The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men

Walt Disney's first live action film, Treasure Island, was a hit for the company and along with the success of Cinderella, saw the company in good standing after the war. Though due to the war, Disney and RKO still had money frozen in Great Britain, so Disney thought it best to continue filming movies there for the time being. Perce Pearce, who Walt has used as producer on Song of the South, So Dear To My Heart, and Treasure Island, was back, but this film enlisted some new blood. Guy Green, who won an Oscar for Best Cinematography in 1946 for Great Expectations, came on as cameraman. Carmen Dillon, who won an Oscar for her Art Direction in 1948's Hamlet, came on as art director and would come back for The Sword and the Rose (1953). And last but not least, Ken Annakin, who would have a long relationship with the Disney company, would direct. Besides Pearce and Disney, everyone on the cast and crew was British. Walt was determined not to have the same issues he had with work permits that he did on Treasure Island. It was decided that they would stay in the same vein of action-adventure films and tackle the legend of Robin Hood. Like Treasure Island, Robin Hood represented a popular story that would be known to most audiences.

Story Background

The legend of Robin Hood has been around since the 1300's, first as part of poems and ballads. There have been many different versions of the Robin Hood story, with some including or omitting such characters as Friar Tuck, Maid Marian, or Little John. It wasn't until Robin Hood started to be adapted as a children's story in the 19th century that you start to get a clearer picture of the Robin Hood tale we know today. Howard Pyle's 1883 novel, The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood, is perhaps the most influential on 20th century adaptations of the tale.This novel cemented Robin Hood as a philanthropic character; someone who stole from the rich to give to the poor. It was only a matter of time before Robin Hood came to silver screen. The very first adaption was a silent film in 1912, though the best known adaptations are the 1922 silent Douglas Fairbanks version and the 1938 Errol Flynn version. The Errol Flynn version has become the gold standard for Robin Hood films, thus causing many filmmakers to make their movies about Robin Hood's son instead.

Production Background

Annakin and Disney knew their film would be compared to Errol Flynn's version no matter what, but they set out to make it their own film. Annakin recalled:

"I remember talking about the original Errol Flynn Robin Hood,  and I looked at it, just to get an idea what had been done before, because I never like to do anything twice. Walt didn't seem very worried about seeing the original, and in fact, I doubt if he ever did. His approach is always that the the film is a Disney picture, and therefore, because of his attitudes and approach, the picture is bound to be different from anything else made on the subject before."

Perhaps the biggest difference in this version versus prior adaptations is the addition of Robin Hood's father and his murder by the Sheriff's men. This gives the film a revenge plot line in addition to the standard Robin Hood fare. Three separate shooting crews were made for the film, one doing exterior action shots and two interior crews at Denham Studios. Something that helped set this film apart from others was the fact that the exterior shots were mostly shot in the real Sherwood forest in England. Walt came out for the better part of a summer to work with Annakin on the film. Walt had started the practice of storyboarding his live action movies years before, but it was new to Annakin. Annakin may not have been accustomed to the practice, but it helped keep the production from hitting too many pitfalls. By being able to effectively block out the scenes ahead of time, it made it so they had much less wasted shots or setups. Filming in technicolor at that time was laborious and it took lots of time to reload the camera and to check components after each shot, so it was important to know what you were doing ahead of time.

Cast

Richard Todd plays the eponymous Robin Hood, and does a fine job even with the character being strongly associated with Errol Flynn. Again, as Walt had desired, Todd made the character his own. Walt liked Todd so much that he ended up using him as the main character in his next two live action films, The Sword and the Rose and Rob Roy. Playing Robin Hood's love interest Maid Marion is Joan Rice. Rice had been hand-picked by Disney, but the casting apparently didn't sit well with Richard Todd. Todd was a bit older than Rice and Rice had only been in two films before Robin Hood, so he felt that someone with more experience could have brought something better to the role. Be that as it may, they have great chemistry in the movie, shown in the beginning as playful sweethearts, and then later in the film as taking on a more mature relationship. Other notable cast members include Peter Finch as the Sheriff of Nottingham. If that name seems familiar, you may recognize him better as Howard Beale in the 1976 movie Network. Finch, unfortunately now is known mostly for that role and even more-so for dying shortly after the movie premiered but then posthumously winning Best Actor at the 1977 Academy Awards.Finch was just seeing his star rise in the early 50's and would go on to win multiple BAFTA awards for Best Actor. James Hayter, who portrayed Friar Tuck in the film, would go on to portray the character again in 1967's A Challenge For Robin Hood.

Release

Ahead of the wide release, Disney released a promotional short called The Riddle of Robin Hood. It served as the making of The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men, and included segments with Walt Disney, Perce Pearce, and Ken Annakin, among others.  Robin Hood and His Merrie Men had its premiere in London on March 13th, 1952, with a wider release in July of that year. While critical reception to the film was not uniformly great, especially in the U.K., it ended up being one of the highest grossing in Britain. It would go on to gross over 4.5 million in the U.S., making it a hit on par with Treasure Island. Robin Hood and His Merrie Men would not see another theatrical release, but would air on Disneyland in 1955. It was released on Laserdisc in 1992, with a VHS release in 1994. Nowadays you can purchase a DVD or digital copy from the Disney website. Disney would go on to release an animated version of the Robin Hood story in 1973, with that version largely overshadowing this live action undertaking.

Sources:

• https://www.waltdisney.org/blog/disney-films-robin-hood-and-his-merrie-men
• http://www.tcm.com/this-month/article/1370591%7C0/The-Story-of-Robin-Hood-and-His-Merrie-Men.html
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Story_of_Robin_Hood_and_His_Merrie_Men