Robin and Marian [Blu-ray]

Director: Richard Lester Richard Lester

Overview

Though the story told in Robin and Marian is unfamiliar to most audiences, it is actually quite faithful to several of the ancient Robin Hood legends. During the Crusades, Robin (Sean Connery) is still loyal to King Richard the Lionheart (Richard Harris), but even he has trouble adjusting to the monarch's ever-increasing paranoia and lunacy. After Richard's death, Robin returns to England, his first visit to his home turf in 20 years. He looks up his beloved Maid Marian (Audrey Hepburn, last seen in 1967's Wait Until Dark), who is now a middle-aged nun. No sooner do Robin and Marian renew their relationship than the aging Merry Men demand Robin's services in thwarting their old foe, the Sheriff of Nottingham (Robert Shaw). Marian is aghast that the long-standing feud between Robin and the sheriff threatens to expand into wholesale bloodshed. The two venerable enemies agree to one last mano a mano battle -- only to watch helplessly as the all-out war they'd tried to avoid commences anyway. Both the tragic climax and Robin's last, defiant arrow shot are drawn directly from authentic Robin Hood ballads of the 14th and 15th centuries.

Product Details

Release Date:	11/20/2018
UPC:	0043396546301
Original Release:	1976
Rating:	PG
Source:	ALLIED VAUGHN
Region Code:	A
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Mono]
Language:	English
Time:	1:47:00
Sales rank:	3,466

Special Features

Theatrical trailer

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Sean Connery	Robin Hood
Audrey Hepburn	Maid Marian
Robert Shaw	Sheriff of Nottingham
Richard Harris	King Richard
Nicol Williamson	Little John
Denholm Elliott	Will Scarlett
Kenneth Haigh	Sir Ranulf de Pudsey
Ronnie Barker	Friar Tuck
Ian Holm	King John
Bill Maynard	Mercadier
John Barrett	Jack
Esmond Knight	Old Defender
Veronica Quilligan	Sister Mary
Peter Butterworth	Surgeon
Kenneth Cranham	Jack's Apprentice
Victoria Merida Roja	Actor
Victoria Hernandez-Sanguino	Actor
Margarita Minguillon	Actor
Victoria Abril	Queen Isabella
Montserrat Julió	1st Sister
Victoria Sanguino	2nd Sister
Margarida Minguillón	3rd Sister
John Barry	Composer
Michel Legrand	Composer

Technical Credits

James Goldman

Richard Lester	Director
James Goldman	Screenwriter
Eddie Fowlie	Special Effects
William Hobbs	Stunts
Ian McKay	Stunts
Denis O'Dell	Producer
Joaquin Parra	Stunts,Stunts
Miguel Pedregosa	Stunts
Richard Shepherd	Executive Producer,Producer
Ray Stark	Executive Producer,Producer
Roy Charman	Sound Effects,Sound/Sound Designer
Gerry Humphreys	Sound Effects,Sound/Sound Designer
Don Sharpe	Sound Effects
Paul Smith	Sound Effects
Raymond Stark	Producer
Mary Selway	Casting

Editorial Reviews

Boundless energy characterized director Richard Lester's career from the start, making it hard to think of a director better suited to deal with the point at which such energy hits the boundaries of age. With Robin and Marian, Lester crafted an English equivalent to the revisionist Westerns of the '60s and '70s, offering a new look at a story whose impact has become somewhat blunted by familiarity. One scene says it all: after a feat of derring-do shot with typical Lester exuberance, Robin (Sean Connery) attempts to flee the scene by climbing a wall, only to find that what in the past he could have done in the blink of an eye now takes much longer, almost losing his life in the process of discovery. Lester could simply have played this for laughs, but while the film contains its fair share of humor, he has other aims in mind. Though some dismissed Robin and Marian as coldhearted for tampering with the Robin Hood myth, the accusation doesn't hold up in light of the director's obvious affection for his well-known characters and Connery's and Audrey Hepburn's excellent turns as the aging lovers. By its end, it's revealed itself as a moving examination of aging, the ending of eras, and the ways history and folklore can conceal the ugliness of violence.

All Movie Guide