Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (4K UHD Review)
Director
Kevin ReynoldsRelease Date(s)
1991 (May 26, 2026)Studio(s)
Morgan Creek Productions/Warner Bros. (Arrow Video)- Film/Program Grade: A
- Video Grade: A-
- Audio Grade: A
- Extras Grade: A-
Review
Many forget just how popular a box office draw Kevin Costner was in the early 1990s. After directing and starring his way to the Academy Awards with Dances With Wolves, he was a full-blown movie star, the type of which we certainly don’t see anymore in modern times. Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, his next project under the direction of Kevin Reynolds, was a massive hit when it opened, mixed to negative critical reception be damned. The film itself became overshadowed due to the success of the Bryan Adams song that was tied in with it, not to mention the merchandise and the Mel Brooks parody Robin Hood: Men in Tights that came in its wake, but Prince of Thieves holds up marvelously as a titan of old-fashioned swashbuckling entertainment. It may be a little rough around the edges, but it never fails to please an audience.
Screenwriters and producers Pen Densham and John Watson decided that in order to update the classic tale of Robin Hood, the outlaw who steals from the rich and gives to the poor, it needed fresh elements. In this version, Robin Hood (Kevin Costner) is a wealthy young man who winds up in prison in Jerusalem during the Crusades, eventually escaping and coming back to his home country more world-weary, with his newfound friend Azeem (Morgan Freeman) by his side. Discovering that his home has been destroyed and that his father (Brian Blessed) has been killed, he swears vengeance, becoming a man of the people who are hiding out in Sherwood Forest from the evil Sheriff of Nottingham (Alan Rickman), while also winning the heart of his childhood friend Marian (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio). Meanwhile, the Sheriff is conspiring with the evil witch Mortianna (Geraldine McEwan) and means to take over the land while King Richard (Sean Connery) is away fighting in the Crusades. Also appearing in the cast are Christian Slater, Michael McShane, Nick Brimble, and Michael Wincott, among others.
Set up at Morgan Creek Productions with a distribution deal at Warner Bros., Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves was a rushed production since there were two other Robin Hood-related films in development at the time, one of which was released a month ahead of Prince of Thieves by 20th Century Fox, and was co-incidentally offered to Kevin Costner, who turned it down. The film quickly came together at the behest of Morgan Creek’s James G. Robinson, but the real problems with it began during post-production. Despite strong test screenings, editing duties were taken away from the filmmakers in the end, and a subplot involving the Sheriff and Mortianna was dropped from the final cut, among other minor changes. As such, there is no true director’s cut of the film in existence, though Kevin Reynolds’ style and approach is all over the final product.
Despite Kevin Costner’s obvious lack of strong emotional acting and a wavering accent (he and Kevin Reynolds couldn’t agree on this point and differing takes wound up in the final film), he is absolutely charming in the lead role regardless. It also helps that he has a towering villain performance to go up against since Alan Rickman is terrific, outshining every other actor. Douglas Milsome’s cinematography mixed with the beautiful locations and sets are also top of the line. The story is paced well, despite what critics might have thought at the time, with a magnificent score from the late Michael Kamen. And because the film was such a large success, in fact the largest of Morgan Creek’s entire filmography, they used a key piece of the score as part of their opening logo in subsequent films. One must also not overlook (Everything I Do) I Do It for You by Bryan Adams, which dominated radio stations for weeks and months following the film’s release, but lives on as one of the greatest love ballads ever written for a motion picture.
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves offers a mix of solid action, adventure, comedy, and romance, with attractive characters, highly memorable set pieces, and even a bit of spiritualism. It may be a piece of mainstream entertainment, but it holds up marvelously. Kevin Reynolds could really cook when given the chance, even if he wasn’t a part of the film’s final creation in the editing room. He and Costner would go on to make the financial and critical disappointment (though no less popular) Waterworld, while going out on his own to make the highly undervalued The Count of Monte Cristo, but Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves is among his crowning achievements.
Cinematographer Douglas Milsome shot Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves on 35mm film (Eastman and Agfa XT 320) using Arriflex 535 and 35BL III cameras and Zeiss Super Speed and Cooke Varotal lenses. The results were finished photochemically and presented theatrically in the aspect ratio of 1.85:1. Arrow Video debuts the film on Ultra HD in the U.S. with their 2022 4K restorations of the theatrical and extended versions of the film from the original camera negative and 35mm intermediary elements, which was previously included in their U.K. exclusive UHD release from 2022. Both versions have been graded for High Dynamic Range in HDR10 and Dolby Vision, and encoded by David Mackenzie of Fidelity in Motion to a triple-layered BD-100 disc. The film has always had a particularly lived-in feel, and the cinematography reflects that. As fresh and cutting edge as the angles, set design, and editing choices were, and in some ways still are, the actual look of the film has been difficult to translate to video. Arrow’s presentations of both versions best all previous releases, though I suspect some will balk at the amount of heavy grain inherent in the image. It’s always been part and parcel to the film’s visual personality, and therefore, isn’t a problem for me personally, but your own mileage may vary. The intermediary material for the extended version blends in well, both versions carrying maxed out bitrates and more precise levels of fine detail. The color palette is gorgeous with an array of greens, blues, reds, and browns, with the HDR passes soaking up the various hues without ever appearing over-saturated. Blacks are deep with excellent contrast, and the image is stable and clean. It all resolves beautifully, but with the minor caveat about the grain (if that even bothers you).
Audio is included with both versions in English 2.0 and 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, with optional subtitles in English SDH. The film was released in Dolby Stereo and the 2.0 track presented here appears to be the original matrixed theatrical audio, with the 5.1 option giving slightly more room in the surrounds without any obvious alterations. Both tracks are powerful with deep bass and frequent stereo movement and ambience all around. Michael Kamen’s wonderful score roars to life in the opening credits and sound effects have ample impact. Dialogue exchanges are also clear and distinct without any issues. A well-attenuated Dolby Atmos option would have pushed this selection of audio over-the-top, but this is more than a satisfactory set of tracks.
The Arrow Video 4K Ultra HD release of Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves sits in a black Amaray case with six double-sided artcards featuring promotional images for the film, a double-sided accordion-style booklet that features artwork re-creations of scenes from the film by José Sacconefold, and a double-sided insert featuring new artwork by Paul Shipper on the front and the original theatrical artwork on the reverse. Alongside it is a double-sided poster with the same artwork options and a 60-page booklet containing cast and crew information; the essays An Evergreen Hero of a Tale Often Told: Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves by Mark Cunliffe and Kevin Costner: Prince of Hollywood by Jackson Cooper; an image gallery of publicity and behind-the-scenes stills; presentation information; production credits; and special thanks. All of this material is housed in a side-loading slipcase featuring the same new artwork by Paul Shipper. The following extras are included on the disc itself:
- Audio Commentary with Kevin Reynolds and Kevin Costner
- Audio Commentary with Morgan Freeman, Christian Slater, Pen Densham, and John Watson
- Here We Are Kings: The Making of Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (HD – 67:10):
- Chapter One: Casting Spells with a Camera (HD – 11:04)
- Chapter Two: The Catalytic Marriage (HD – 10:45)
- Chapter Three: Find the Forest (HD – 16:27)
- Chapter Four: Save My Performance (HD – 6:59)
- Chapter Five: Action with Attitude (HD – 13:03)
- Chapter Six: Journey’s End (HD – 8:50)
- Robin Hood: The Myth, the Man, the Movie (SD – 31:52)
- One-on-One with the Cast (SD – 19:15):
- Kevin Costner (SD – 4:18)
- Morgan Freeman (SD – 4:22)
- Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio (SD – 3:41)
- Christian Slater (SD – 3:43)
- Alan Rickman (SD – 3:08)
- Music Video (Upscaled SD – 4:17)
- 5.1 Music Soundtrack Cues:
- Overture and a Prisoner of the Crusades (HD – 8:26)
- Sir Guy of Gisborne and the Escape to Sherwood (HD – 7:24)
- Little John and the Band in the Forest (HD – 4:49)
- The Sheriff and His Witch (HD – 6:00)
- Maid Marian (HD – 2:57)
- Training Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (HD – 5:11)
- Marian at the Waterfall (HD – 5:31)
- The Abduction and the Final Battle at the Gallows (HD – 9:53)
- Theatrical Trailer (Upscaled SD – 2:00)
- TV Spots:
- A Legend – :30 sec. (Upscaled SD – :33)
- A Legend – :10 sec. (Upscaled SD – :13)
- A Love Story – :30 sec. (Upscaled SD – :33)
- A Love Story – :10 sec. (Upscaled SD – :13)
- Fight for Justice – :30 sec. (Upscaled SD – :33)
- Fight for Justice – :10 sec. (Upscaled SD – :13)
- Image Galleries:
- Publicity Stills (HD – 47 in all)
- Behind the Scenes (HD – 8 in all)
Both commentaries were recorded for the 2003 DVD release of the extended version of the film, which is also what they accompany here. The first track features Kevin Reynolds and Kevin Costner. It’s a great old-fashioned, non-lawyer dictated track since it’s filled with information about the making of the film, as well as the pair’s own personal faults and off-the-wall remarks. They do fall in the trap of actually watching the film, but their contributions to the track are invaluable. The second track features Morgan Freeman, Christian Slater, and screenwriters and producers Pen Densham and John Watson. Densham and Watson primarily drive the track, though they occasionally interact with Freeman, who’s very jovial about the whole venture. Slater doesn’t speak much until he comes into the film later on, but overall, it’s a clunky but still entertaining track packed with information about the creation of the story and the filming of it.
Here We Are Kings is a terrific new multi-part documentary containing interviews with Pen Densham, John Watson, first assistant director David Tringham, actor Daniel Peacock, cinematographer Douglas Milsome, art director John Ralph, editor Peter Boyle, set decorator Peter Young, production designer Malcolm Christopher, second unit camera man Mike Brewster, propmaker John Chisolm, stuntman Rocky Taylor, costume designer John Bloomfield, supervising hairdresser Colin Jamison, film music historian Daniel Schweiger, and composers and orchestrators Chris Boardman and Lolita Ritmanis.
Robin Hood: The Myth, the Man, the Movie is an archival documentary that aired on CBS the day before the film opened. Hosted by Pierce Brosnan, it speaks to the cast and crew about the film, as well as historians about the legend of the character. Conversely, One-on-One with the Cast is a set of promotional 1991 interviews with Kevin Costner, Morgan Freeman, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Christian Slater, and Alan Rickman about their roles in the film.
The Music Video is Bryan Adams performing (Everything I Do) I Do It for You live at Slane Castle in Ireland on August 26, 2000. Next are a series of Music Soundtrack Cues featuring Michael Kamen’s score in 5.1 Dolby Digital. The Theatrical Trailer is cropped and upscaled from an SD source, while the TV Spots are more likely from the film’s premiere on pay-per-view and not the original theatrical promotional materials. Last are two Image Galleries containing a total of 55 black-and-white and color publicity stills and behind-the-scenes photos.
Not included from the LaserDisc is the full original music video for (Everything I Do) I Do It for You, which was also included in the background of the closing credits when the film was released on VHS. Also missing is the teaser trailer, which was only ever included on the first DVD release, as well as varying text and photo galleries from various DVD and Blu-ray releases. It’s worth noting that the 2024 UHD release by ESC Editions in France also includes Kevin Costner: A Popular Hero, which contains an interview with journalist Antoine Desrues, and a separate interview with author and film historian Hervé Dumont.
The argument as to which version of Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves continues, though I’m of the opinion that both cuts work well in their own ways, but having a choice is important. Arrow Video steps in to help with that situation and now we have booth cuts of the film in amazing UHD quality with a bevy of extras to back it up. It’s a great release and comes highly recommended.
- Tim Salmons
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