robin hood Tagged Articles at Cinematical

We've all come to know Disney as the mecca of old-school animation. Ol' Walt himself grabbed an impressive 59 Oscar nominations, while winning 26. Much of the animation is legendary, and the impact ... I think most of our childhoods were at least partially Disney-ized. But man, the Disney peeps slacked off after Walt passed away.

Did you ever notice some similarities beyond the love of princesses and their princes? Watching Disney over the years, they all seemed fairly diverse -- Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, The Jungle Book, The Aristocats, Robin Hood. But they all have some really recognizable things in common.

Below you can watch a collection of clips that outlines just how many times Disney films borrowed from old features. We're talking dead-on fight scenes, dances, and interactions with the exact same movements and reactions. Most of this seemed to take place in the seventies, so I guess everyone was high and lazy, especially when they were drawing up Robin Hood. (Or they were just trying to save money, which is probably the real reason for the recycling.)

Have you ever spotted obvious repeats like these? Are there any other offending Disney films and scenes out there?



[BoingBoing]

Ridley Scott's Robin Hood has added so many people that we've actually fallen a bit behind in reporting them all. Shortly after Cate Blanchett came aboard as Maid Marian, the film added Mark Strong as Sir Godfrey, Alan Doyle as Alan-a-Dale, Scott Grimes as Will Scarlet, Kevin Durand as Little John, and Bronsen Webb as someone named Jimoen.

Deserving its own mention is my favorite casting (so far) -- Vanessa Redgrave as Eleanor of Aquitaine. I think she's possibly the only actress who can be as formidable in Eleanor's crown as Katharine Hepburn.

Now, The Hollywood Reporter says that William Hurt is joining up as William Marshall (or Marshal if you keep the historic spelling), a man described as "the greatest knight who ever lived" by his contemporary, Stephen Langton. He rose from obscurity to become a knight, who made his living in jousting tournaments a'la The Knight's Tale. He joined the court of Henry II and subsequently served the three following Plantagenets, including King Richard I, and his brother, King John. When he died, he was one of the most powerful men in Europe, and was known simply as "the Marshal."

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 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.

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]

Am I the only one who hears Bryan Adams singing that cheesy love song each and every time Ridley Scott's new Robin Hood flick gets a mention? I can't help it, the damn song is just there. It's burned into my big-screen Robin Hood memories and it won't go away. Help! But enough about me -- the BBC tells us Sienna Miller has officially confirmed that she will be playing the lovely Maid Marian in Nottingham, opposite Russell Crowe's Sheriff of Nottingham. Says Maid Miller: "It's happening. I just found out. It's the most exciting news in the world. It's ridiculous. But there's this looming actor's strike, so it's not 100% sure that it's going to be made, but it's looking pretty certain."

Hopefully we'll avoid this whole actor's strike thingy, because I'm honestly very interested in seeing what Ridley Scott, Russell Crowe and Sienna Miller do with the Robin Hood story -- especially since they're sort of flipping it so that the Sheriff is a bit more sympathetic and Robin is, well, nothing but a street hood ... or something like that. Oh, and there's a love triangle. No word yet on who they'll get to play the legendary Robin Hood, though I wouldn't mind seeing Orlando Bloom in the role. Thoughts?

Nottingham is currently scheduled to hit theaters on November 6, 2009.

It seemed completely strange to me when I heard that Ridley Scott wanted to make Monopoly into a movie. I mean, it's no Clue. There's no crazy characters to bring to life (no, an iron is not a crazy character), and a less novel-like gameplay. Yet I'm still intrigued, and will have to be for a while longer. While talking with Empire, Scott said that the project is still in development and that he doesn't know "where we're going to go with that." That doesn't sound good.

He did discuss, however, what draws him to it. It "underscores the mean side of people. Monopoly changes people, the nicest person becomes a monster -- as soon as they buy Park Lane, that's it, they've all changed. I'm trying to figure out what tone of comedy it could be. It could be a really big film." First, does this mean we'll have Monopoly UK-style? Either way, a group of people are going to get confused over the names. Secondly, what's with this monster thing? I've had some lively Monopoly games, like the time my little cousin wiped the floor with me, or when conglomerations were made to try to take down the big guys, but in my experience, it's been whoever is losing that gets a little mean or snarky. How about your Monopoly experiences?

In other news, Scott discussed the upcoming Nottingham picture, which he calls Robin Hood -- I don't know if that's just his name for it, or if the title was changed. Whatever the case, once Leo and Russell are done with Body of Lies, and all the strikes are settled, Scott will kick the film into gear. He says Crowe is still tapped for the lead, and he's scouted some locations. Now I'm not sure if Scott said something else about the project that wasn't posted, but Empire says that the Sheriff twist previously reported "appears to have either fallen by the wayside or Crowe fancies reprising his conflicted bad guy schtick again." Such confusion!

It looks like everything is up in the air, so we'll have to continue to wait and see what Scott has in store.