The Bandit of Sherwood Forest (1946)

The adventures of Robert of Nottingham, the son of Robin Hood.

Directors:

Henry Levin, George Sherman

Writers:

Wilfrid H. Pettitt (screen play), Melvin Levy (screen play)

Stars:

Cornel Wilde, Anita Louise, Jill Esmond

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Anita Louise	...	Lady Catherine Maitland
Jill Esmond	...	The Queen Mother
Edgar Buchanan	...	Friar Tuck
Cornel Wilde	...	Robert of Nottingham
Henry Daniell	...	The Regent - William of Pembroke
George Macready	...	Fitz-Herbert
Russell Hicks	...	Robin Hood - Earl of Huntington
John Abbott	...	Will Scarlet
Lloyd Corrigan	...	Sheriff of Nottingham
Eva Moore	...	Mother Meg
Ray Teal	...	Little John
Leslie Denison	...	Allan-A-Dale
Ian Wolfe	...	Lord Mortimer
Maurice Tauzin	...	The King
Miles Mander	...	Lord Warrick

Storyline

Robert of Nottingham, the son of Robin Hood, goes to the aid of the Queen Mother and the beautiful Lady Catherine, who are fleeing the cruel Regent, William of Pembroke, who has the King imprisoned in the castle. Robert, Catherine and Friar Tuck enter the guarded castle and free the King, but Robert and Catherine are captured.

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Plot Keywords:

castle | friar | horseback riding | captured by enemy | death by sword | 

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Taglines:

Thrilling Adventure IN TECHNICOLOR

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Family | History | Romance

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 February 1946 (USA)

Also Known As:

De zoon van Robin Hood

Filming Locations:

Corriganville, Ray Corrigan Ranch, Simi Valley, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

86 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Howard Hill, one of the great archery experts of the 1930s and 1940s, worked on the earlier Errol Flynn classic The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) and, in particular, provided all of the special trick shots during the famous archery tournament. He taught Flynn how to use a bow and arrow and presumably did the same for Cornel Wilde on this film.

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Goofs

The Regent withdraws the Magna Carta and, when the nobles agree, the Earl of Huntington (the former Robin Hood) vows to fight him and maintain the people's right to rule themselves. In fact, the Magna Carta didn't create a democracy, it was forced upon King John by the nobles to guarantee the rights and establish the political power of the nobles, not the people. The nobles would never have let the Regent withdraw the Magna Carta and strip them of their power.

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Quotes

Fitz-Herbert: Archers! Shoot!
[They do not respond]
Fitz-Herbert: Fools! Obey your orders - shoot!

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Connections

Referenced in Crime Doctor's Man Hunt (1946)

User Reviews

Preposterous

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.