Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991)

 "That's it, then. Cancel the kitchen scraps for lepers and orphans.No more merciful beheadings. And cancel Christmas."

I've seen this film many times, but not since the turn of the millennium. It is, of course, a highly entertaining Hollywood blockbuster, perhaps the most popular celluloid version of the Robin Hood myth. Yes, Kevin Costner is... well, adequate, but we all know the real star is the late Alan Rickman. Was ever scenery chewed with such aplomb? This is one of the finest bits of moustache twirling villainy in cinematic history, and perhaps the performance for which Rickman will be best remembered. 

And it's a fun film, lots of set pieces. It's good. And yet... it drags a bit in places, doesn't it? And... we need to talk about Robin of Sherwood.

Yes, Azeem, the character played superbly by the always excellent Morgan Freeman, is clearly based on Nasir, and no previous version of the legend had included such a character: the film was lucky not to get sued. Yet the overall plot, the feel, and especially the climax feels suspiciously similar to the TV series, right down to the mild fantasy elements in the person of the witch character.

The geography is, of course, hilarious, and not only the start of the film where the White Cliffs of Dover are apparently within easy walking distance of Hadrian's Wall. The implication throughout is that Nottingham is in some way close to London, and that the Sheriff is in some way a figure of national imporance.

The revelation about Will Scarlet is hilarious too. And doesn't quite feel plausible how Little John's merry band so easily accept Robin as their leader.

Despite all that, though... ah, it's fun watch, and what more do we want?

Grimm: The End

"I want the people I love to live again!"

I.m sad to see the back of Grimm, satisfying it is to finally complete a series what with all the different telly shows I'm currently juggling. This is an improvement from last week's awfulness, which is a relief, but in spite of a few nice touches it's hardly a worthy finale for the series, which is a shame.

Hank and Wu are confirmed to have died. And slowly Eve, Monroe, Rosalie and Sean are killed by this great big Zerstorer, a big bad we haven't even known for that long. Then there's some guff about the staff of Moses and the ghosts of Nick's late mum Kelly and Aunt Marie help him Trubel to kill Zerstorer in an epic battle... and then a big red sodding reset button is pushed meaning that no one died, including Wu and Hank, and all that we have seen is rendered meaningless. It's a crashing disappointment, however cool the coda with a young adult Kelly and Diana may be.

Still, the epic blood spell is pretty cool. The deaths are dramatic when they happen. But the fact that we had a final episode like this goes to show that a programme that, episode by episode and arc by arc, was rather good, was perhaps not that great at world building in the end.

Grimm: The Law of Sacrifice

"I was too nervous we'd be killed in our sleep to... sleep..."

Nice ending; Nick and co give the baby to Prince Viktor, but it ultimately ends up with Nick's mother. But Adalind doesn't know that last part...

This whole episode is essentially a game of cat and mouse between the "Scoobies" (I'm a Buffy fan) and the Royals, in the person of Prince Viktor, with the baby (now called Diana) as the MacGuffin, and ends in a classic feint. On top of all this, there is friction between Nick and potential father Sean.

Oh, and the FBI are after Nick's mum. And Monroe and Rosalie are having TV-friendly fully clothed sex. It's that sort of episode. I'm enjoying this last run before the finale.

Grimm: Synchronicity

"Did you kill the driver?"

"Why would I do that?"

"Just checking..."

There's a lot going on with Adalind and the baby in Mittel Europa, and this time Nick's mum is involved. I like her a lot; the outlaw figure, played for laughs, and her relationship with Nick is rather amusing.

She takes Adalind (doesn't know her) to a plane headed for São Paulo, but with a certain inevitability there is a diversion to Portlamd. Thus do all the important characters end up in the same general area. How very convenient.

Meanwhile, the problem of Nick being a Grimm best man at a wedding full of Wesen is conclusively solved; he will just wear sunglasses. No problem, then. Things will obviously be fine, and not a bloodbath at all.

There are amusing scenes of Prince Viktor killing an incompetent underling, and cute scenes of Rosalie deciding to wear her grandma's wedding dress, but the real excitement hinges around Nick's impending proposal to Juliette... which is rudely interrupted and doesn't happen. Thanks, Mum.

We end with Adalind running away, with theocracy, to Sean Renard, who starts getting all paternal. 

I like this episode; seems as though the season arc is hitting up for the finale...

Grimm: The Kiss

“Cheapskate didn’t know how close she came to getting her throat ripped out!”

“So sweet!”

The cliffhanger reprise is a bit of a cheat, I have to say. The baddie doesn’t attack Nick after all and, after much impressive looking fighting, Nick and his mother kill it. For the rest of the episode, though, Nick has to deal with the repercussions as he is arrested by the FBI. Usually, he manages to avoid this sort of situation, but as two FBI agents have died it’s more awkward this time. In fact, both homicides which he investigates in this episode were perpetrated by his mother, who seems to have a short temper. It’s interesting, though, that the Captain is so protective of Nick. Also interesting is that his mother now knows that there is a Prince in Portland.

This time, relations between Nick’s mother and the Monroe/Rosalie combo are less awkward. Speaking of Monroe and Rosalie, it’s getting increasingly obvious that they rather like each other. I see another season arc developing here. There’s also another phone call between the Captain and that European brother of his, in that swanky CGI castle nonetheless. Is this another arc?

It’s interesting how predominant European affairs have been in the show of late. I wonder if this is a sign of things to come. I certainly think we’ll see Nick’s mother again, especially considering the rather naughty manner of her exit. First of all, though, we have yet another cliffhanger. Juliette has been kissed by her Prince, but there’s a price. She can’t remember Nick at all. That’s a cruel way to end, for the audience as much as for Nick!

Grimm: Bad Teeth

“You threatened to kill her?”

“Yeah, of course!”

Season two already looks better than season one. It’s slicker, cooler, and better shot. I’m also overjoyed to see this episode end with a “to be continued”. It looks as though, like Buffy and Angel, the show’s second season is seeing a transition in to more serialised storytelling. I certainly hope so.

We re-join the show as Nick has a slightly awkward reunion with his mother. Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio is looking a lot older than she was in the days when the Sheriff of Nottingham was being all nasty to her and that, but she does a good job in portraying a prickly, independent, resourceful and mysterious character. Giuntoli, while, as ever, lacking in charisma, is actually pretty good at showing Nick’s conflicted emotions. But there isn’t enough time for an emotional reunion.

Of course, we get lots of exposition. Nick’s dad did indeed die, but his mother has spent the last eighteen years being all sneaky and finding out who killed her husband and friend. It seems that the three coins, still held by Nick, will need to be destroyed at the place where they were forged. I’m predicting that the show will take a trip to Europe at some point for this to happen? But we’ll have to see. I bet no actual location filming will be involved, however.

We also get a bit of history about an old map, a mediaeval war, and the fact that the royals are well aware that Nick holds the key. Meanwhile, in the present day, there is some awkwardness between Monroe, Rosalie and this new and scary Grimm. There is also a horrible little sequence introducing the show at the start, but let’s move swiftly on.

Oh, and there are of course some murders, and a Grimm fairytale, what with this being part of a multiple episode adaptation of Briar Rose/Sleeping Beauty. This is the first time a single fairytale has been spread over multiple consecutive episodes: I hope this sort of thing is repeated. The murders aren’t really the focus, though, but more of a catalyst for the other characters and their reactions. The Captain continues to be fascinating, speaking on the phone to a delightfully evil baddie in Europe (not sure whether he’s English or French) who lives in a stonking great castle and whom the Captain calls ‘brother’.

There’s a lot going on. The Captain and Catherine Schade are seemingly plotting to cure Juliette, so everything is going to be okay on that front, we hope. Nick’s mother drops some more exposition towards the end: the Grimms, or their ancestors at least, used to control the Wesen for the royal families. And these royal families seem to be coming into focus as a potential big bad for the season. Firstly, though, we have a rather big cliff hanger that makes you jump. I hope the resolution is worth it.

Grimm: Woman in Black

“Here goes. I can see things that...”

“That what?”

“That most people can't”.

Phew. You can tell this is a biggy from the sheer amount of stuff in the “previously on”. We have three epically big things happening: Nick finally tells Juliette the truth, it doesn’t go well, and she falls into a coma after being scratched by Adalind’s cat; the fourth man who killed Nick’s parents, Akira Kimura, comes to visit Portland and is not a very polite guest; and then there’s that mysterious woman in black, who, happen to be Nick’s dead mother... WHAT?! Nick’s mother is Maid Marian?

The scene with Nick telling all to an obviously unwell Juliette goes as badly as we can possibly expect. It’s arse-clenching viewing. What makes it even worse is that she immediately succumbs to a coma. The whole thing is left unresolved. But this is only one element of a big, big episode, and by no means the only thing that is keeping us in agonised suspense.

That Akira Kimura is well hard. So hard, in fact, that he comes very close to killing our good friend Captain Reynard! We get a very strong impression that he really, really wants those three coins. It’s becoming more and more obvious that for as long as Nick holds them he will not be safe. Neither will his family or friends.

The episode ends with a fight scene which is very well shot with shaky camera, culminating in that cliffhanger. I for one am glad that I don’t have to wait too long to see the resolution!