The Adventures of Robin Hood

11/25/18 • 76 min

We're in like Flynn on this week's episode of the Force Material podcast, as we explore how The Adventures of Robin Hood has influenced Star Wars !
With yet another telling of the Robin Hood legend in theatres, we decided to venture into Sherwood Forest to revisit the classic 1938 version, starring Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland, Claude Rains and Basil Rathbone!
First up, we talk about all the Star Wars news that's gone down since our last episode, including Mark Hamill's wild Boba Fett theory (01:25), the announcement of the Cassian Andor TV series (04:49), the casting of Pedro Pascal in The Mandalorian (08:39), and the latest Galaxy's Edge developments (10:21)!
Then it's onto our feature presentation (16:35), as George Lucas discusses the influence of Errol Flynn's swashbuckling films on Star Wars (32:51), and we explore the influence of The Adventures of Robin Hood on Ben Burtt (36:41) and the influence of Olivia de Havilland's Maid Marion on Princess Leia (38:07).
We look at the truth behind the Robin Hood legend (45:43), the time Errol Flynn fought Count Dooku (52:16), the immense influence of composer Erich Wolfgang Korngold on John Williams (53:43), the link between Errol Flynn and Darth Vader (57:37) and the time Star Wars literally became Robin Hood - in miniature (01:00:12).
Finally, we take a brief look at Disney's live-action Robin Hood movie, directed by a man with a very interesting name (01:03:01), and we ask the question - does the world need yet another Robin Hood movie (01:10:11)?

Previous Episode

The Hidden Fortress

This week, we're going back to the Sengoku period to explore how The Hidden Fortress influenced Star Wars !
We start this week's episode by going back to the beginnings of George Lucas' love affair with Akira Kurosawa (01:37), and explaining what Kurosawa was motivated by when he made The Hidden Fortress (02:39).Then we break down the specific ways The Hidden Fortress helped to shape Star Wars, from the influence of Tahei and Matashichi on C-3PO and R2-D2 (06:00), to the influence of General Rokurota Makabe and General Hyoe Tadokoro on Obi-Wan Kenobi and Darth Vader (11:29), and the influence of Princess Yuki on Princess Leia, Padme Amidala and Rey (20:45)!
Finally, we take a look at the early Star Wars treatments that bore a much closer resemblance to The Hidden Fortress (26:52), and the influences Akira Kurosawa drew on himself when he made The Hidden Fortress (31:19)!

Next Episode

Minisode: Galaxy of Adventures

Bonus content! We stop in for a quick chat about the new Star Wars Galaxy of Adventures shorts, on the new Star Wars Kids channel!
You can watch the shorts here if you live in the States, and here if you live outside the States.
Our next 'real' episode, exploring the connections between Star Wars and Superman: The Movie, will drop this weekend!