster to befall Richard so that he, with the help of the Norman barons, might seize the throne for himself. And then on a luckless day for the Saxons...
Town Crier announcing capture of Richard:
News has come from Vienna: "Leopold of Austria has seized ...
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Crazy Credits
The Warner Brothers shield is in the form of an English coat of arms. See more »
Michael Curtiz received only a single Academy Award for directing the best of wartime espionage movies "Casablanca" but made great classics like "Captain Blood", "The Charge of the Light Brigade", "The Sea Hawk" and "The Adventures of Robin Hood," orchestrating enthusiastically great stars and skilled technicians... He refined with charm and elegance plot and character with fluid camera movement and exquisite lightning, mixing action with peculiar sense of humor capturing with brilliant photography the natural look of Sherwood Forest, the cool tones of Nottingham Castle and the inn at Luton with its crackling fireplace...
The film had great marvelous scenes: When Robin decides to tackle with a staff Little John (Alan Hale); Robin's swordsplay with the gallant Friar Tuck (Eugene Palette); Robin and his Forest outlaws giving a warm welcome to Lady Marian and to the treasure's wagon lead by Sir Guy and the High Sheriff ; The Archery Tournament; Robin's Merry Men entering Nottingham Castle; and the magnificent final duel, with a masterful score, between Robin & Sir Guy...
Errol Flynn was the best swashbuckler of the sound era... He was ideally cast as the Saxon knight Sir Robin of Locksley who became a rebel outlaw robbing the rich to feed the poor... With his Merry Men he saved Saxon England against Norman ambitions... His most frequent enemies were the noisy High Sheriff of Nottingham (Melvin Cooper), the evil Bishop of Black Canon (Montagu Love), the eloquent chief conspirator Sir Guy of Gasbourne, and Prince John...
Flynn's splendid figure 'leaping, jumping, scaling and swinging' made him a great leader of men sheltering the old and the helpless... He was a romantic hero 'twinkling' with malice, gallantly courting the exquisite Olivia De Havilland...
Olivia De Havilland was a pretty and delicate woman in love with a brave and reckless outlaw...
Basil Rathbone, superb as the arrogant Sir Guy of Gisbourne, spreads terror by torturing, rivaling Robin for Lady Marian...
Claude Rains was the treacherous prince John who orders his Norman knights to oppress the helpless Saxons suffocating them with thefts, and burning their farms... He vows that Robin must be captured...
Winner of 3 Academy Awards (Art Direction, Original Score and Film Editing) "The Adventures of Robin Hood" is a delighted tale of high adventure, a tale of action and colorful pageantry, a great film for all the family...
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Michael Curtiz received only a single Academy Award for directing the best of wartime espionage movies "Casablanca" but made great classics like "Captain Blood", "The Charge of the Light Brigade", "The Sea Hawk" and "The Adventures of Robin Hood," orchestrating enthusiastically great stars and skilled technicians... He refined with charm and elegance plot and character with fluid camera movement and exquisite lightning, mixing action with peculiar sense of humor capturing with brilliant photography the natural look of Sherwood Forest, the cool tones of Nottingham Castle and the inn at Luton with its crackling fireplace...
The film had great marvelous scenes: When Robin decides to tackle with a staff Little John (Alan Hale); Robin's swordsplay with the gallant Friar Tuck (Eugene Palette); Robin and his Forest outlaws giving a warm welcome to Lady Marian and to the treasure's wagon lead by Sir Guy and the High Sheriff ; The Archery Tournament; Robin's Merry Men entering Nottingham Castle; and the magnificent final duel, with a masterful score, between Robin & Sir Guy...
Errol Flynn was the best swashbuckler of the sound era... He was ideally cast as the Saxon knight Sir Robin of Locksley who became a rebel outlaw robbing the rich to feed the poor... With his Merry Men he saved Saxon England against Norman ambitions... His most frequent enemies were the noisy High Sheriff of Nottingham (Melvin Cooper), the evil Bishop of Black Canon (Montagu Love), the eloquent chief conspirator Sir Guy of Gasbourne, and Prince John...
Flynn's splendid figure 'leaping, jumping, scaling and swinging' made him a great leader of men sheltering the old and the helpless... He was a romantic hero 'twinkling' with malice, gallantly courting the exquisite Olivia De Havilland...
Olivia De Havilland was a pretty and delicate woman in love with a brave and reckless outlaw...
Basil Rathbone, superb as the arrogant Sir Guy of Gisbourne, spreads terror by torturing, rivaling Robin for Lady Marian...
Claude Rains was the treacherous prince John who orders his Norman knights to oppress the helpless Saxons suffocating them with thefts, and burning their farms... He vows that Robin must be captured...
Winner of 3 Academy Awards (Art Direction, Original Score and Film Editing) "The Adventures of Robin Hood" is a delighted tale of high adventure, a tale of action and colorful pageantry, a great film for all the family...