SON OF ROBIN HOOD is a cheapjack addition to the Robin Hood franchise which, despite plentiful action sequences, is largely a somewhat laughable viewing experience and more often than not a bore. The film is set some twenty years after the Robin Hood story and sees David Hedison adopting the moniker of the son of Robin Hood, even though he's actually not; Hood's offspring was a daughter, not a son.
Confused yet? It doesn't really matter. There's a girl to romance, some hijinks to be had in Sherwood Forest, and a Sheriff of Nottingham-alike and his men to fight and pierce with arrows. This film looks and feels very cheap with cardboard walls, painted backgrounds, and a general fake feel. I was surprised to see that it was made in England as it has more of a stylised, fantasy Hollywood feel and is no patch on the similar, more grounded efforts that Hammer put out around the same time such as THE SWORD OF SHERWOOD FOREST.
Hedison never really convinces as an outlaw hero and it's fair to say that the majority of the cast members simply go through the motions. The only one I really liked was George Woodbridge, who makes a decent stab at the character of Little John. Marius Goring and George Coulouris show up in support too. The direction is very poor with plenty of continuity errors and the like which constantly distract the viewer, although the climactic sword fight isn't bad in a "let's rip off THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD" type way.
Confused yet? It doesn't really matter. There's a girl to romance, some hijinks to be had in Sherwood Forest, and a Sheriff of Nottingham-alike and his men to fight and pierce with arrows. This film looks and feels very cheap with cardboard walls, painted backgrounds, and a general fake feel. I was surprised to see that it was made in England as it has more of a stylised, fantasy Hollywood feel and is no patch on the similar, more grounded efforts that Hammer put out around the same time such as THE SWORD OF SHERWOOD FOREST.
Hedison never really convinces as an outlaw hero and it's fair to say that the majority of the cast members simply go through the motions. The only one I really liked was George Woodbridge, who makes a decent stab at the character of Little John. Marius Goring and George Coulouris show up in support too. The direction is very poor with plenty of continuity errors and the like which constantly distract the viewer, although the climactic sword fight isn't bad in a "let's rip off THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD" type way.