Two Cents is an original column akin to a book club for films. The Cinapse team will program films and contribute our best, most insightful, or most creative thoughts on each film using a maximum of 200 words each. Guest writers and fan comments are encouraged, as are suggestions for future entries to the column. Join us as we share our two cents on films we love, films we are curious about, and films we believe merit some discussion.
The Pick:
Until her recent passing, Olivia de Havilland was perhaps the last link of the Golden Age of Hollywood cinema to the modern world. de Havilland rose to prominence with her performances in the likes of The Heiress and Gone With the Wind, along with her collaborations with Errol Flynn in adventures like Captain Blood and another one we’ll talk about in just a second.
de Havilland wasn’t just a passenger to this era. She also reshaped it with a landmark lawsuit against Warner Bros. after they attempted to force her to continue to remain under their employ even after her seven-year contract expired. The long, expensive legal case would ultimately lead to de Havilland being blackballed from studio work for a number of years, but she still emerged victorious and “The De Havilland Law” is still in effect today.
While Olivia de Havilland was openly somewhat dismissive of her time spent playing ‘the girl’ that Errol Flynn had to rescue again and again, those roles also remain some of her most iconic. And on the event of her passing, no performance by de Havilland was referenced quite as frequently as the one we are here to discuss today:
Maid Marian.
1938’s The Adventures of Robin Hood remains one of the most iconic and influential adventure films ever made. Errol Flynn clad in green tights throwing his head back and laughing with the jolly good cheer of a dashing rogue remains the definitive visual interpretation of Robin Hood, the starting point for every attempt at a relaunching or referencing the character.
The film was a massive investment for Warner Bros., their first big-budget attempt at a Technicolor film (hence the OUTRAGEOUS color palette). The studio initially cast their favorite house star for the title role: James Cagney.
Try and picture that. TRY.
Cagney eventually bailed on his contract with the studio, and in desperation they turned to Flynn. While Errol Flynn’s personal life can be charitably described as ‘icky’ he remains the platonic ideal of the swashbuckling hero. With de Havilland as the angelic-but-feisty Marian, Basil Rathbone as the odious Sir Guy of Gisbourne (pretty much all other Robin Hood movies merge Guy with the Sheriff of Nottingham, a character who appears here as a minor flunky), and Claude Rains as the sniveling Prince John, you have here the template that a century of action and adventures films have followed without ever truly equaling.
So good night, fair Marian. We only hope that wherever you are now shines as brightly as you do in our Technicolor dreams. — Brendan
Next Week’s Pick:
The Two Cents team is currently gearing up for one of our favorite film festivals, Canada’s annual genre film celebration Fantasia Fest. In the spirit of things, we’re going to use the next film club or three to to highlight some of our favorite films among the festival’s previous selections — starting off with Taika Waititi’s charming Kiwi adventure comedy Hunt for the Wilderpeople, starring Sam Neill and Julian Dennison. — Austin
Would you like to be a guest in next week’s Two Cents column? Simply watch and send your under-200-word review to twocents(at)cinapse.co anytime before midnight on Thursday!
Our Guests
Brendan-a-Dale Agnew (The Norman Nerd):
Hey, wanna see a movie about an oppressed underclass rising up against a fascist state and corrupt local law enforcement, but also some cool stunts and dope sword fights and they literally shoot people with actual arrows*?
(*Yes, really. It’s kinda fucked up, but also kiiiiiiiiiiinda metal)
Good news (you sicko), The Adventures of Robin Hood is still one of the most entertaining pictures ever made. You can see why it’s one of the foundational texts for modern blockbuster filmmaking, and not just because of the familiar formula of “known property + hot star + huge budget.” While the sequence of events chronicling the titular adventures of the Saxon outlaw may seem episodic at first, the film’s true narrative structure reveals itself to be built around the spine of Robin and Marian’s evolving relationship, from initially catty dismissal and verbal sparring to falling head over heels for each other.
And look, when it comes to all-time great romantic chemistry between movie star leads? Errol Flynn and the late, great Olivia de Havilland left the bar pretty damn high. The two chew on the crackerjack banter like it’s choice mutton and sequel smoothly into swooning with the grace of the film’s tightly-choreographed combat. They absolutely make you believe they’d risk their lives for each other, and you can see the legacy of their fiery dynamic decades later, from Indiana Jones to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Yes, the costuming materials are a little wild (look, they were showing off for the color photography, it was worth it), and the filmmaking techniques it pioneered hadn’t all been perfected yet. But when “they” say “they don’t make ’em like this anymore,” the “this” they’re talking about lives and breathes the free air of Sherwood. (@BLCAgnew)
Austin Wilden Scarlet:
The greatest charm I found on my viewing of The Adventures of Robin Hood was in the camaraderie seen in the men of Sherwood Forest. There’s a level of respect and love for each other that gets put at odds against the court of Prince John in the film. While the lords of the court’s loyalty to John is defined by not seeking to threaten their own comfortable situations rather than true loyalty, Robin’s men have chosen to be labeled outlaws to follow what they believe in. It’s further reflected in their respective primary settings. John’s court in Nottingham overwhelmingly dark and grey, while Robin’s are defined by the bright green and daylight of the forest.
The Merry Men living up to their name during throughout the movie keeps the tone light and breezy, even as they fight for their lives. There’s almost a sense that these men could very well be all that England needs to keep its people safe and happy. I only say “almost” because the resolution still hangs on the idea that a “Good King” is all it takes for the problems of the oppressed to be solved. But we still have major blockbusters now that operate on that notion, so I can cut this classic some slack for it. (@WC_Wit)
The Team
Frank Calvillo of Gisbourne:
Everyone has their favorite Robin Hood, but no iteration of the legendary, fabled hero scores more than this 1938 classic. Erroll Flynn is perfect in the title role, displaying a quick wit, buoyant energy and the kind of screen presence that helps bring the iconic character to life. Director Michael Curtiz definitely achieved a triumph, turning what was already an over-budget production (the largest up to that time) into one of the studio’s biggest moneymakers. Every scene, be it comedic, heroic or romantic, works flawlessly. Meanwhile the rich technicolor, impressive set design and lavish costumes make The Adventures of Robin Hood a true work of art. Speaking of romance, the movie is in no short supply thanks to Olivia de Havilland who proves that her frequent screen pairings with Flynn were worth every inch of film the pair were captured on. Their chemistry remains simply palpable. But de Havilland manages to make Maid Marian more than just a lovestruck damsel by bringing to life a strength, courage and conviction that at times rivaled that of her character’s male counterpart, making her the movie’s secret weapon in many ways. The actress would go on to craft one fascinating portrait of womanhood and femininity after another over the course of her 50+ year career, but Maid Marian remains one of her early signature triumphs. @frankfilmgeek
Friar Brendan Foley:
It’s basically perfect.
As the esteemed Mr. Wilden points out, there is something inherently anticlimatic in the classic Robin Hood tale that no one has ever fully cracked: Things are bad, and Robin and his gang make them a little better, but then they get worse, and so on and so forth until eventually King Richard shows up and then everything is OK again. Hell, the Disney version has this happen OFF SCREEN. It just cuts to an indeterminate amount of time in the future and is like, ‘Huh? Oh, um, the good king showed up and things worked out. Here’s a charming song, go home. Don’t forget your shinebox.
This accepted and excepted, The Adventures of Robin Hood remains first-class blockbuster entertainment. Flynn, de Havilland, and Rathbone are a perfect adventure film triumvirate, and Michael Curtiz knows precisely how to use each of them to perfection. The stunts are still jaw-dropping almost a century later, the cinematography is melt-off-the-screen gorgeous, and the score by Erich Wolfgang Korngold is essentially the definitive soundtrack to galloping horses and crossed steel.
And while Flynn and Rathbone both more than pull their weight, it’s de Havilland who gives the film its lustrous heart. There’s real venom in her initial barbs against Robin, and it makes her eventual softening towards him and their inevitable love feel that much more earned. What a star. (@TheTrueBrendanF)
When the HD-DVD format launched in 2006, one of the earliest titles to hit the format was Adventures of Robin Hood — that struck me as odd at the time, but it’s easy to see why. As one of the earliest Technicolor films, its hyper-saturated color palette was designed to show off the format, and it remains one of the most wildly colorful and swashbuckling adventure films ever made.
This is a favorite among several of our film clubbers, but a first time watch for me. So many of the Errol Flynn’s choice sound bites and action sequences have become iconic and immediately reconizable; it’s nice to actually have seen them in context. Robin Hood is one of film (and literature)’s most indelible and enduringly fascinating classic characters, and it’s clear that this 1938 version of the tale set the template for every other version to either follow or maneuver around.
The film is also one of the most memorable roles of Hollywood royalty Olivia de Havilland, who imbues her Maid Marian with agency, tenacity, and warmth (and, unlike many takes on the character, a meaningful story arc). (@VforVashaw)
Next week’s pick:
https://www.hulu.com/movie/hunt-for-the-wilderpeople-0524cf65-0da9-4662-b3d4-8b1c58713dcc