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Craig Johnson
Industry Professional
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 Posted: Wed 16 Dec, 2009 7:10 am Post subject: Ridley does Robinhood or "Maximus meets the Sheriff&quo |
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Well looks like 2010 maybe a sword movie year with all the projects that look as if they will reach the screen.
Here is Ridley Scott's Robinhood
Movie Site
Trailer looks very Ridley- some decent action, but as was mentioned in the Viking movie thread probably best not to sit next to us when trying to watch the movie. I am not nearly as bad as I used to be. After being involved with many projects over the years it is somewhat amazing that they come out as closely as they do. If I could correct anything in the system of making movies it would be to teach production designers that history is almost always more interesting and full of variety than any mind of a single creative individual. Let the reality of the past add meaning to your production rather than postage stamping on bits and pieces that some actor/director/stylist thinks identifies or has the "right look" for a production that is interested in an authentic look.
Some movies do this well but they are usually not the big budget variety, to many committees involved in those types of projects.
Not to bad a look though they have guys wearing Sallets later in the pic. Oh well....
Craig
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Sean Flynt
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Craig Johnson
Industry Professional
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| Posted: Wed 16 Dec, 2009 8:35 am Post subject: Having the right attitude |
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Hi Sean
Your better half is obviously pretty smart  Took me about 15 years of complaining in movies to figure that one out. My wife got to a point where she did not want to go to historical pics with me.
After seeing the process behind the camera in several different situations I would say the stuff we get is usually about as good as it will get. MAybe if you had an independent with massive amounts of cash and a very clear vision you could get a very historical detail and let the actors do the appeal with great acting but their are so many others that have to be intune with it all to come off correctly it would be unbelievable for someone to pull it all off and be popular.
MAybe some budding producer on the forum will take up the challenge and make it happen.
Craig
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Joel Chesser
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| Posted: Wed 16 Dec, 2009 9:20 am Post subject: Re: Having the right attitude |
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| Craig Johnson wrote: |
MAybe some budding producer on the forum will take up the challenge and make it happen.
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From your mouth to God's ears sir.
I'm actually really looking forward to this one though. I hope it's good. Ridley Scott films are at least enjoyable. 
..." The person who dosen't have a sword should sell his coat and buy one."
- Luke 22:36
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Michael B.
Industry Professional
Location: Seattle, WA Joined: 18 Oct 2007
Posts: 367
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| Posted: Wed 16 Dec, 2009 11:04 am Post subject: Re: Having the right attitude |
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| Craig Johnson wrote: |
MAybe some budding producer on the forum will take up the challenge and make it happen.
Craig |
I make a living making film, and my hobby has started to merge with my career. I recently was brought on as an historical advisor for a new television series in development by a large network. The show takes place during the reign of Henry VIII, and they wanted to make sure that all fighting forms, training, weapons, etc, were period.
I'm also involved in a large independent film a couple years from shooting, the early development time stems from the fact the lead actors are being trained for YEARS on how to fight with the german longsword, the producers bought into the fact that the reality of the fight will sell.
There are more projects than that, that I know of. I think that there will soon be a trend in the right direction. I think people are starting to wake up to the fact that the historical fighting was insanely brutal and violent, which plays perfectly into the modern cinema mentality.
www.facebook.com/bearmountainforge2
Michael Bergstrom
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Michael B.
Industry Professional
Location: Seattle, WA Joined: 18 Oct 2007
Posts: 367
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| Posted: Wed 16 Dec, 2009 11:08 am Post subject: |
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Also, if I remember correctly, Leo Todeschini worked on the Robin Hood. Perhaps he'll chime in with some behind the camera insight with the weapons and armour.
www.facebook.com/bearmountainforge2
Michael Bergstrom
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K J Seago
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| Posted: Wed 16 Dec, 2009 12:49 pm Post subject: Re: Ridley does Robinhood or "Maximus meets the Sheriff |
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| Quote: |
Trailer looks very Ridley- some decent action, but as was mentioned in the Viking movie thread probably best not to sit next to us when trying to watch the movie. |
i definately agree, and so does the mrs!
just another student of an interesting subject,
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JE Sarge
Industry Professional
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| Posted: Wed 16 Dec, 2009 1:02 pm Post subject: |
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I see that they changed the name from 'Nottingham' to 'Robin Hood'...oh well...
Ridley Scott makes decent films; I've became a fan of his over the years - ever since 'Bladerunner'.
Historically-accurate? Of course not. Films very seldome are, so I never expect it. It's sure to be entertaining at the least.
J.E. Sarge
Crusader Monk Sword Scabbards and Customizations
www.crusadermonk.com
"But lack of documentation, especially for such early times, is not to be considered as evidence of non-existance." - Ewart Oakeshott
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Leo Todeschini
Industry Professional
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| Posted: Wed 16 Dec, 2009 1:34 pm Post subject: |
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Michael B wrote | Quote: | Also, if I remember correctly, Leo Todeschini worked on the Robin Hood. Perhaps he'll chime in with some behind the camera insight with the weapons and armour.
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Yes I did do some work on it and supplied lots of bits and pieces (my ususal fillers from my site) and lots of knives.
Most of the knives I supplied were modified in one way or another to fit story lines or expectations. The bottom line is that an audience pays good money to go to a film and be entertained and except for art house audiences who may want to be really surprised, most audiences want an fairly predicatable experience. What I mean by this is that the unexpected will distract them from the point of the film and that is a damn fine story, excitment etc.
For people like us a sallet as Craig says, is totally wrong in this film and makes us squirm, to mr Joe average punter a sallet is a medieval helmet that is recognisable as such and so does not distract from the story. If you put him in a late Norman Sicilian style helmet with brass face plate and a little Phrygian flick on top (quite feasible for a Norman back from the Holy Land) people would get distracted by it. They could however have stuck them all in Spangens or proto great helms and that would have worked. But it is the art directors and the directors who have an image and so weave a vision better than I could ever do and I hazard to say other forumites too. It is after all Ridley Scott who has the oscars, not us.
Fire arrows make loads of fire in the air, catapults don't have slings, armies always consisted of 50,000 men, every sword blow is immediately fatal, baddies always wear black, everyone in medieval times wore brown and grey and mud and so on. Give the audience what they want and the story and cinematography can shine, confuse them with documentary level detail and it will all be unfamiliar to them.
I too would love a film that is as it was - well actually would I? I love films like Gladiator and 13th Warrior and how different would they be if they were strictly accurate in all respects. It would be nice to find out though.
I suppose to sum up, for us an accurate film would be our nivana, but for mr average............the system works just fine.
Regards
Tod
www.todsworkshop.com
www.todcutler.com
www.instagram.com/todsworkshop
https://www.facebook.com/TodsWorkshop
www.youtube.com/user/todsstuff1
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Roger Hooper
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| Posted: Wed 16 Dec, 2009 2:30 pm Post subject: |
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| Leo Todeschini wrote: |
I suppose to sum up, for us an accurate film would be our nivana, but for mr average............the system works just fine.
Regards
Tod |
I have a fantasy that, 500 years from now, someone makes a movie about WWII with GI's wearing American Civil War uniforms and armed with muskets. When someone complains, the producer says, "hey, we're only about 50 years off. Besides, it's just entertainment."
I'm actually looking forward to this film. It stars two of my favorite actors, Russell Crowe and Cate Blanchett. Eleanor of Aquitaine and William Marshall will show up. I wonder how Richard I will be handled? He usually is shown as a nice guy and a great king, which doesn't reflect the historical record. It would be fun if he is portrayed as a villain.
The Robin Hood films (like all historical films I guess) reflect the issues of the time they were made. The Errol Flynn version with robbing the rich to give to the poor and the little guy's struggle against the fatcats must have resonated with its 1930's audiences. The vile Costner Prince of Thieves version of 1991 - what did that reflect? Marian starts out as a feminist warrior( we first see her dressed up in Ninjaesque armor, ready to pounce on Costner), but the needs of the plot turned her into a damsel in distress near the end of the movie. Morgan Freeman portrayed the first strong Medieval Black man in cinema. Christian Slater's Will Scarlett appealed to disaffected youth. Alan Rickman was just plain cool.
So I wonder how this new version will reflect the first decade of this century?
My favorite Robin Hood is the mid-eighties British TV series, Robin of Sherwood with Michael Praed/Jason Connery as Robin. Ray Winstone was also in the cast. I loved it when the ubiquitous John Rhys-Davies showed up as a nasty Richard I.
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Joe Fults
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| Posted: Wed 16 Dec, 2009 2:40 pm Post subject: |
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Figure it will probably be at least as good as the last major effort done at the subject. 
"The goal shouldn’t be to avoid being evil; it should be to actively do good." - Danah Boyd
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Leo Todeschini
Industry Professional
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Patrick Kelly
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| Posted: Wed 16 Dec, 2009 4:15 pm Post subject: |
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I'll do what I always do with period pieces: take off my "takes things too seriously" hat, kick back and enjoy the spectacle. Ridley Scott is always good for that.
My favorite "Hood" movies in order of preference:
The Adventures of Robin Hood
Robin and Marian
Robin Hood (Patrick Bergen)
As an aside: we saw Clint Eastwoods Invictus a few days ago, highly recommended.
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Paul Watson
Location: Upper Hutt, New Zealand Joined: 08 Feb 2006
Posts: 395
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| Posted: Wed 16 Dec, 2009 4:41 pm Post subject: |
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Any mention in Invictus of how the majority of the All Black players (the New Zealand rugby team for those who don't know) were suffering from intentional food poisoning in the final game. That was the only way they were going to get beaten in that tournament.
I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, but that which it protects. (Faramir, The Two Towers)
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Roger Hooper
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| Posted: Wed 16 Dec, 2009 4:57 pm Post subject: |
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| Patrick Kelly wrote: |
My favorite "Hood" movies in order of preference:
The Adventures of Robin Hood
Robin and Marian
Robin Hood (Patrick Bergen)
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The Adventures of Robin Hood with Richard Greene - I loved that show when I was a kid.
Remember the title song?
Robin Hood, Robin Hood
Riding through the glen.
Robin Hood, Robin Hood
With his band of men.
Feared by the bad, loved by the good.
Robin Hood, Robin Hood, Robin Hood.
He called the greatest archers to a tavern on the green.
They vowed to help the people of the king.
They handled all the trouble on the English country scene,
And still found plenty of time to sing.
Feared by the bad, loved by the good - could anyone ask more of life than that?
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Patrick Kelly
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| Posted: Wed 16 Dec, 2009 5:28 pm Post subject: |
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| Quote: | | The Adventures of Robin Hood with Richard Greene - I loved that show when I was a kid. |
No, The Adventures of Robin Hood, starring Errol Flynn. I do remember that series fondly though.
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Justin H. Núñez
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| Posted: Wed 16 Dec, 2009 6:59 pm Post subject: |
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| Patrick Kelly wrote: | | Quote: | | The Adventures of Robin Hood with Richard Greene - I loved that show when I was a kid. |
No, The Adventures of Robin Hood, starring Errol Flynn. I do remember that series fondly though. |
Long live the Flynn! That movie was my first "sword movie". It still holds up well I think.
On all of this historical vs hollywood stuff, I always liked what Charlton Heston said about how they were story tellers first trying to get people to feel how it might have been and care about the characters; the historiocity (is that a word?) was imortant but as much as the story.
"Nothing in fencing is really difficult, it just takes work." - Aldo Nadi
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Sander Marechal
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| Posted: Thu 17 Dec, 2009 3:02 am Post subject: |
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One of my favourite Robin Hood movies has to be Robin Hood: Men in Tights. I can't help it. I'm a sucker for Mel Brooks movies 
As for Hollywoods historical accuracy, what do you think about Kingdom of Heaven? Is it any good?
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Chad Arnow
myArmoury Team
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| Posted: Thu 17 Dec, 2009 6:29 am Post subject: |
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| Sander Marechal wrote: | | As for Hollywoods historical accuracy, what do you think about Kingdom of Heaven? Is it any good? |
There is a very (very) long thread on that movie that the Search function should be able to point you to.
ChadA
http://chadarnow.com/
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Elling Polden
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| Posted: Thu 17 Dec, 2009 8:21 am Post subject: |
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Personally, I would like Ridley Scott to make "Liege Lord down!"; the riveting saga of curage and sacrefice by sergants and men at arms during a failed cursader raid...
savage fighting through narrow middle eastern streets, bowmen on every rooftopp...
Or Tortch Runner, a dark, gothic tale of a weary inquistor...
"this [fight] looks curious, almost like a game. See, they are looking around them before they fall, to find a dry spot to fall on, or they are falling on their shields. Can you see blood on their cloths and weapons? No. This must be trickery."
-Reidar Sendeman, from King Sverre's Saga, 1201
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This is a standard topic
