Robin Hood – Prince of Thieves (1991) English movie DVD to release on Feb 2, 2010

Of all the Robin Hood films ever produced, it's readily apparent that Prince of Thieves relies less on genuine historical accuracy and leans more toward Hollywood flair which still makes for an entertaining film. Despite using no English accent (which appears to grate on some reviewers for some reason), Kevin Costner presents himself well in the role of Robin Hood. Coupled with fine performances from Morgan Freeman, Alan Rickman, Christian Slater, and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, (to name just a few), the story moves at an exciting pace and hits the mark as a stand up adventure movie that doesn't disappoint.

As for the new 2 disc special edition release of this movie, it just got a whole lot better. Not having to flip the disc over any more to see the entire feature like in the first release, you now have a new digital transfer and a remastered DTS 5.1 soundtrack and both are outstanding. On disc 2 you have great bonus material enhancing the value and enjoyment even further. Included is a decent documentary on the making of Prince of Thieves, Bryan Adams performing his music video of '(Everything I do) I do it for you', an interactive mediaeval weapons gallery, cast and crew bios, production notes, interviews with cast and crew, and trailers and t.v. spots.

You don't really have to be a die-hard Robin Hood fan to enjoy this movie. The film has a few flaws and stretches the historical aspect somewhat but it plays out well with plenty of action, adventure, humor, and fun. This special edition release would be a good addition to any DVD collection and I recommend it to everyone.

Plot - Our famous Robin Hood is in a Jerusalem prison. He escapes with a moor, Azeem (Morgan Freeman), and his friend, Peter. Peter doesn't make it, but wants Robin to promise that he will protect his sister, Marion. Robin agrees and finds his way home with Azeem. They discover Robin's father dead and their servant blinded. The Sheriff of Nottingham (Alan Rickman, who is perfect in the role) killed Robin's father and is doing horrible deeds to the poor people in the area. Robin and Azeem end up in Sherwood Forest and meet its occupants, including John Little and Will Scarlett. They all team up and decide to fight back against the Sheriff. (94/100)

Acting - A lot of people hate how Kevin Costner speaks in this movie. I really didn't notice a change in his voice at all. So it didn't really bother me! I thought Kevin did well as Robin. Christian Slater and Alan Rickman were the two who stole the movie. Christian was great as the mysterious and confusing Will Scarlett. Alan Rickman was hilarious and nasty as the Sheriff. They both were great and should have deserved great credit for their positions. Also, there is a short cameo by Sean Connery. (96/100)

Action and Violence - There is a lot of action and violence in this movie. It could have been rated R. There is a lot of swordplay, arrows being fired into faces, fist fights, and blood. I think any action man would like this movie. Notable Action Scenes : Overrun By Celts, Fiery Assault, Cheating The Hangman, Storming The Castle, and Final Duel. To check out these scenes, buy the DVD and access them through Scene Selection. (95/100)

Sexual Themes - There are some sexual themes in this story. There is a scene where Marion is about to be raped from the Sheriff. Also, Robin swims around nude under a waterfall. So there is some sexual content. I don't really think it was needed though. (89/100)

The Two Discs and The Extended Version - The extended version is very good. It explains a lot more about the Sheriff. There is also some action put into some places. It is worth the money.

The extended version comes with two discs. Thankfully, you didn't have to "turn the disc over" to watch the "whole" movie. So I was happy that I could just watch the whole feature film on one disc. The other discs are loaded with extras. There is commentaries, documentaries, making of features, galleries, trailers, and more.
Extended Version (98/100) The Two Discs (94/100)

Overall, this movie is very well done. It is very good and worth the money to buy. Don't get the original disc. It isn't worth it! Just buy this. It has tons of action, romance, some comedy, beautiful sets and landscapes, and just an all around great feel to it.
Overall - 94 A

The extended version is supposedly UNRATED.
UNRATED for strong violence, action, sexual themes, and brief strong language.

Let me clear a few things up:

1. "Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves" was on a tight production schedule. There were three (count 'em, three) Robin Hood movies being produced at the same time, and the one to come out finished first would be the one released in theatres. One production gave up and backed out. That left two Robin Hood movies - one with Kevin Costner, and one with Patrick Bergen.

2. Because of the tight schedule, Kevin Costner's accent was dropped to be "dubbed over" in post production. They simply didn't have the time to worry about accents if they wanted to get the movie finished.

3. Filming complete, the dubbing was dropped because of lack of time and the movie was finished. "Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves" was released theatre-wide, whereas the Patrick Bergen version was slated for TV.

Now that I have the little niggling thing about accents straightened up, get passed it and watch the movie for what it was intended: pure entertainment.

There is plenty of humor - from Little John's river fighting antics and his wife's bantering, to the Sheriff of Nottingham's humorous frustrations ("why a spoon, cousin, why not an ax" - "Because it's dull, you twit, it will hurt more!"), the viewer is not disappointed. The entire cast was enjoyable to watch, and the costuming was superb. The lush green of the forests (the movie was filmed in the forests of Nottingham - which proved to be a problem - the airport is nearby) is captured wonderfully on film, as well as the forest "homes" Robin Hood and his Merry Men have taken refuge in.

I rather enjoyed this movie because Kevin Costner's Robin Hood was a Robin Hood for the 90's. He was intelligent, witty, and funny, the way we picture him to be. Go ahead: rent the movie and lose yourself in a great adventure flick.

But what really attracted me to this all-new Two-Disc Special Edition was the 12 minutes of previously-unseen additional footage that supposedly strengthened the state of the Sheriff and his relationship with his witch. Well, it delivered exactly what it promised! Never before have I seen a movie changed so much by twelve minutes! Your whole perspective of the Sheriff changes; and in the previous theatrical cut, the witch was nothing more than a weird little random excuse for the Sheriff's "master" planning. But now, she's a much more fleshed-out character, and takes her place as an official supporting character.

Another reason I picked up this DVD was for the "All-new Digital Transfer". After what was done on Warner Bros.' previous Two-Disc Special Editions with the picture and sound remastering, I had extremely high hopes. Alas, such is not so; in the first half-hour or so the picture is simply awful, full of grain and undefined blacks. But don't worry, it gets much better after a while, though it's still obviously not an "All-new Digital Transfer". And the sound seemed really messed up; I couldn't hear a single word the characters were saying, no matter how loud I turned up the volume . . . . . . . and all of the sudden, BOOOM!!! the music blasts in, and no matter how much I turned it down the music was just as loud! Weird, huh? Through both audio and video problems, it was really hard to focus on the actual movie.

So, after watching the film, I was hoping the second disc of "bonuses that hit the bull's eye" would make me feel some worth for my $... spent. Unfortunately, it didn't really work. The making-of documentary "Robin Hood: Myth, Man, Movie" was far more annoying than insightful, with a young Pierce Brosnan as host making a complete idiot of himself. Thankfully, the cast interviews (though only 2-3 minutes each) were much better. The "Weapons of Sherwood Forest" gallery is utterly pointless for anyone over the age of ten. Equally pointless is that section where all you do is listen to different tracks of music from the movie. Oh well, at least the interviews and cast/crew bios are interestng! (And those menus are pretty neat, too.) I must admit, however, that I have not yet listened to either of the commentaries, and I have rather high hopes for those (though not TOO high, as I know where that has gotten me with this two-disc set).

OVERALL: Definitely worth buying over the single-disc edition (obviously), but I would have greatly preferred the price of $... instead of $... Well, maybe if you wait a while, the price will go dwn at some places; maybe you'll feel more bang for your buck, as they say.