Film Forum

(1938, Michael Curtiz and William Keighley) With beloved King Richard the Lionheart away at the Crusades and brother Claude Rains plotting to usurp the throne, it’s time for Errol Flynn’s Sir Robin of Locksley to step in. A swashbuckling apotheosis for the Hollywood adventure movie and for Flynn, going toe-to-toe with Basil Rathbone’s grim-lipped Sir Guy of Gisbourne in a swordfight on enormous castle steps – with time out for romancing Olivia de Havilland. In eye-popping Technicolor.
Film approx. 102 min.  35mm.
Barron & Burtt talk approx. 40 min.

Before the movie, Oscar®-winning visual effects supervisor Craig Barron (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button) and Oscar®-winning sound designer Ben Burtt (Star Wars, Raiders of the Lost Ark, E.T.), whose careers were inspired by classic Hollywood movies, will de-construct the extraordinary artistry behind Robin Hood, with a special emphasis on matte painting and sound effects – including a re-creation of the archery tests that went into finding just that right “zing” sound.

Special admission: $20, $14 for Film Forum and Academy members.

Reviews

“Made with sublime innocence and breathtaking artistry, at a time when simple values rang true… Exists in an eternal summer of bravery and romance.” 
– Roger Ebert

“What defines a swashbuckler? Swordplay, of course. Spectacle. A stirring score — say, by Erich Wolfgang Korngold — to make blood flow and spirits soar. And above all, a luminous star of physical prowess and palpable romantic presence. ‘The Adventures of Robin Hood’ (1938), at Film Forum on Saturday, May 20, has all of the above, as well as a sterling leading lady (a sturdy, smart, radiant Olivia de Havilland) and a debonair villain (Basil Rathbone, a skilled swordsman in real life). But at its heart is a fierce, insolent and compassionate Errol Flynn, the dashing embodiment of the genre, in the role of a lifetime.”
– Andy Webster, The New York Times