The Men of Sherwood Forest

The Men of Sherwood Forest
Directed by	Val Guest
Written by	Allan MacKinnon
Produced by	Michael Carreras
Starring	Don Taylor Reginald Beckwith Eileen Moore
Cinematography	Walter J. Harvey
Edited by	James Needs
Music by	Doreen Carwithen
Production company	Hammer Film Productions
Distributed by	Exclusive Films Astor Pictures (US)
Release date	17 November 1954 (1954-11-17)
Running time	77 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English

The Men of Sherwood Forest is a 1954 British adventure film directed by Val Guest and starring Don Taylor, Reginald Beckwith, Eileen Moore and David King-Wood. It was written by Allan MacKinnon. The score was by Doreen Carwithen. The film follows the exploits of Robin Hood and his followers.

Plot

In 1194, on his return from the Third Crusade, Richard the Lionheart is taken prisoner in Germany. Disguised as a troubadour, Robin Hood builds a plan to rescue him from this tight spot but is captured. The Merry Men then have to fulfil a double mission: find Robin Hood and save the King.

Cast

• Don Taylor as Robin Hood
• Reginald Beckwith as Friar Tuck
• Eileen Moore as Lady Alys
• David King-Wood as Sir Guy Belton
• Douglas Wilmer as Sir Nigel Saltire
• Harold Lang as Hubert
• Ballard Berkeley as Walter
• Patrick Holt as King Richard
• Wensley Pithey as Hugo
• Leslie Linder as Little John
• John Van Eyssen as Will Scarlett
• Leonard Sachs as Sheriff of Nottingham
• Raymond Rollett as Abbot St. Jude
• Toke Townley as Father David
• Vera Pearce as Elvira
• John Kerr as Brian of Eskdale
• John Stuart as Moraine
• Bernard Bresslaw as Garth
• Edward Hardwicke as Outlaw
• Jack May as Villager

Production

Produced by Hammer Films it was shot at the company's Bray Studios with sets designed by the art director J. Elder Wills. Exteriors were shot at Bodiam Castle in Sussex.

Val Guest called it "a merry romp, it was a send-up of all the Robin Hood things... It was a fun picture, but nothing really riveting or historical."

Critical reception

The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "This unassuming addition to the Robin Hood saga is in the real Sherwood tradition. Don Taylor makes a good-natured Robin Hood, and the tone of the film generally is genial, although Friar Tuck's rollicking joviality is at times played up at the expense of the action."

David Parkinson noted in the Radio Times "a cheap and cheerful Hammer outing to Sherwood, with production values on a par with the infamously parsimonious ITV series starring Richard Greene", concluding "Val Guest directs with little feel for the boisterous action, but it's a tolerable frolic all the same."

TV Guide wrote that "this low-budget swashbuckler is good fun for the undiscriminating".

External links

• The Men of Sherwood Forest at IMDb