I loved the movie, Robin Hood – Prince of Thieves.
I still do.
There. I’ve said it. You may laugh now.
It’s ok. I’ve got a good set of armour on.
For me that movie, Kevin Costner's accent and
all, was a game changer. It gave my life some much needed direction in the
confusing dark times of my early teenage years.
I’ve heard Robin Hood, Excalibur, Braveheart, Gladiator, the shows Hercules
and Xena, and others, all called
‘popular crap’, ‘ridiculous’, ‘inaccurate drivel’, and loads of other names
mostly by academics from the dusty upper floors of their ivory towers.
The critics pan these movies and shows,
citing the poor acting, sad story lines and over-stretched budgets that somehow
mark them as unworthy of viewing. Gladiator
was the only one to garner any respect (less so for Braveheart) and that was probably due to the Oscars
it rounded up (that was fantastic BTW!).
Robin
Hood tends to lay gutted on the bottom of the pile
of popular historical 'shite', bleeding into memory – that movie that was so ‘bad’, the one that Kevin Costner
‘butchered’.
You know what? I don’t care. I thought that
film was brilliant and magical. Here’s why:
When the movie came out in 1991 I was
fifteen going on sixteen and trying to navigate that utterly depressing world
known as High School – which, for the record, I loathed.
I was hanging out with some questionable
characters, not doing very well in class and had no real idea or vision for the
future, my future.
Don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t beaten or fed
plates of gruel. I’m one of the fortunate ones who had a caring home life,
parents who listened and a brother with whom it did not often come to outright
fisticuffs. Swords yes, but rarely fists.
However, I did lack an interest to give me
direction.
Then one Friday night, my dad comes home
and hands me a video tape of Robin Hood –
Prince of Thieves.
“Look what I’ve got,” he says. “Let’s watch
it tonight. I think you’ll like it.”
Being a black-clad teenager, I grunted in
response and hunkered down in silence on the sectional for a couple of hours.
If I remember correctly, I was hooked right
from the beginning as the opening credits rolled images of the
Bayeux Tapestry depicting the Norman Conquest.
 |
| Scene from the Bayeux Tapestry |
Of course, I didn’t know what
the Norman Conquest was at the time, or that the year 1066 was any more
significant than a thousand other dates.
It was the power of those images, the
heroic music by Michael Kamen, and of course the fantastic story of Robin Hood
that pulled me in and didn’t let go.
I can still remember sitting there that
first time. Oh yes, I think I was a ‘popular historical’ virgin up to that
point. I was so hooked that I watched that movie every day for six days straight,
enjoying it every single time.
I watched Robin’s skill with blade and bow
with awe, thrilled to his duel with the Sherriff of Nottingham, expertly played
by Alan Rickman. The romantic in me was even awakened by Mary Elizabeth
Mastrantonio with whom I had fallen desperately in love.
History, and an ancient story, had spoken
to me and I was having an epiphany – I loved it and that was what I wanted to
do. I then decided that history was what I wanted to study.
As it turned out, that summer I had the
opportunity to go to England with my mom to visit family. That first journey
across the pond only served to fuel the fires of my enthusiasm.
I wanted to walk through every castle and
manor house I saw, touch every suit of armour and look closely at every nicked
sword blade on display in every museum. I was insatiable.
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| Carcasonne - France Where part of Robin Hood was filmed |
When I returned home, my parents bought me
all the books (new and used) that I wanted on the Middle Ages, ancient world,
swords, armour, the Crusades, you name it. I got a used book on the Bayeux
Tapestry that I still have to this day. Biographies of kings and queens,
chivalric ideals and stories of King Arthur, Robin Hood and others abounded. I
also took up archery and fencing.
What is the point of all this?
My point is that without having seen that
supposedly ‘crappy’ movie, I might not have become interested in all of this. I
might not have improved my grades in high school, or gone on to undergrad
studies in medieval history, a Master’s in Dark Age studies, or to work in
museums or archaeology.
Without Robin
Hood – Prince of Thieves, I might not be writing!
Throughout my years in university and
academic circles, I’ve always heard the same old argument that popular history
is rubbish and a complete waste of time. “Stay away from that stuff!” one of my
professor’s said one day after Braveheart had hit the big screens.
But you know what? That so-called ‘popular
shite’ sparks more interest in young people’s minds than any lame, snoot-nosed
history teacher who lectures their students without caring whether or not they
are capturing their listeners’ imaginations.
It’s no wonder that movies like Robin Hood or Gladiator have left increased enrollment in medieval and ancient
history courses in their wakes. They got people excited. What a concept!
I’ve been fortunate enough to have a couple
of good history teachers who did capture my imagination, who loved anything
having to do with history. Sadly, most were not so good, but I’m glad that
didn’t deter me.
I’ve been told by several of my readers
that my writing makes history interesting to them, and THAT pleases me to no
end.
This applies not only to movies but to all
forms of popular historical fiction.
In the current issue of the Historic Novels Review, Richard Lee, the
founder of the Historic Novel Society, notes that he has “heard EVERY type of
historical fiction ridiculed for being untrue to the history. Sometimes the
spite that is unleashed is phenomenal… My own view is that all kinds of
historical fiction have value.”
I couldn’t agree more. Whether it is the
period of history, or the format (book, TV or film), the sad truth is that popular history has often been frowned upon, locked out of the academic castle.
However, the numbers are far greater outside
the walls of that castle and it is my hope that the gates will eventually be
battered down so that the people can flood in, not to massacre, but to live
together with the few in their towers.
Academia has its purpose, which is of
utmost importance to our knowledge of the past. But there is also a place for
popular historical fiction, a purpose in gathering people around, firing
their interests and setting them on the path to learning more. It’s all good!
To quote Morgan Freeman’s character, Azeem,
in Robin Hood – Prince of Thieves:
“Allah loves wondrous variety.”
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