Mrs B and I went to the cinema last week for the first time since the birth of Brit Jnr (ten months if you can believe such a thing). Ridley Scott’s Robin Hood seemed the least bad option given the timings, and it was watchable though fell between the two stools of gritty realism and comic caper. So it was probably worse than the Costner one and obviously much worse than Errol Flynn (I think someone should do a proper job on Robin Hood, as Boorman did on Arthur; call it Robyn Hode and make it a bit nasty).
Anyway, I was intrigued by Russell Crowe’s approach to Robin Hood’s accent. I wouldn’t compare it directly with Dick van Dyke in Mary Poppins, because although Dick’s accent was bizarre (Meeeeery Poppunsh), it was more or less consistent throughout the film. Crowe, on other hand, spoke in a perfectly plausible Geoff Boycott-style Yorkshire brogue, but only in some scenes. In others he spoke in perfectly plausible Dublin, Bootle Scouse and RP. In each scene the accent was internally consistent, but you never knew which one might pop up next.
I could detect no particular rationale behind the choice of accent (was it Irish for lighthearted moments, Scouse for speeches, Yorkshire for domestic scenes etc?) but given the care and attention that Ridley Scott put into the costumes and CGI effects I can only assume that there was one, which I missed through inattention.
4 comments:
Whatever you do, don't ask Crowe:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rr-6ZjlGuBU
Ten months? So soon?
Having enjoyed Crowe's performances in Gladiator and Master & Commander I was looking forward to Robin Hood. I thought it was turgid rubbish.
Robin and the seven hoods with Francis Sinatra as Robbo, now that was a movie, Nottinghamshire accents, as spoken in Brooklyn. As was The Gippo's rendition of that bloke who led the porridge scoffers into battle painted blue, the fact that he can't act and had a New South Wales accent seemingly not to make no neverminds.
Amusingly, up here, they believed it.
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