Hottoceame The Age of Commercialism

BootDigest Such a frustrating disappointment

Sameer Callahan It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

Anoushka Slater While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

John Noonan Had a conversation with friends the other day where we discussed the worst film we had ever seen. I found it difficult to answer. Having seen this in the meantime the answer is obvious (to me at least). This is truly one of the worst films I have ever seen. Whoever threw money at this tripe really should know better Acting is horrible, director sesms to not care, no effort at consistency. The script isn't good, full of stereotypical lines but any chance of it coming across better is ruined by the acting and directing. The special effects are horrible Avoid at all costs. Its time of your life you will never get back.

jonplauritzen Not even a couple of hours of watching Erica Durance could save this movie. It had all the potential to be a fun and entertaining Sci-Fi flick but fell flat on its face. The actors gave credible performances, the accents weren't too distracting, and the story twist had some promise as well. None of it could breathe life into the amateur production levels. Action scenes looked like they were choreographed in a high school drama class. There's no flow to this movie. Sequences are choppy and the direction lacks vision, passion and accepts uncharacteristic shoddy work from cinematography, to lighting, to sound, etc., etc. Unless you have nothing productive to do with a couple of hours, this is one to be skipped.

Paul Andrews Beyond Sherwood Forest is set during the year 1174 in England as King Richard is way fighting the Crusade, his brother Prince John (David Richmond-Peck) has been left in charge. In order to further international diplomatic relations with Norway the beautiful young Maid Marian (Erica Durance) is to be married of to some Prince, an idea on which Marian is not keen & runs away deep into Sherwood Forest where legendary thief Robin Hood (Robin Dunne) lives with his men who steal from the rich to give to the poor. Prince John is annoyed on both counts & orders Malcolm (Julian Sands) the Sheriff of Nottingham to find & hang Hood in a public display of power, Malcolm uses a cursed girl who can change into a ferocious Dragon to find Hood. Robin sets out on a quest to the Dark Woods to find a cure for the girl & stop her turning into a Dragon while trying to protect his friends & Maid Marian...Also known under the title Robin Hood: Beyond Sherwood (I saw it under that title) this Canadian production was directed by Peter DeLuise & is watchable Sci-Fi Channel fare but ultimately not that good. The biggest draw about Beyond Sherwood Forest is that it features the fictional British outlaw Robin Hood & gives the story a Lord of the Rings make over with Wizards, Dark Woods (so-called because they are woods & they are always dark...) & a huge Dragon. This whole film is fantasy, Robin Hood is as much fiction as any Dragon in any film & why the character of Robin was used her is a mystery, even more so considering the title was changed to Beyond Sherwood Forest & makes no mention of Robin Hood. At 90 odd minutes it feels longer, there's not much going on here & there's the typical romance between Robin & Marian, there's the bad guy, there's a few sword fights, a few arrows are fired & not that much else happens really. It's all rather bland & forgettable, it's watchable in a silly way but nothing that will stay with you for long. The mixing of adventure & fantasy has no real balance, Robin is seen stealing some money at the start but then doesn't again during the film while the Dragon seems rather random & doesn't quite sit that well alongside Robin Hood. At the end the bad guy is defeated & there's a happy ending for everyone as expected. This is maybe slightly better than the average Sci-Fi Channel creature feature but not by much.The one thing tat did impress me about Beyond Sherwood Forest were the CGI computer effects, Sci-Fi Channel films are notorious for their awful CGI but the Dragon & growling Wolves effects are rather good all things considered. The fight scenes are bland as are the fantasy elements overall, there's just nothing here we haven't seen before & the novelty of Robin Hood appearing alongside a Dragon can only go so far before it becomes old. There's a few splashes of blood as the Dragon slashes a couple of people & rips one in half along with a ripped out heart but otherwise there's no gore here.Filmed in Canada one forest looks much like another so it not being shot in England isn't a major problem although some of the accents are poor. I didn't recognise anyone in the cast myself apart from Julian Sands who is slumming it here.Beyond Sherwood Forest is an OK time waster that has the gimmick of pairing notorious outlaw Robin Hood with Dragons, I've seen worse but I've seen better as well.

Ray Humphries This is better than an OK Sci Fi Channel flick. The basic story line is interestingly different, and the CGI dragon is awesome, repeatedly transforming into a naked chick (actress name not listed). Unfortunately for the male audience, since this is "for TV" fare, we have to use our imagination re: the nudity. Another "unfortunate" is casting Robin Dunne (Dr. Will Zimmerman of "Sanctuary") as Robin Hood. Name association is all this bad idea has going for it. Dunne does not look, act nor sound "heroic." Alan Ladd was short, but at least he had a voice. Julian Sands makes a serviceable sheriff -- Alan Rickman he ain't, but he'll do. Richard de Klerk as Will Scarlett and (another unlisted) as Little John both do well.But there are some notable plot flops. Both good guys and bad guys often have bad guys and good guys at "ropes end" and seldom do anything about it. Robin, despite his rep, apparently can't hit the broad side of a barn with an arrow -- and maybe that's why he seldom tries. He is forever notching an arrow and bending his bow, but there is seldom any release (there may be an embedded gag here). When he does release (rarely) the arrow becomes an error and never hits its target. Near the end when Robin and his Merry Men are at swords point with the sheriff's posse, there are a couple of hangers-on with loaded crossbows standing around, just standing around. Shoot somebody for goodness sakes. Malcolm, the Sheriff of Nottingham, has his sword at Robin's throat for what seems like ages, but never makes the cut. Bad directing and/or scripting, I guess.What this movie does have going for it is Erica Durance (Lois Lane of "Smallville") as Maid Marian. She's not much of an actress, and her "English" accent, amusingly, comes and goes like the tide, but she gets more beautiful every time we see her. Lovely, lovely to look at. (Did the Sheriff rape her or not?)