"For the tenacious 11-year-old Robin and her loyal band of friends 'The Hoods', the patch of overgrown scrubland at the end of their cul-de-sac is a magical kingdom."
Before I go into any detail I need to say just how much I adore this film. Watching this took me back to my own childhood playing in the woods, and reminded me so much of the films and shows I used to watch when I was much, much younger.
Phil Hawkins brings us a tale of children facing the realisation that their childhood is coming to an end. On the way to that realisation they spend their days using their imaginations to create a magical world based on the stories of Robin Hood. Facing off against their enemies, to protect their Kingdom and their crown, they have a set of rules to follow, but as they do the rules get broken and it's there that things start to change.
The real star of this film is the titular Robin, played by Darcey Ewart. She navigates the river of a child growing up, while trying to hold on to the fantasies of her younger life, with a masterful level of skill and style. While her career to date is but a short one, the future for her is incredibly bright. I really enjoyed the way she commanded the screen, sometimes in the presence of actors who have had decades long careers. She's fabulous.
While the whole cast is a lot of fun the two other standouts are Naomie Harris as Clipboard, and Gwendoline Christie as Aura/The Witch. Two truly wonderful performers that seemed to relish the roles they have in this story. Harris is the villain of the tale and chews the scenery with unabashed glee, creating moments that echoed many a villain from films she is likely to have enjoyed herself as a child. Christie is as Christie does, though here she is a woman of the woods, living in a one-person commune in the forest. She is seen by the children in their fantasy world as a witch, and she happily plays along in the scenes in the 'real' world. Two delightful performances of two extreme characters, by two genuine stars.
The director, Phil Hawkins, has done an admirable job bringing this tale to the screen. He uses sound and the camera like a conductor, and the way he weaves together the 'real' world and The Kingdom bring a genuine level of joy to this cynical old man's heart. I don't know his other works, but after this I'm going to. I look forward to what he's going to bring us in the future.
Overall? This is a truly wonderful film about the joys of youth and the use of imagination to enhance the world around you. Yet it also shows you that the world moves on and, while you might want to, it's not possible to stay a child forever. It has moments of glee, and moments of pathos but it balances them perfectly. The only thing I would say, and this is in no way a real negative, is that it feels like a film for the young. It is wonderful, but it has an air of needing a younger audience who can appreciate it for the immediacy of how it feels to their lives....and not just remembering a childhood long past like I did. It's getting a 4/5, with a massive recommendation to check it out, and watch it with your children to see how much of themselves they recognise on-screen.
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