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These are my reviews of various Robin Hood adaptations, icluding movies, TV shows, and video games. There are so many out there, it is very difficult to see every single one of them. If you have seen one that you would highly recommend that is not on my list, please e-mail me and let me know.
Robin Hood and His Merry Men (1908) - this film has been lost.
Robin Hood (1912 Robert Frazer) - This is a pretty decent adaptation, considering the limitations of the time. The story feels a bit rushed in its short run-time of approximately half an hour, but this is certainly impressive undertaking for 1912. Watch below:
Robin Hood Outlawed (1912 A. Brian Plant) - I have been unable to locate this film. Since this is public domain, I would appreciate if someone could e-mail me the video file or post it online if you have it.
Robin Hood (1912 William Russell) - I have been unable to locate this film. Since this is public domain, I would appreciate if someone could e-mail me the video file or post it online if you have it.
In the Days of Robin Hood (1913 Harry Agar Lyons) - I have been unable to locate this film. Since this is public domain, I would appreciate if someone could e-mail me the video file or post it online if you have it.
Robin Hood (1922 Douglas Fairbanks) - a monumental silent film version that is entertaining to watch even in the days of Talkies!
The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938 Errol Flynn) - one of the first major color films. It is an epic production with excellent story, music, fight choreography, and entertainment all around. This is considered by many to be the definitive film version of the legend of Robin Hood.
Robin Hood of the Pecos (1941 Roy Rogers) - this movie is only vaguely related to the Robin Hood legend (mostly in title alone). It is the story of Texans fighting against carpetbaggers after the Civil War. It's an adequate but forgettable old Western.
Trail of Robin Hood (1950 Roy Rogers) - another Roy Rogers Western that has little to do with Robin Hood other than the fact that they both advocate for those that are less fortunate. This odd tale deals with a commercial tree company trying to drive a man out of business who is selling trees at cost so that every family can have a Christmas tree.
Rogues of Sherwood Forest (1950 John Derek) - John Derek stars as the son of Robin Hood, also called Robin. Perhaps more noteworthy is the fact that Little John is once again played by Alan Hale Sr., who played Little John opposite Fairbanks in 1922 and Flynn in 1938. This was also Hale's final film. Pretty standard Robin Hood storytelling, with a few fun fight scenes. My only real complaint is that for something that seems to be telling the story after the story, it really seems to be little more than a repackaging of the original tale. Young Robin seeks the love of a lady named Marianne, gets into a scuffle with King John and has his land and property seized and is declared an outlaw. He then has to gather his father's merry men back together, which is a rather entertaining sequence. Although it's a decent watch, it doesn't come off as a very original story.
Tales of Robin Hood (1951 Robert Clarke) - A pretty standard retelling of the story but a bit rushed at a runtime just under an hour. Both the acting and the fight scenes were occasionally awkward, but it was an adequate adaptation, though overall unremarkable.
The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men (1952 Richard Todd) - This is Disney's first adaptation of Robin Hood, and one the company's first live-action movie. It tells the story adequately, but it's not very memorable overall. It does have its moments, but I had trouble buying into Todd as Robin Hood.
Sword of Sherwood Forest (1960 Richard Greene) - I really wanted this final outing as Robin Hood for Richard Greene (who was Robin in the amazingly successful and satisfying TV series) to be good, but unfortunately it is simply joyless to the point of being boring. It features some nice cinematography but little else of note.
Il trinofo di Robin Hood (1962 Don Burnett) - An Italian version of the Robin Hood legend that is rather unremarkable in every respect. It's not offensively bad, but not particularly entertaining either.
Robin and the 7 Hoods (1964 Frank Sinatra) - an entertaining musical, which reimagines the Robin Hood legend in 1930s Chicago. It is only loosely connected to the legend, but is a great film in its own right.
L'arciere di fuoco (1971 Giuliano Gemma) - an Italian version of Robin Hood that was dubbed into English and very unfortunately retitled The Scalawag Bunch, but is also known as Long Live Robin Hood. The storytelling in this version is pretty good, and Gemma is a handsome and charismatic Robin Hood, but I was mostly impressed with the fun and creative fight choreography. It also has some great moments of humor, mostly provided by Friar Tuck. Definitely an enjoyable and overlooked version, mostly because of how difficult it is to come by. I have spent a good deal of time tracking it down, and have managed to piece together the English dub from the VHS with an 720p HD version of the video. Watch it here on YouTube
Robin Hood (1973 Brian Bedford) - the animated Disney classic film is a good sturdy, although somewhat Americanized version of the Robin Hood story in that it uses country and western style music to retell the story. That being said, the music is very entertaining and memorable. An entertaining and funny movie, although to me the ending feels slightly abrupt.
Wolfshead: The Legend of Robin Hood (1973 David Warbeck) - this film was originally shot as a television pilot episode, which explains its short runtime of only 56 minutes, and it was eventually released as half of a theatrical double-feature. A decent production with some fun moments, but definitely feels like a first episode and not a complete story. I would have liked to see this made into a series, but unfortunately it wasn't to be.
Robin and Marian (1976 Sean Connery) - a dreary story about Robin Hood and Lady Marian in their old age, long after the merry days as an outlaw in Sherwood forest. This movie is depressingly bad - poor writing, acting, and production value. My humble opinion is that if you choose to watch this, you will wish you had those 106 minutes of your life back.
Time Bandits (1981 John Cleese) - I included this one because it often shows up on lists of Robin Hood movies, but the film only briefly features Robin Hood among the many time periods that are represented in the story. John Cleese plays a rather dim-witted parody of the Robin Hood character, in a short, but entertaining bit.
The Zany Adventures of Robin Hood (1984 George Segal) - this is a TV movie version that was hard to come by until it became available for instant viewing on Netflix. It is certainly "zany" and desperately tries to be funny throughout, but in my opinion, it falls short of being laugh-out-loud funny all throughout.
The Adventures of Robin Hood (1985 Robert Coleby) - this is an animated TV movie, which tells the story adequately in a 50 minute runtime. The animation is decent for the 1980s.
Robin Hood (1991 Patrick Bergen) - this slightly unusual retelling of the Robin Hood story was made for BBC TV. The casting of Uma Thurman as Maid Marian was certainly unexpected, but Uma's portrayal of the character as a tough tomboy figure is actual pretty consistent with some of the old ballads in which Marian dresses as a pageboy to enter the outlaw camp (which also occurs in this film). This version has some interesting ideas and is fun to watch, although it is a little difficult to follow at times. A definite positive aspect of this film is that Patrick Bergen appears to be having a lot of fun as Robin Hood. After all, telling the story of Robin Hood should be fun!
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991 Kevin Costner) - A very well-written and well-produced film, with plenty of interest, action, humor, good music, and romance. The entire cast does a splendid job of recreating their respective characters, with the unfortunate exception of Costner in the title role. To be clear, his lack of an English accent is not really the problem, but more that the performance is inconsistent and sometimes doesn't seem very natural. And yet, in many ways, this film is probably the best complete package of any Robin Hood film.
Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993 Cary Elwes) - A very funny and entertaining spoof of the Robin Hood legend, which primarily parodies Flynn's 1938 film and Costner's "Prince of Thieves" right down to Robin pointing out that "unlike some other Robin Hoods, I can speak with an English accent." Ironically, Elwes is the first actual English actor to portray Robin Hood in a major film. Overall this gives the audience everything they typically want from a Robin Hood film - adventure, entertaining fights, romance, music, and humor, with a special emphasis on the humor.
Robin Hood (2010 Russell Crowe) - A beautiful film, with excellent cinematography, costuming, however, in the realm of storytelling, I felt that it lacked a certain charm and sense of adventure that Robin Hood stories typically have. Also, it would have been very nice to see the characters of Robin's men developed a little more, as they seemed almost parenthetical to the story. This story, however, takes place before the traditional tale begins, and unfortunately the chance to develop them further in a sequel seems unlikely this many years later.
The Adventures of Robin Hood (2018, narrated by Michael Page) is an animated short based on the Howard Pyle novel. At 16 minutes, it barely scratches the surface, and the animation is fairly minimal. It does include a read-a-long for children.
Robin Hood (2018 Taron Egerton) - I watched this movie again to give it a second chance, and I'm going to temper my previous lackluster review. It has a strange artistic style, with a lot of anachronisms applied inconsistently, with some action scenes so over-the-top as to seem utterly ridiculous. It also goes pretty far afield from a standard retelling of the story. However, if you can set all of that aside for a couple of hours, it is an entertaining romp of a film with some humorous moments as well. Just know that you are in for something very different than you are probably expecting from a Robin Hood movie.
Robin Hood: The Rebellion (2018 Ben Freeman) - This is a much more serious and lethal Robin Hood, who doesn't hesitate to put an arrow through his enemy's heart. That wouldn't really bother me that much if it weren't so unmemorable. The cinematography and music were rather nice, but I wasn't drawn into the story and characters.
The Siege of Robin Hood (2022 Paul Allica) - This film was a fun watch. It was clearly made on a limited budget, but it had good humor and entertaining fight scenes. Sure, it won't go down as an all-time great in film history, but why should we only allow high budget Hollywood films tell the story of Robin Hood? So, take off your film critic glasses for a couple of hours and just enjoy a film that has the feel of friends getting together in the backyard, putting on a play to amuse themselves and others. After all, Robin Hood is a story we should all be able to tell, and shouldn't require the high-dollar bells and whistles of an A-list Hollywood production.
Ivanhoe (1982 Anthony Andrews, and David Robb as Robin Hood) - this adaptation for television is a very faithful adaptation of the novel. It is an entertaining watch and includes some well-known actors such as Sam Neill and John Rhys-Davies.
The Adventures of Robin Hood (143 episodes, 1955-1960, Richard Greene) - An excellent TV show that tells the Robin Hood story in a very traditional way. Full seasons of this show may now be purchased on DVD for a very low price.
Robin of Sherwood (24 episodes, 1984-1986, Michael Praed/Jason Connery) - An unusual retelling of the story that includes a lot of Druid folklore, witchcraft, black magic, and even connects Robin Hood with the legend of King Aurthur. Certainly not a standard version of Robin Hood, but very intriguing in its own way.
Robin Hood (39 episodes, 2006-2009, Jonas Armstrong) - A fun and well-produced BBC TV series. Well-acted and entertaining, this retelling is rooted in the traditional story, although it does take some liberties in the retelling.
Robin Hood Adventure (1982, Softside Publications) is a type-in game. It is difficult in much the way as most type-in games are.
Sherwood Forest (1982, Phoenix Software) is a type-in adventure game for the Apple II with graphics that were really good for the time. Here is a playthrough video: https://youtu.be/h8Oj28kQ8vA
Robin Hood (1983, Xonox) is an early shooter game, where you play Robin Hood and simply shoot at the sheriff's henchman, before they can kill you. Decent graphics for the time, though there are only three different screens. Unfortunately, the gameplay is a bit awkward. Here is a video: https://youtu.be/gYFY2EeOWww
The Adventures of Robin Hood (1984, English Software Company) is a side-scroller action game that is actually pretty good for the time. Not much of a story, but a good playable game. Here is a gameplay video: https://youtu.be/qdz27DLJ-7A
Adventures of Robin Hood (1985 Artic Computing) is a ZX Spectrum type-in adventure game. Decent graphics for the time, but a pretty thin storyline. Here is a gameplay video: https://youtu.be/fJ3sebmtSlA Robin of Sherwood: The Touchstones of Rhiannon (1985, Adventure International) is a type-in adventure game that was a tie-in to the BBC TV series Robin of Sherwood. Here is a playthrough video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LMh332eVOl8
Robin of the Wood (1985, Odin Computer Graphics) is a 2.5D adventure game with pretty nice graphics for the time, but pretty repetitive gameplay. Here is a playthrough video; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OefVjjSNueE
Robin to the Rescue (1985, Solar Software) is an awkward early platformer game.
Super Robin Hood (1986, Codemasters) is the first Robin Hood platformer game. Here is a playthrough video with an oral history from the creators: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OefVjjSNueE
Defender of the Crown (1986, Cinemaware) is a pretty good game for its time and was remade in 2003. The only thing that's slightly odd about it for my taste is that Robin Hood acts as a military leader conquering England on behalf of King Richard, whereas Robin Hood is not typically characterized as a conqueror. Here is a playthrough video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJy1dn4rhDE
The Curse of Sherwood (1987, Mastertronic) is an adventure game in which Friar Tuck is battling various frightening creatures in Sherwood Forest. It's pretty unremarkable. Here is a playthrough video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftP_EbGJQxE
The Adventures of Robin Hood (1991, Millenuium Interactive) is the first Robin Hood video game with a solid storyline. It has an interesting sort of 3D style graphics (probably still technically 2.5D). Here is a playthrough video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6adWgFQDQ8
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991, Sculpted Software) is the NES/Game Boy tie-in to the film of the same name. It follows the story of the movie with some changes here and there. It has nice graphics, and has okay gameplay, but nothing spectacular.
Robin Hood: Legend Quest (1992, Codemasters) is a side-scrolling platformer game, but it is unremarkable considering the many much better platformer games that were available at the time. Here is a playthrough video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXq4sc2AF2I
Conquests of the Longbow: The Legend of Robin Hood (1992, Sierra) is far and away the greatest Robin Hood video game ever made. It is a point-and-click RPG with an interesting story. It had wonderful graphics for its time and because they were so beautifully-drawn the graphics are still pleasant to see. The music for the game is splendid - again the actual MIDI rendering is dated, but the music shines through nonetheless. The story-telling and well-developed characters make this easily the best conceived Robin Hood game ever made, thanks to creator Christy Marx. It is currently available for purchase here: https://www.gog.com/game/conquests_of_the_longbow
Crazy Nick's Software Picks: Robin Hood's Games of Skill and Chance (1992, Sierra) is a repackaging of three of the mini-games from Sierra's Conquests of the Longbow. It includes archery practice, nine men's morris, and quarterstaff fighting (which it strangely calls simply "sticks").
Defender of the Crown II (1993, Commodore Electronics) is a sequel to the 1986 title and has very similar gameplay with improved graphics.
Robin Hood (2001, Electronic Arts) is an obscure title for the Game Boy Color. It has a nice look for the time, and decent music, but not a very deep story. Here is a video: https://youtu.be/Vv5k--U9rC4
Defender of the Crown: Digitally Remastered Collector's Edition (2002, Blackstar Interactive, Cinemaware) is an updated version of the 1986 game, with considerably improved graphics.
Robin Hood: The Legend of Sherwood (2002, Strategy First) is an interesting strategy game based on the Robin Hood legend. It is more involved with building the strengths of the Merry Men in order to accomplish certain missions rather than being driven by it's rather vague story-line, but the way that it emphasizes the different strengths of the men, and the lovely graphics (for its time) made this a fun game to play.
Robin Hood: Defender of the Crown (2003, Cinemaware, Capcom) is an okay strategy game. It has some nice graphics and some interesting elements in it. It includes comprehensive voice acting for all of the spoken text, which is at least adequate. It leaves something to be desired in terms of story-line. This is actually an updated version of an old game called Defender of the Crown. The only issue with this is that Robin Hood is never characterized as a conqueror in any of the old legends. This game requires Robin to build an army and conquer England for King Richard. This simply seems out of character to me.
Robin Hood: Forest Adventures (2004, PLAY Sp. z o.o.) this is a cute platformer game for kids in which Robin Hood has to save the princess, who is captured by a dragon. The graphics are nice and pretty cute and it seems like it would be entertaining enough for children.
Robin Hood: The Siege (2004, Phoenix Games) is an unremarkable shooter game, in which you can rotate your view and fire arrows at enemies running around you. It's so incredibly remarkable, they released a sequel a few years later.
Robin Hood: The Siege 2 (2006, Phoenix Games) is the unremarkable sequel to an unremarkable shooter game. This time, it has better graphics.
Defender of the Crown: Hereoes Live Forever (2007, Cinemaware) is yet another remake of the 1986 game. Strangely, it is significantly less robust than the previous 2003 remake! I'm not sure what else to say about this - a real head-scratcher.
Ren & Stimpy in Robin Höek (2007, Addicting games) was a simple browser in which Ren and Stimpy are dressed as Sherwood outlaws and take turns firing arrows at each other, by selecting an angle and strech. Not much to it. Here is a video: https://youtu.be/prHnRRhQ_Uo
Robin Hood's Quest (2007, Broadsword Interactive) is a 3-D adventure game. Unfortunately, it is awkward and difficult to play and offers bascally nothing in terms of story and character. Sadly, I cannot recommend this one.
Robin Hood: The Return of Richard (2010 Nordcurrent UAB) is a shooter game that is remarkably similar to Robin Hood: The Siege (and its sequel). The graphics are better than the "Siege" games, but the gameplay is similarly repetetive and boring.
Robin's Quest: A Legend Born (2010 Gogii Games) is a search and find puzzle game. Even though, it's a puzzle game, the story (though thin) is a nice framing device for the puzzles.
Little Raiders: Robin's Revenge (2014, Ubisoft) is a real-time strategy games. Simplistic graphics and not much of a story.
Volume (2015, Mike Bithell Games) is a stealth puzzle game that is loosely based on the story of Robin Hood but set in a future dystpoia. It stars Danny Wallace, Charlie McDonnell, and Andy Serkis as Gisborne.
Nocked! True Tales of Robin Hood (2017, Andrew G. Schneider) is a primarily text-based story game. It basically functions like a choose-your-own-adventure book. Although I haven't completed it, it appears to tell a very thorough story with many different directions that the story can go. The artwork and the music are also very nice.
Robin Hood: Country Heroes (2019, Alawar Entertainment) is Farmville-ish style RPG. It has charming cartoon style graphics, and is reasonably entertaining but does not have much of a story line.
The Chronicles of Robin Hood: The King of Thieves (2020, HH Games) is a puzzle game similar to Candy Crush. Includes a lot of voice-acting and nicely drawn images between levels.
Robin Hood: Winds of Freedom (2020, Alawar Entertainment) is Farmville-ish style RPG. It has charming cartoon style graphics, and is reasonably entertaining but does not have much of a story line.
Hood: Outlaw & Legends (2021, Sumo Newcastle) is a co-op game where Robin Hood and his outlaw band have to beat a rival gang in stealing a treasure from the castle. I'm not a big fan of PvP (player vs. player) games, but I actually did enjoy playing this. The gameplay feels repetetive after a while, but there are five different characters you can play with different weapons and abilities, so it can at least stay fresh for a while. I wish it had a story mode, but that simply isn't what this is. Here is the IGN review of the game: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e7vqjdg8tGQ
Robin Hood: Hail to the King (2021, Alawar Entertainment) is Farmville-ish style RPG. It has charming cartoon style graphics, and is reasonably entertaining but does not have much of a story line.
Robin Hood: Spring of Life (2021, Alawar Entertainment) is Farmville-ish style RPG. It has charming cartoon style graphics, and is reasonably entertaining but does not have much of a story line.
Sherwood Extreme (2021, CAGE Studios) is a third-person shooter/Parkour style game with a feel similar to Roblox, but with better graphics. You play as Robin hood, and it's pretty fun, but it doesn't really offer much in the way of a story if that's what you're looking for. You can play solo or with friends online.
Robin Hood - Sherwood Builders (TBA, MeanAstronauts) is an open world RPG adventure. I played the demo and it looks like a pretty good game, with combat, gathering and building, and designing your Sherwood village. The release date is TBA, but the free demo is available on Steam. This is the first Robin Hood video game in a long time that I'm excited about.
Made Marion (2022 planned release, Velvet Cupcake Games) is a visual novel game with an upcoming release, but a demo is currently available on Steam. I have not played any other visual novels before, but after doing some very brief reading on the genre, it seems that they don't have many interactive elements. This seems to be true here as well. I like the art style and story-telling in the demo, but just be aware that if you are looking for a game to play, that's not really what this appears to be.
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To perform Robin Hood: A Troubadour's Tale, contact Sam Stokes for royalty information and perusal scripts, scores, and CDs.Click here to view/print the Perusal Agreement
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