Nottingham Tagged Articles at Cinematical

You ever get the feeling that a film is going to have a rocky road in front of it, no matter what? This certainly seems to be the case with Ridley Scott's Nottingham. Call me an optimist, because I still have faith that Nottingham (or whatever it decides to call itself) has a shot at being one heck of a flick. Things first started to look up when it was rumored that Cate Blanchett would be taking over the role of Maid Marian, and today Variety has confirmed that the Aussie actress has officially signed on. Speaking as someone who puts Blanchett alongside Meryl Steep as one of the coolest chicks working today, I'm thrilled that Crowe is getting a co-star that can hold her own.

But that's not all, because Scott and company finally decided to open up, and new story details have been revealed. The original script was written by Kung Fu Panda's, Ethan Reiff and Cyrus Voris, but Brian Helgeland was later brought in for a rewrite. According to Variety, "Crowe plays Robin of Loxley in an original story that hews close to historical facts of the period. Abandoned as a child, he finds community with the common people of Nottingham. Robin's abandonment and trust issues hamper his ability to fall in love. He meets his match in Marian, a strong, independent woman." The film is now being pitched as Gladiator meets Robin Hood -- I guess Crowe and Scott figured the formula worked well enough the first time, so why not capitalize on some of that 'Maximus magic'?

So now that we have a brand new Maid Marian and a look at what is in store for Crowe's man of the people, who's with me when I say that it's about time we give Scott's re-boot a fair shake?

The mystery of Ridley Scott's Nottingham is now over. Scott announced that his "revisionist" take on the Robin Hood legend has been scrapped, right down to the title, and will now have Russell Crowe in the role of the titular archer. Why mess with hundreds of years of legend, after all?

"[Robin Hood] is a bowman in the army of Richard Coeur de Lion. [Crowe as both Robin and the Sheriff of Nottingham] was an idea so far back, way back when at the time I had this proposed to me, and I read it and thought, 'I don't really know what it does for it, but it's alright'," Scott told MTV News. "It is better to simply have the evolution of a character called Robin Hood, who will come out of a point in the Crusades which is the end."

However, there is a slight shift in who the villain will be. While the Sheriff of Nottingham will play a part, Scott is returning Robin Hood to his cultural roots as an Anglo-Saxon pitted against villainous Norman invaders. "It is from France. It is the French. The villain is much bigger in that sense; much more important, and much more dangerous."

Filming begins in two months, and while Scott didn't confirm Cate Blanchett as Maid Marian, he dismissed the persistent rumors that Crowe's physical fitness was a problem. "Oh that is silly. All that stuff is bullsh-t. He is going to be totally fit. That is not a problem at all. And he's been working on his bow and arrow for about 4 months. He sends me tapes of him hitting targets at about 45 meters. He's pretty good!"

As a medievalist at heart, I'm rather excited to see a traditional version that can erase all memory of a certain prince of thieves -- and Crowe and Scott are at their best when they go quasi-historical. Can't wait.

Does it make me a bad person that I couldn't have been happier when Sienna Miller and Nottingham decided to go their separate ways? Nothing personal, but I wasn't envisioning Miller fairing too well up against a dramatic heavy like Russell Crowe. Luckily, for those of out there who still think that Nottingham has a chance of being a darn good flick, there is a light on the horizon and her name is Cate Blanchett. During an event for the London Film Critics' Circle Awards, newly arrived Nottingham cast member, Mark Strong told the UK Telegraph, "I think Cate Blanchett is set to take the Maid Marian part," Strong went on to sing the praises of the Aussie actress and told the Telegraph, "She is a wonderful actress and it would make it a much classier film if she was in it." -- Amen to that brother.

For those of you who haven't been following the travails of Scott's Robin Hood update, here is a quick little primer: First up were those bogus script reports that made Crowe's choice of dual roles sound like a bad episode of The Bobbsey Twins. But the hits kept coming, and next up was a shutdown on the set, unflattering stories that Crowe and Scott were at each other's throat, and finally Sienna Miller got the old heave-ho thanks to Crowe's so-called "gross" appearance, or her bad acting (depending on who you believe) -- not exactly the kind of anecdotes you want to end up on the DVD commentary.

The bad news just keeps coming for Ridley Scott's revisionist take on Robin Hood; delays, confusions over the script -- heck, even the foliage wasn't cooperating. But, this latest piece of gossip to hit the web confirms that no matter how you slice it, all is not well in Sherwood Forest. The latest blow to the beleaguered flick (as reported by the New York Post) is that Sienna Miller has now been fired from her role as Maid Marian in the action adventure.

So what could have prompted the casting change? According to those wags at The Post, Ms. Miller was just too darn sexy. A source was quoted as saying, "It is a mess. Russell never lost the weight he put on for 'Body of Evidence' - and so the love scenes between him and Sienna would have been laughable. He's so old and fat and she's so young and gorgeous. It's just . . . gross." Pretty mean stuff, although it's kind of nice to see male stars getting the heat for body image for a change. The source also went on to say that producers were going to look for a new co-star that was a little closer in size, and age to Crowe.

The official word from the set was that Miller was "released" from her contract, but producers gave no further details as to the reason for her departure. News of a troubled set has been leaking for some time, along with rumours of battles between Scott and Crowe escalating out of control (which has since been publicly denied by Crowe and Scott's agent).

So do you think that Nottingham can ever come back from all of the bad publicity? And does it matter what people are saying during production if the finished product kicks ass?

The wires (yes, I still think of them like that) were buzzing all weekend with MTV's big scoop -- that while Russell Crowe and Ridley Scott were out promoting Body of Lies, the network cornered them about the long-delayed Nottingham, Scott's revisionist Robin Hood story. There have been a lot of names attached to the role of Robin Hood, ranging from Christian Bale to newcomer Sam Riley.

Forget all of that because now, from Scott himself, comes the announcement that Crowe will be playing both roles. Mum on the details, the director would only say it was "a good old clever adjustment of characters. One becomes the other. It changes." I would take that to mean that the Sheriff of Nottingham becomes Robin Hood after having to steal from the poor one too many times ... or they're twins, which would be pretty lame, especially for Scott and Crowe.

But wait -- there's more! CHUD points out that in reading the original screenplay, they noticed the Sheriff was caught between a tyrant king and a less-than-heroic Robin Hood. Nothing in this script indicated the Sheriff and Robin Hood could be played by the same actor. Now, Brian Helgeland came in and did a rewrite, and much depends on that.

The medievalist in me suspects this is less shockingly revisionist than a return to the old medieval legends, where Robin Hood was merely an outlaw who beheaded people from time to time, not the Robin of Locksley we all know and love. It's a pretty flexible legend, and I'm very anxious to see what Scott does with it ... when it finally heads into production, that is.

If you squint your eyes just right and look at a photo of the late comedian Bill Hicks, he kind of resembles a young Russell Crowe (or vice versa). So, it would have been really cool if the Australian actor had played Hicks around ten years ago, when he was still in his 30s. But if we've learned anything from Kevin Spacey and Mike Myers (respectively, star of the Bobby Darin biopic Beyond the Sea and star of an upcoming Keith Moon biopic titled See Me Feel Me), you're never too old to play an icon who died young, and therefore we must accept the fact that at close to 50 years old, Crowe is likely to portray Hicks, who died from cancer at age 32. Fortunately for Crowe, he's good enough that it shouldn't be too hard to believe such a portrayal.

The Oscar-winning actor is quoted in The Sydney Morning Herald saying he's involved with a Hicks bio, "which is going from treatment to draft stage with Kiwi writer Mark Staufer." Never mind that the quote doesn't sound like it was actually spoken by anyone, let alone Crowe, the article is mostly about how the actor is spending time with his family now that Ridley Scott's Nottingham has been postponed. Crowe also references other projects, including an unnamed documentary and the surfing gang movie My Brother's Keeper, based on the documentary Bra Boys, which Crowe narrated. Stuart Beattie, who co-wrote the doc, is currently working on a second draft of its adaptation.

Q. Why is Cinematical not posting as much as it usually does? What's going on with the site? Did everyone go on vacation at the same time? Will things return to normal anytime soon? Can you tell us anything?

A. "We're still operating, we're undergoing an editorial readjustment, things will be back to normal on August 1st."

Here's a round up of news for today:

• The Wolverine Comic Con trailer has leaked online, and you can watch it in two parts -- one here, one here. I missed this footage when it premiered, and have to say that I love what I see. Hopefully Fox will put it online soon.
• Speaking of trailers, Oliver Stone's W now has a teaser thingy online over at Moviefone. And, honestly, it doesn't look too bad. Definitely teases; definitely has me interested. You?
• Shia LaBeouf took one step closer to becoming a "normal" celebrity after he crashed his car and was arrested for suspicion of DUI early Sunday morning.
  
• Wes Craven admits to talking to Bob Weinstein about doing another Scream movie. Fans everywhere scream, "F*ck no, dude! Leave it alone!"
• A collection of 20 Heath Ledger as the Joker t-shirts and where you can buy them.
• Following a $75 million take this past weekend, The Dark Knight has now grossed $355 million worldwide. Also of note: Step Brothers took home $30 million and The X-Files: I Want to Believe managed $10.2 million.
  
• Ridley Scott's revisionist Robin Hood tale, Nottingham, has been delayed indefinitely. The Hollywood Reporter cites "script concerns, location logistics and the current labor unrest all played a role in the decision." Production was supposed to begin next month, and will now most likely be pushed back to next year.
• Vampires are hot these days, and Family Guy writer David A. Goodman has just been brought on to adapt Blatant Comics' Last Blood, about "the human survivors of a zombie massacre who find themselves protected by a band of vampires who need their blood to survive." Nice.
  

More coming later ...

The Nottingham rumors are flying as thick as, well, the trees of Sherwood Forest. Both CHUD and Ain't It Cool News, who apparently share the same source, are adamant that Christian Bale will not be playing Robin Hood in Ridley Scott's reinterpretation of the classic tale. So, as exciting as the idea of seeing Bale and Russell Crowe square off again is, it will have to wait for another film. Oddly, I find the news a relief. I like Bale immensely, but there are only so many icons a man should play in his career!

But, there's a new name being tossed about. Latino Review reports that Sam Riley, who played the troubled Ian Curtis in Control, is rumored to be in the running. Not only that, but Russell Crowe is said to be championing his casting. Whatever, and whoever, Crowe wants, he usually gets. So, if you look to your right, you may be looking at the latest incarnation of Robin Hood.

Riley is certainly closer to Sienna Miller's age, thus making the love triangle between Maid Marian, Robin and Nottingham a bit more complex. (And palatable to all of us leery of the age gap between Miller and Crowe.) He is certainly a fresh choice, and the role would lend itself to a talented newcomer. We shall soon see! Meanwhile, sound off below -- is Riley a good fit for the man in green? Or are you off the project for good now that Bale is out of the running?

It's a day of big actors and big rumors. Aside from murmurs of Josh Brolin as Snake Plissken, The Daily Mail claims Christian Bale is in talks to play Robin Hood in Ridley Scott's upcoming film, Nottingham, which has already cast Russell Crowe as the Sheriff of Nottingham and Sienna Miller as Maid Marian.

The paper says: "Nothing is signed for Bale, but director Ridley Scott is exceedingly keen to cast him." This could just as easily be false as it is true, but it wouldn't be surprising if Ridley was keen on Bale. The man has oodles of acting talent, and he's got increasing star power, so he's the perfect guy for a role like this. They say that costume fittings start next week, so we should know soon either way, as well as if Vanessa Redgrave and William Hurt will sign on.

Now, should this be true: I wonder how many iconic roles Christian Bale can take on before it's overkill, or whether he can just keep going and going like the Energizer Bunny. He's Batman, John Connor, and maybe now Robin Hood. Who's next?

[via CHUD]