Robin Hood

[karohemd]

Apparently, it had 8.5m viewers last night. I'd be interested in seeing how man will tune in next week.
I just watched it again (recorded it last night) and while it's not exactly as shit as many make it out to be, it's just either bland, boring and uninspiring or cringeworthy (the double arrow shot, and I'm yet to hear comments from the archers on my friends list about the crapness of the archery).
The costuming is very odd. I wouldn't mind if it were consistently anachronistic but it just goes all over the place. While Guy's gothic leather coachman's coat would be cool on its own, it just doesn't fit in.

If I'm at home next week (I should be) and have finished cooking dinner in time, I'll give it another go but I wouldn't shed a tear if I missed it.

Comments

[sparksoflight.livejournal.com]

Oh, I really agree. The medieval-meets-Topman approach to costuming gets on my nerves, Marian is wearing more make-up than the rest of Sherwood put together, and Robin is about as charismatic as a lettuce.

Sigh!

[karohemd.livejournal.com]

I actually quite like the actress but I don't fancy the makeup, either.
I don't know, I've had some wonderful lettuces this year. ;o)

[suzerain.livejournal.com]

I missed it, but even my father was slagging it off as utter tripe.
Apparently they could'nt even get the doorhinges right in the architechture...

[karohemd.livejournal.com]

I didn't even get as far as the door hinges...

[cabd.livejournal.com]

I didn't hate it, but I can't help but compare it with the early '80s ITV version, which is still awesome even now.

[karohemd.livejournal.com]

Indeed.

yawn

[morgenstern23.livejournal.com]

I thought it was fantastic ... as an insomnia cure!

It (literally) put me and the wee one to sleep!

[mrmmarc.livejournal.com]

It's SUCH pants!
I can ignore the costume issues (I usually do); I can ignore yet ANOTHER wasted chance to set it in a real time/place (the awesome era when Richard was on crusade/captured by the Austrians and Prince John was seen as both good guy and bad by the people). I can ignore such things.
What I can't ignore?
BAD writing- someone tried to be 'hip' and failed. It's safe. You can't be 'hip' and safe. There is no edge. Dr. Who has tension. Some of the jokes go CLOSE to the bone. That's sharp writing. Robin Hood is safe. You cannot be hip and safe unless you are writing for Disney.
BAD acting- Oh. My God. Oh my God! How crap? Not that the actors are bad per se- the material truely sucks. But there is BAD casting going on. Robin of Loxley does NOT come across as an experienced war leader. He comes across a FHM reader who has been obsessive on his Chris Ryan books, which in turn makes him think he is hard. He is supposed to be a man who has just returned from the bloodbath that is the Crusades. Sir Guy hints that he was quite blood thirtsy in his youth. Did anyone get that from him? You know its bad acting when you find it wanting compared to Costner in Prince of Thieves? And the scene where he was suppose to 'sweep the farmers daughter off her feet'? He had as much sexual energy as a goldfish (cut rant about crap sword play).
Marian was a hefalump; Sir Guy was boring; and Keith Allen as the Sheriff- why is he copying Alan Rickman? Rickman did it so much better!
BAD copying- now its a well known fact that mediocre directors and writers have the ability to make crap copies of mainstream movies on ITV. A whole plethora of TV shows have appeared there which steal elements off more succesful (i.e. BETTER) films. The BBC have been quite good at avoiding this- until now... the opening sequence- just HOW many stock conventions are we going to look at in one five minute sequence... and then (the worst bit), Robin of Loxley walks home, and we have a single shot of Robin running his hand over a small branch with blossum on it- touching the familiar; regaining contact with his home land... !AAARRRRRRRRGGGGHHH!!! (spits)
Why insert an obvious copy of Gladiator when you do not half an INCH of the skill of either of the Scott brothers!
It's not a homarge; its not a cute post-modern cultural referance- it is just an illustration of your limitations!
It's like Stallone in Copland- he decided to work with all those big actors to show how he could act, but all it did was highlight his limitations.
Same with this awful, AWFUL show!
I SO want to like it. I am desperate TO like it.
But I think this is a reason why we in the UK should bring in the US "pilot show" system. This way we could have sunk this- without having the BBC fork out for what will be a low ratings miasma of Saturday evening tripe.

[echo-echo.livejournal.com]

Well said. I agree.

The entire cast looked like they would be more at home in a savvy Mancunian drama, not Robin Hood. Robin? A battle hardened crusader? He looked like a drip. More likely to be flogging dodgy DVD's down the market than a blooded war leader.

The costumes, my God, they were aweful.

Badly written, badly cast, it's a leaden heap of junk.

[cabd.livejournal.com]

Running hand over the blossom was, I thought, to tell us what time of year it was (Hawthorn blossom, which in the old calendar traditionally flowered on the first of may, turns out it was the 26th of April so near enough).

[mrmmarc.livejournal.com]

It may well have been.
But...
Considering how that knowledge is not commonly known (I pride myself on trivia and knowing unusual things but I didn't know that)... and added to the fact that stylistically it was trying to copy 'Tom Jones', the Errol Flynn Robin Hood (wince!), Prince of Thieves, and a few others I personally believe you could be creaditing them with WAY too much intelligence...
(smiles)
But thanks for the Hawtorn blossom info. never knew that.
:)

[karohemd.livejournal.com]

If you need to know about anything that grows in Britain and when (and if you can eat it or not and what you can do with it), cabd will know. ;o)

[mrmmarc.livejournal.com]

HUZZAH! oustanding!
Considering that i currently live in wildest Devon, (designated the most boring/safest place in britain (in the event of the end of the world), that may be useful to know!
:)

[cabd.livejournal.com]

Why wait till the end of the world? Wildest Devon (although I'm sure that should be darkest Devon, has a better ring to it) has plenty of good food growing for free.

[twentypence.livejournal.com]

Before I saw it I wondered if they were going to go for a realistic drama or a family orientated action comedy. They tried to do a mix of both, but failed on each count.

I don't mind over-stylised fighting, I think it can be quite fun if done well (although I know it annoys a lot of people), this wasn't done well.

I didn't really feel any empathy for any of the main characters (I thought Dan Scarlett was quite good though) and the singing swords bit was just ac crap cliche rather than "kool" like I'm sure they thought it was going to be.

All in all quite disappointed, and I don't think I'll even bother watching again.

[jonnyargles.livejournal.com]

I liked it. Remember, he had to be young, as the life expectancy of people was about 30 in those days anyway. He looked pretty haunted, and the bit where Much broke down in the bath was really poignant. If you want to think of him as a soldier returning from Iraq after having served a five year tour of duty, it's not that inconceivable.

What I didn't like were the liberterian economics he was espousing; "let them spend their own money". That was a load of bollocks. It's not as if they were dependent on imported trade at that time - they were starving and living hand to mouth; even without taxes that'd be true. Villages were small cottage industries where everyone supplied their local bits anyway - markets would have been for the wealthy traders who were passing through and the very people who Robin would jump in future episodes.

Guy of Gisbourne was described by Keith Allen as "the sheriff's hawk" and I thought he pulled that off very well; always over his shoulder, killing and maiming under the delusion of purpose but basically because he liked it.

I think, apart from dodgy archery, the sword-throwing scene put the kibosh on the idea of it as gritty and realistic, but there are still some really nice reinterpretations going on in this series, and I will still be watching.

[borusa.livejournal.com]

Re : the archery.

The accuracy is ludicrous, of course, but then it's Robin Hood - the accuracy is supposed to be ludicrous. However, the actors did this time look like they were actually loosing arrows, which is markedly better than most efforts. Particularly pleasing was the "two arrows at once" shot, where Robin had turned the bow on its side, rather than the usual ridiculous efforts of them stacked on top of each other.

At least this time all the arrows were on the right side of the bow, which Richard Greene's series didn't always manage.

I actually enjoyed it, if in a slightly mindless swashbuckling way.

[belaroo.livejournal.com]

Wow, I found it dissapointing! as for the arrow shot sound effect each time they changed location, well that rapidly got annoying.
They must have spent all their budget on Keith Allen and Marion's makeup lady.
So many reasons it missed; the sets, costumes, script, acting. Ah well. I never have got on with Saturday evening telly. There are so many better things to do.