Robin and the 7 Hoods (1964)

In Chicago, during the Prohibition, two rival gangs compete for control of the city's rackets.

Director:

Gordon Douglas

Writer:

David R. Schwartz

Stars:

Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr.

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Frank Sinatra	...	Robbo
Dean Martin	...	John
Sammy Davis Jr.	...	Will
Bing Crosby	...	Allen A. Dale
Peter Falk	...	Guy Gisborne
Barbara Rush	...	Marian
Victor Buono	...	Sheriff Potts
Hank Henry	...	Six Seconds
Robert Foulk	...	Sheriff Glick
Allen Jenkins	...	Vermin
Jack La Rue	...	Tomatoes (as Jack LaRue)
Robert Carricart	...	Blue Jaw
Joseph Ruskin	...	Twitch
Phil Arnold	...	Hatrack
Harry Swoger	...	Soupmeat

Storyline

In Prohibition-era Chicago, the murder of mob boss Big Jim Stevens leaves a vacuum at the top. As the murder was orchestrated by Gisborne - one of Big Jim's underlings - with the assistance of Sheriff Glick and Deputy Sheriff Potts, who were also in Big Jim's back pocket, Gisborne plans to take over. However, Big Jim would have wanted Robbo, who he treated like a son, to take over. As such, a gangland war ensues, with Robbo having among his men an Indiana pool hustler named Little John, and Will, a sharp shooter. What happens between the two gangs is affected by Marian Stevens, Big Jim's beautiful and sophisticated daughter, who inherited her father's ambition and has more criminal smarts than her father. Among Marian's wants is for her father's murder to be avenged. Marian's intervention into the matter leads to Robbo and his band of merry men gaining some legitimacy within the Chicago public mindset, he giving some of his profits and the profits of others to the less fortunate. But ...

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Plot Keywords:

dancing | singing | rat pack | bootlegger | crime boss | 

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Taglines:

Like we've taken the Robin Hood legend and changed the bows and arrows to machine guns! ... Like with songs yet! ... Like WILD!

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Genres:

Comedy | Crime | Musical

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

24 June 1964 (USA)

Also Known As:

Robin and the Seven Hoods

Filming Locations:

Rosedale Cemetary, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Gross USA:

$9,810,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros., P-C Productions, Essex Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

123 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording) (uncredited)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the film's trailer, dance director Jack Baker and director Gordon Douglas appear on the set of the film along with the stars.

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Goofs

During Will's song and dance following the destruction of Gisborne's casino, Will kicks a tray of intact plates and cups. Most of the plates and cups are seen to be broken as they fly through the air before they hit the ground (when they should have broken), showing that they are already "broken" props.

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Quotes

Little John: [referring to Marian] Where did he dig that up?
Six Seconds: At the cemetery.

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Connections

Referenced in The 2010 Stanley Cup Finals: Episode #1.1 (2010)

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Soundtracks

Mr. Booze
(uncredited)
Lyrics by Sammy Cahn
Music by Jimmy Van Heusen (as James Van Heusen)
Performed by Bing Crosby and cast

User Reviews

Too Long

Robin and the 7 Hoods (1964)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

The Rat Pack take on gangsters in the 1920's Chicago in this spoof of the genre, which is also mixed with the Robin Hood story. After the top gangster is killed at his birthday party, Guy Gisborne (Peter Falk) takes over the mob with the help of a corrupt cop but this doesn't sit well with Robbo (Frank Sinatra). Instead of joining up with the other mobs, Robbo decides to team up with some buddies (Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Jr., Bing Crosby) and take the city over with charity work. This movie starts off very well but slowly runs out of gas and in the end it becomes a rather drag, which is a shame since the movie started off so well. I think the biggest problem is the running time, which just keeps the moving going and going when it should have probably ran only 90 or 100 minutes. The first half of the film is extremely fast, loose and fun and it offers up plenty of nice laughs including a hilarious cameo by Edward G. Robinson. Sinatra, rumored to have had mob connections, fits his role extremely well and delivers a fine performance of "My Kind of Town". Sammy Davis, Jr. is also very good in the film and gives one of the highlights in his performance of "Bang, Bang" and he also does a great impression of James Cagney. Martin is also very funny as is Crosby but Falk really steals the show as the rival gangster. For the most part the music is good, although I think the song "Mr. Booze" runs too long and really brings the film to a standstill. The history behind the making of this film is rather interesting since Kennedy was assassinated during production and Sinatra's own son was kidnapped and held for ransom, which also had the filmmakers cut a kidnapping scene from the film. There's a joke early in the film about the Lincoln assassination and I'm shocked this was left in the film after what happened to Kennedy. At any point, this is a fairly entertaining comedy that has a lot going for it but an editor really would have helped things.