Robin Hood (1973)

 

Disney did not only adapt fairytales for the big screen, they were a dab hand at bringing novels to life as well. They often switched between live action ('20,000 Leagues Under the Sea', for example) and animated and this one is clearly animated. This is Disney's look on the character of Robin Hood, a name so famous most people think he actually existed for realsies.

Hate to burst the bubble, people, but he didn't. 

Boo! Hiss!

Anyway...

In the absence of King Richard the Lionheart, his younger brother Prince John has taken over the reign of Britain and he is a greedy and incompetent king, only focused on garnering money. The people are starving and into this world comes Robin Hood and his best friend Little John, to rob from the rich and give to the poor. Robin manages to outwit John at every turn. Even a trap set by John during an archery contest (where Robin once again meets his childhood love Marian) isn't going to stop our most beloved rogues from harassing the usurper king.

This one isn't often mentioned when it comes to the absolute classics. There might be a few reasons for this. For one, the story isn't really fleshed out. We meet the characters, get what they stand for, there's the contest and the whole thing ends incredibly sudden. 

No seriously, you'd expect there to be something akin to a third act, but it just stops. 

Another thing that is blatantly obvious, is the recycling of animation from other animated films. If you've got a keen eye, you can easily spot them. There's a lot of this during the dance/musical number in Sherwoord Forest, where parts of scenes and characters are re-used from 'Jungle Book' and 'The Aristocats'. Little John's dance moves are those of Baloo the Bear (funny, seeing as Phil Harris voices both characters and this is the exact same chatracter model) and the musicians are reskinned cats who were friends with Thomas O'Malley. It's ridiculously obvious when you look at the pianist, who is all of a sudden an Asian rabbit, because it is in fact the Siamese cat from that band. 

But there is a lot to love as well. This film is incredibly funny and lighthearted and will make you feel good, no matter what mood you're in. Especially Peter Ustinov as Prince John nails it. His delivery is sidesplitting and the interplay between him and Terry Thomas (Sir Hiss) are brilliant. 

Looking for a good time? Then this one will do it. Light on story but heavy on entertainment, this might not be one of the grand cru of Disney, but it sure as hell is a lot of fun.