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Robin Hood
Directed by	Wolfgang Reitherman
Produced by	Wolfgang Reitherman
Written by	Larry Clemmons Ken Anderson
Starring	Brian Bedford Peter Ustinov Phil Harris
Music by	Roger Miller
Distributed by	Buena Vista Pictures
Release date(s)	November 8, 1973
Running time	83 min.
Language	English
Budget	$1,500,000
IMDb profile

Robin Hood is an animated film produced by the Walt Disney Studios, first released in the United States on November 8, 1973. It is the twenty-first animated feature in the Disney animated features canon. It was the first feature which began production after Walt Disney's death, although some elements were taken from an earlier aborted production ("Reynard the Fox", see below) which Disney had been involved in. As a result, this was the first Disney movie to carry on in production without Walt Disney's involvement.

Contents 1 Plot 2 Production notes and cast 3 Box office and reaction 4 Characters 4.1 Voices 5 Release info 5.1 International release dates 6 Trivia 7 Soundtrack Listing 8 External links

The film recounts the traditional stories of Robin Hood with the characters cast as anthropomorphic animals. It is narrated by the minstrel Alan-a-Dale, depicted as a rooster, who explains that while there are many different versions to the Robin Hood legends, "we folks of the animal kingdom have our own version."

Robin Hood (a fox), teams up with his band of outlaws including Little John (a bear), Friar Tuck (a badger) and Alan-a-Dale (a guitar-playing rooster), to assist the people of Nottingham. He does this by returning to the people the money taken from them through oppressive taxation by Prince John (a sniveling, mane-less lion) and his followers Sir Hiss (a snake) and the Sheriff of Nottingham (a wolf). King Richard (a strong lion) had left for the crusade after Hiss hypnotized him, and Prince John took his place on the throne.

While sneaking into an archery tournament held by Prince John, Robin Hood is nearly caught but manages to escape with his one-time girlfriend, Maid Marian (a vixen). A huge fight breaks out where they run over Prince John's Captain of the Guard (a crocodile), and Maid Marian's maid, Lady Kluck (a hen), performs an unforgettable rugby-styled race to escape the prince's guards. The two of them are joined in the forest with the rest of the outlaws and other citizens of Nottingham who all have a wonderful time mocking the Prince.

John soon finds out about this when walking in a conversation between the Sheriff and Sir Hiss. he orders taxes to be increased even more, to the point of most of the local people being driven into debt and jailed.

Friar Tuck is arrested when he tries to stop the Sheriff from taking money from the church's charity collection box, thus leaving Sexton and Mother Mouse to run the church. To scare Robin out of hiding, John plans to hang Friar Tuck. Fortunately, Robin gets wind of this ahead of time and manages to rescue the Friar as well as the other imprisoned people and steal back the prince's ill-gained gold.

Most of them escape from the castle, but Robin fights Prince John, who, becoming recklessly obsessed with killing him, sets fire to the top floor of the castle. Robin escapes, and falls into the moat where everyone assumes him to be dead. Robin then emerges alive. The movie ends with King Richard returning, Robin and Marian getting married and everyone living happily ever after (except for the villains, who are sentenced to hard labour).

As the film was made during Disney's financial slump and therefore allotted a small budget, the artists reused footage from previous animated features. This is most noticeable during the song-and-dance number, "The Phony King of England"; the characters' movements strongly resemble those from The Jungle Book, The Aristocats, and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. In particular, the section where Little John and Lady Cluck dance together mirrors part of the song "I Wanna Be Like You" from The Jungle Book with Baloo and King Louie respectively, and Robin Hood and Maid Marian mirror the dancing movements of Thomas O'Malley and Duchess during the song "Everybody Wants to Be a Cat" from The Aristocats and the Maid Marian mirror dancing the movements of Snow White during the song "The Silly Song" from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. The animation of Little John, the bear in Robin Hood, is nearly identical to that of Baloo in The Jungle Book, but Little John more closely resembles a brown or grizzly bear (Baloo was based on an Indian Sloth Bear). Both characters were voiced by actor Phil Harris, and have similar personalities, though Little John seems a far more responsible character than the "jungle bum" Baloo. Maid Marian also dances the same moves as Snow White causing her to wear a petticoat instead of bloomers. The robe that Prince John wears, and the crown worn by the puppet version of him, are the same robe and crown the king wears in Bedknobs and Broomsticks. In addition, Robin Hood's costume (green tunic and feathered cap) is similar to that of 1953's Peter Pan, sometimes leading to confusion between the two characters. At the end of the movie, a sound clip of the church bells ringing in Cinderella was used for the wedding church bells. During the beginning of the film, Sir Hiss mesmerizes Prince John with his eyes. This was the same type of ability Kaa the snake had in Disney's 1967 film, The Jungle Book. This short scene also appears to be another re-use of older animation.

At one point, one of the elephants who acts as heralds for Prince John attempts to trumpet a warning. Lady Kluck grabs the trunk, preventing the trumpeting and leaving the elephant flapping his ears ineffectually. The same joke was used in The Jungle Book, with identical sound. The vultures in the movie are identical to the ones in The Jungle Book. The movie also reuses the same animated shots several times, including those of the rhinos walking and running and those of Sis and Tagalong Rabbit (Skippy's sisters) and Toby Turtle (his friend, a turtle) laughing. Several animated clips of the Sheriff of Nottingham are also recycled at different points in the film.

Initially, the studio considered a movie about Reynard the Fox. However, due to Walt Disney's concern that Reynard was an unsuitable choice for a hero, Ken Anderson used many elements from it in Robin Hood.

Peter Ustinov grew famous playing over-the-top villains. His campy, spoiled and thoroughly weak-willed portrayal of Prince John is an effective caricature of his own performance as the Roman emperor Nero in the epic film Quo Vadis (1951). Phil Harris and Andy Devine had both appeared on The Jack Benny Program. John endlessly sulks over his mother's preference for his brother, a grudge marked by thumb-sucking and the reversion to an infantile state. At one point the behavior culminates in the complaint "Mother always did like Richard best." This is a sly reference to a classic comedy routine by the Smothers Brothers, in which Tom Smothers would bewail the maternal favoritism shown to Dick Smothers. ("Dick" is a common nickname for Richard.) In the historical play and film "The Lion in Winter," Richard is indeed shown as being the favorite of their mother, Eleanor of Aquitaine, while John is the favored son of their father, King Henry II.

Peter Ustinov lent his voice to both the original English-speaking Prince John and the Prince John in the German dubbed version of the movie. Phil Harris's voice as Little John is virtually identical to the voice he used for the character Baloo in Disney's The Jungle Book. Both characters were bears and looked generally similar except for their color.

The alternate ending included in the "Most Wanted Edition" DVD) is a short retelling of the story's conclusion, primarily utilizing still images from Ken Anderson's original storyboard drawings of the sequence. As Robin Hood leaps off of the castle and into the moat, he is wounded (presumably from one of the arrows shot into the water after him) and carried away to the church for safety. Prince John, enraged that he has once again been outwitted by Robin Hood, finds Little John leaving the church, and suspects the outlaw to be there as well. Sure enough, he finds Maid Marian tending to an unconscious Robin Hood, and draws a sword to kill them both. Before Prince John can strike, however, he is stopped by the appearance of his brother, King Richard, who is appalled to find his kingdom bleak and oppressed in his absence. Abiding his mother's wishes, King Richard decides he cannot banish Prince John from the kingdom, but does not pardon him from severe punishment. King Richard returns Nottingham to its former glory (before he left for the crusade), and orders Friar Tuck to marry Robin Hood and Maid Marian.

A short finished scene from the planned original ending, featuring King Richard stopped by, and revealing himself to, Nutsy and Trigger, appeared in the Ken Anderson episode of the 1980s Disney Channel documentary series "Disney Family Album." This scene, at least in animated form, does not appear on the "Most Wanted Edition" DVD.

At the time leading up to its release, Robin Hood had a bit of a burden to carry — many observers were treating it as a benchmark to determine whether or not the studio could carry on without the late Walt Disney, since this was the studio's first animated feature produced without his involvement. Since Disney had attached his name to all his previous films, it gave the impression among many that the studio was nothing without him. Had the film failed, this impression might have been cemented, and might have done serious damage to the studio's reputation. However, Robin Hood was very successful upon its initial release, garnering around $9.5 million, the biggest Disney attraction at that time. Its 1982 re-release brought in even more income.

Critical response was (and remains) somewhat mixed, with some complaining that the film lacked the grandeur, scope or passion of Disney's earlier efforts. Others commended it for its lively characters, witty dialogue, catchy songs, and overall fun atmosphere. At Rotten Tomatoes, it garners a 54% "rotten" rating among critics, but a 90% "fresh" rating among users.

• Robin Hood, a Fox, voice: Brian Bedford
• Maid Marian, a Vixen, voice: Monica Evans
• Little John, a Bear, voice: Phil Harris
• Prince John, a Lion, voice: Peter Ustinov
• Sheriff, a Wolf, voice: Pat Buttram
• Sir Hiss, a Snake, voice: Terry-Thomas
• Friar Tuck, a Badger, voice: Andy Devine
• Lady Kluck, a Chicken, voice: Carole Shelley
• Alan-a-Dale, a Rooster, voice: Roger Miller
• Trigger & Nutsey, vultures, voices: George Lindsey and Ken Curtis, respectively
• Father Mouse and Mother Mouse, mice, voices: John Fiedler and Beulah Bondi
• The Rabbit Family: Mother Rabbit, Sis, Tagalong and Skippy, rabbits, voice: Barbara Luddy, Dana Laurita, Dora Whitaker and Billy Whitaker
• Otto, a Dog, voice: J. Pat O'Malley
• Captain of the Guard, a Crocodile, voice: Candy Candido
• Toby, a Turtle, voice: Richie Sanders

A few of the voice-actors utilized in this production are British. However, the creators of the film made the decision to cast quite a number of American character actors in the traditional medieval roles. Many of these individuals were veteran performers from Western-themed movies and television programs, which meant that characters like Friar Tuck and the Sheriff of Nottingham have accents and mannerisms more associated with the rural southwestern United States than with England. This effect was further reinforced by the choice of country singer Roger Miller as the movie's songwriter and narrator.

The movie was originally released in 1973, followed by a re-release in 1982. The film was released to videocassette in 1984, 1991 (the first two being in the Walt Disney Classics video line), 1994 and 1999 (these two were in the Walt Disney Masterpiece Collection video line), staying in general release since 1991. In 2000, it was released on DVD in the Gold Classic Collection. On November 28, 2006, the movie was remastered as the "Most Wanted Edition" featuring a deleted scene/alternate ending, as well as a 16:9 matted transfer.

As one of the earliest Disney animated features to be released on home video, it is also one of the few to have been released on every home video format (except UMD): laserdisc, VHS, Beta tape, CED, and DVD. Portions of the film have also been sold on Super 8 reels. It has also been shown many times on The Disney Channel during the 80's and 90's.

• Argentina: December 6, 1973
• Italy: October 10, 1974
• Sweden: November 30, 1974
• Spain: December 5, 1974
• France: December 13, 1974
• West Germany: December 13, 1974
• Finland: December 20, 1974
• Denmark: December 26, 1974
• Norway: December 26, 1974
• Hong Kong: January 23, 1975
• Japan: July 5, 1975

Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines. The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones.

• Robin Hood, Little John, Friar Tuck, Prince John and the Sheriff of Nottingham appear at the Walt Disney Parks and Resorts as meetable characters. Maid Marian used to appear at them too, but now she doesn't seem to appear much anymore. Little John rarely appears as a meeting character now.

• Many Robin Hood characters make cameo appearances in various episodes of the Disney's House of Mouse television series.

• Little John and the Sheriff of Nottingham make cameo appearances in the direct-to-video release Mickey's Magical Christmas: Snowed in at the House of Mouse.

• The church bell on Friar Tuck's church is an actual bell, filmed and added in post-production.

• Friar Tuck was originally envisioned as a pig, but was changed to a badger to avoid offending religious sensitivities.^{[citation needed]}

• In the jailbreak scene, "God forgive Prince John" is written on the wall when Little John and Friar Tuck enter.

• In some scenes Prince John is wearing rings on his fingers, and moments later they will disappear, only to reappear moments later.

• In one scene of the film, where Kluck is fighting the men of Prince John, the University of Wisconsin fight song, "On Wisconsin", is played. Friar Tuck, a badger, is shown cheering fiercely during this scene in a close-up shot. The University of Wisconsin-Madison features an anthropomorphized badger as its mascot.

1. "Whistle-Stop" Written and Sung by Roger Miller
2. "Oo-De-Lally" Written and Sung by Roger Miller as Alan-a-Dale the rooster.
3. "Love" Written by Floyd Huddleston and George Bruns Sung by Nancy Adams. (Nominated for an Oscar).
4. "The Phony King of England" Written by Johnny Mercer Sung by Phil Harris dancing with the movements from The Jungle Book, The Aristocats, and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.
5. "Not In Nottingham" Written and Sung by Roger Miller

On Classic Disney: 60 Years of Musical Magic, this includes Oo-De-Lally on the green disc and Love on the purple disc.

The music played in the background while Lady Kluck fights off Prince John's goons in an American football style manner is better known as Fight On, the fight song of the University of Southern California and On, Wisconsin, the fight song of the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Although a full soundtrack to Robin Hood has never been released on Compact Disc in the US, a record of the film was made at the time of the film's release, including the film's songs, score, narration, and dialogue.

• Robin Hood at the Internet Movie Database
• Robin Hood DVD at Official Disney Website
• Detailed Info on Robin Hood including Don Bluth's involvement
• Robin Hood: Most Wanted Edition DVD Review

v • d • e Disney theatrical animated features
Official canon	Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) • Pinocchio (1940) • Fantasia (1940) • Dumbo (1941) • Bambi (1942) • Saludos Amigos (1942) • The Three Caballeros (1944) • Make Mine Music (1946) • Fun and Fancy Free (1947) • Melody Time (1948) • The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (1949) • Cinderella (1950) • Alice in Wonderland (1951) • Peter Pan (1953) • Lady and the Tramp (1955) • Sleeping Beauty (1959) • One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961) • The Sword in the Stone (1963) • The Jungle Book (1967) • The Aristocats (1970) • Robin Hood (1973) • The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977) • The Rescuers (1977) • The Fox and the Hound (1981) • The Black Cauldron (1985) • The Great Mouse Detective (1986) • Oliver & Company (1988) • The Little Mermaid (1989) • The Rescuers Down Under (1990) • Beauty and the Beast (1991) • Aladdin (1992) • The Lion King (1994) • Pocahontas (1995) • The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996) • Hercules (1997) • Mulan (1998) • Tarzan (1999) • Fantasia 2000 (1999) • The Emperor's New Groove (2000) • Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001) • Lilo & Stitch (2002) • Treasure Planet (2002) • Brother Bear (2003) • Home on the Range (2004) • Chicken Little (2005) • Meet the Robinsons (2007) • Bolt (2008) • The Princess and the Frog (2009) • Rapunzel (2010)
Live-action films with animation	The Reluctant Dragon (1941) • Victory Through Air Power (1943) • Song of the South (1946) • So Dear to My Heart (1949) • Mary Poppins (1964) • Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971) • Pete's Dragon (1977) • Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988) • Enchanted (2007)
DisneyToon features	DuckTales the Movie: Treasure of the Lost Lamp (1990) • A Goofy Movie (1995) • Doug's 1st Movie (1999) • The Tigger Movie (2000) • Recess: School's Out (2001) • Return to Never Land (2002) • The Jungle Book 2 (2003) • Piglet's Big Movie (2003) • Teacher's Pet (2004) • Pooh's Heffalump Movie (2005)
Other	The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) • James and the Giant Peach (1996) • Dinosaur (2000) • A Christmas Carol (2009)
See also	Pixar • Walt Disney Animation Studios

v • d • e Robin Hood - The English folk tale
Characters	Robin of Loxley  · Maid Marian  · Much the Miller's Son · Little John  · Friar Tuck  · Alan-a-Dale  · Will Scarlet · Will Stutely  · Gilbert Whitehand  · Arthur a Bland  · David of Doncaster  · a Saracen  · Sheriff of Nottingham  · Guy of Gisborne  · The Bishop of Hereford  · Richard at the Lee
Settings	Sherwood Forest  · Nottingham  · Loxley
Adaptations	Popular Culture  · Film and TV