Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993)
73%RT Audience Score: 81%
Awards & Nominations: 1 nomination
Undisciplined, scatological, profoundly silly, and often utterly groan-worthy, Robin Hood: Men in Tights still has an amiable, anything-goes goofiness that has made it a cult favorite
Robin Hood: Men in Tights is a hilarious spoof of the classic Robin Hood legend. While some critics may say it’s not as bawdy or smart as it needs to be, I say it’s a rollicking good time. Mel Brooks may have lost his way according to some, but I think he found it again with this movie. It’s crude, obscure, and sometimes downright silly, but that’s what makes it so great. If you’re looking for a good laugh, grab some popcorn and settle in for a merry romp through the forest with Robin Hood and his band of misfits.
Production Company(ies)
Distributor
NA
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
Rancho Maria – 25933 Sand Canyon Road, Santa Clarita, California, USA
MPAA / Certificate
Rated PG-13 for off-color humor
Year of Release
1993
-
Color:Color
-
Sound mix:Dolby SR
-
Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
-
Runtime:NA
-
Language(s):English
-
Country of origin:United States
-
Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Jul 28, 1993 Original
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 4, 2006
Genre(s)
Comedy
Keyword(s)
starring Cary Elwes, Richard Lewis, Tracey Ullman, Dave Chappelle, Mark Blankfield, Matthew Porretta, Eric Allan Kramer, Amy Yasbeck, directed by Mel Brooks, written by Mel Brooks, J.D Shapiro, Evan Chandler, comedy, PG-13, box office gross, $35.3M, reviewed by Bill Cosford, Johanna Steinmetz, Angie Errigo, Gene Siskel, Jonathan Rosenbaum, Jay Boyar, Marilynne S Mason, David Parkinson, Stephen Hunter, Dennis King, TV Guide Staff, Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves, spoof, sight gags, slapstick, parody, cult favorite, anything-goes goofiness, amiable, silly, groan-worthy, bawdy, smart, Mel Brooks, Robin Hood: Men in Tights, Maid Marian, chastity belt, Prince John, Sheriff of Rottingham, Blinkin, Little John, commited, friendly, Cary Elwes’s approach, sarcastic, absurdity, Cary Elwes, Richard Lewis, Tracey Ullman, Dave Chappelle, Mark Blankfield, Matthew Porretta, Eric Allan Kramer, Amy Yasbeck
Worldwide gross: $35,739,755
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $74,240,591
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,165
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 8,096,030
US/Canada gross: $35,739,755
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $74,240,591
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 893
US/Canada opening weekend: $6,841,830
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $14,212,227
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 817
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $20,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $41,545,104
Production budget ranking: 925
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $22,372,038
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $10,323,449
ROI to date (est.): 16%
ROI ranking: 1,315
Richard Lewis – Prince John
Roger Rees – Sheriff of Rottingham
Amy Yasbeck – Marian
Dave Chappelle – Ahchoo
Mark Blankfield – Blinkin
Mel Brooks – Producer, Writer, Director
J.D. Shapiro – Writer
Evan Chandler – Writer
Director(s)
Mel Brooks
Writer(s)
Mel Brooks, J.D. Shapiro, Evan Chandler
Producer(s)
Mel Brooks
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
1 nomination
Academy Awards
All Critics (44) | Top Critics (15) | Fresh (18) | Rotten (26)
The movie is not nearly as bawdy as it needs to be. Or as smart, either.
August 18, 2021 | Rating: 2/4
Bill Cosford
Miami Herald
TOP CRITIC
Robin Hood: Men In Tights, Brooks’ spoof of the Robin Hood legend, gets off to a creaky start before it loosens up and produces laughs.
December 7, 2018 | Rating: 2.5/4
Johanna Steinmetz
Chicago Tribune
TOP CRITIC
To say that this is the funniest film Mel Brooks has co-written, produced and directed in some years is, alas, not saying very much.
December 7, 2018 | Rating: 2/5
Angie Errigo
Empire Magazine
TOP CRITIC
A most disappointing Mel Brooks movie parody that suggests that the once hilarious Brooks has completely lost his way.
December 7, 2018 | Rating: 0.5/4
Gene Siskel
Chicago Tribune
TOP CRITIC
Predictably slapdash but indefatigably good-natured and sometimes funny to boot.
December 7, 2018
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Chicago Reader
TOP CRITIC
A nominal spoof of traditional swashbucklers, this crashingly unfunny comedy is mainly an excuse for Brooks to take yet another crack at his master list.
December 6, 2018
Jay Boyar
Orlando Sentinel
TOP CRITIC
Robin Hood is surely one of Mel Brooks’s worst disasters.
March 27, 2019
Marilynne S. Mason
Christian Science Monitor
Watch your Blackadder videos instead.
December 6, 2018 | Rating: 2/5
David Parkinson
Radio Times
Marvelously funny even for those who didn’t see the film it hilariously parodies – 199l’s Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves – this Mel Brooks comedy is one sprightly spoof.
December 6, 2018
People Staff
People Magazine
But generally, Brooks’ humor is extremely limited.
December 6, 2018 | Rating: 2/4
Stephen Hunter
Baltimore Sun
Crude and sometimes obscure, Mel Brooks is still an American institution. His Robin Hood: Men in Tights is a merry romp through the forest.
December 6, 2018
Dennis King
Tulsa World
Although sporadically funny and not quite the disaster it was initially made out to be, this Robin Hood robs gags from other films while giving the poor viewer far too few laughs.
December 6, 2018 | Rating: 2/5
TV Guide Staff
TV Guide…
Plot
Robin of Locksley, known as the most skilled archer of the land, has just returned to England after fighting in the Holy Crusades, where King Richard the Lionheart is also fighting. Robin finds that much of what he knew of England has gone to ruin, including his longtime family home having been taken away, all at the hands of the evil Prince John, Richard’s brother who has assumed the throne in Richard’s absence. Neurotic John is basically being controlled by the equally evil Sheriff of Rottingham, everything they do to fatten their own coffers at the expense of the commoners and peasants. As such, Robin recruits a band of merry men to help him battle Prince John and the Sheriff, they, who include: Blinkin, his blind longtime servant; Ahchoo, the misguided son of Asneeze, the man who helped him escape from prison while fighting in the Crusades; Little John, who seems to think that being called Little is only coincidental to the fact of he being a hulking man; and Little John’s friend, Will Scarlet O’Hara, a master with daggers. In going to the palace, Robin falls in love at first sight with Marian of Bagelle, a maid of the court. Marian is looking for the man who has the figurative and literal key to unlock her heart (and private parts). The Sheriff has his own eyes on Marian, he who in turn is the object of desire of Latrine, a powerful hag of a sorceress of the court. Robin, and the Sheriff in particular, have a fight to the death mentality to achieve their end goals, which for both are protection of the throne for their trusted royal, and the heart and cherry of Maid Marian.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Cary Elwes stars as the titular character in Robin Hood: Men in Tights, bringing his charming and sarcastic approach to the absurdity of the film.
Mel-Brooks.jpg
