Today we are jumping back into the Disney vault for another one of their classics! This was the first movie to be made from start to end after the passing of Walt Disney. It had a troubled production, hence why there are multiple recycled scenes in the movie, but this has always been a Disney classic that I have enjoyed since I was a child.
How to Download Robin Hood (1973)
You can download or stream the film from a digital platform. Click on the Download button at the end of this review and make your choice. Check out also other films about the famous heroic outlaw – Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991), Robin Hood (2010), and Robin Hood (2018).
The Movie Review
What we have here is a Disney retelling of the classic story of Robin Hood. I always like it when Disney put their own spin on a classic tale like this. Of course, in Disney fashion, we have animals replacing humans with the likes of Robin Hood being a fox and Little John being a bear.
The setting of the movie is Nottingham in England and things are pretty bleak for the citizens there. The evil Sherriff of Nottingham (who is an awesome villain) is making things extra tough on people with his high taxes. People are really struggling to get by, but Robin Hood and his crew are here to help.
In typical Robin Hood lore, the premise here is that Robin Hood and his merry men steal from the rich and give to the poor. The Sherriff of Nottingham is doing all that he can to catch them, but he always comes up short. Things are greatly complicated for Robin though when Prince John and Sir Hiss show up.
You see, Prince John has pretty much stolen the throne from his brother thanks to the hypnotic powers of Sir Hiss! Robin Hood and Little John pull off a truly epic heist on Prince John and rob him blind. This is probably my favorite scene in the movie and it is just so much fun to watch.
After realizing that he has been robbed, Prince John is furious and demands that the Sherrif raises taxes even more and they have a cunning plan to try and get Robin Hood to show himself so they can catch him. They have captured poor old Fryer Tuck and they plan to execute him and it is up to Robin to save the day.
This is just a really fun movie and while as a kid I was just all about the action. I feel that when I watch this now, I can appreciate just what a great and balanced movie it is. Yes, you have a lot of action, but you also have the romance with Marrian and you also see that Robin has a good heart. Plus, the whole rich vs poor thing is something that is even more relevant today than it was when I watched this when I was a kid!
The voice acting here is great, I love the narration that it has and the way it tells the story is a lot of fun. Now, the thing many people like to talk about here is the reuse of animation from The Jungle Book, Snow White, and The Aristocats. For good reason too, it is so notable, especially the bits where Little John is clearly Baloo from The Jungle Book. To be fair, if they did not do this, the movie may not have been made.
Overall, Robin Hood is a good Disney movie and one that I have always enjoyed each time I have watched it. I have the 40 Anniversary Blu-Ray of this and until they release it on 4K that is the way to watch it. While this is very good, I do not think it would crack my top ten Disney movies, but to be fair that is a very hard list to get on!
