''Princess of Thieves'' is a romantic

adventure An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme spo ...

TV movie starring

Keira Knightley Keira Christina Righton (; née Knightley, born 26 March 1985) is an English actress. Known for her work in both independent films and blockbusters, particularly period dramas, she has received several accolades, including nominations for ...

, produced by

Granada Productions ITV Studios is a British multinational television production and distribution company owned by the British television broadcaster ITV plc. It handles production and distribution of programmes broadcast on the ITV network and third-party broadca ...

in 2001 and first broadcast on ''

The Wonderful World of Disney The Walt Disney Company has produced an anthology television series since 1954 under several titles and formats. The program's current title, ''The Wonderful World of Disney'', was used from 1969 to 1979 and again from 1991 to the present. The pr ...

'' on

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

in the United States that same year. Co-starring in the film are

Malcolm McDowell Malcolm McDowell (born Malcolm John Taylor; 13 June 1943) is a British actor, producer, and television presenter. He is best known for portraying Alex DeLarge in ''A Clockwork Orange.'' He was born in the Horsforth suburb of Leeds and raised in ...

as the Sheriff,

Jonathan Hyde Jonathan Stephen Geoffrey King (born 21 May 1948), known professionally as Jonathan "Nash" Hyde, is an Australian-English actor. Hyde is perhaps best known for roles as Herbert Arthur Runcible Cadbury in the 1994 comedy film '' Richie Rich'', Sa ...

as Prince John, Stuart Wilson as

Robin Hood Robin Hood is a legendary heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature and film. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions of the legend, he is depic ...

, Del Synnott as Froderick, and

Stephen Moyer Stephen Moyer (born Stephen John Emery; 11 October 1969) is an English film and television actor who is best known as vampire Bill Compton in the HBO series ''True Blood''. His first television role was in 1993 as Philip Masefield in the TV ad ...

as Philip. The movie was directed by Peter Hewitt and filmed in Romania. The film's plotline draws inspiration from the classic Robin Hood legend, which has been adapted many times for screen.

Plot

Years after the "known" events of the

legend, Robin's daughter, Gwyn (

) has grown up to be a strong-willed young woman, with a talent for

archery Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In m ...

, much like her father. As

Maid Marian Maid Marian is the heroine of the Robin Hood legend in English folklore, often taken to be his lover. She is not mentioned in the early, medieval versions of the legend, but was the subject of at least two plays by 1600. Her history and circums ...

has died and Robin Hood ( Stuart Wilson) is perpetually away battling in the

Crusades The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were in ...

, Gwyn has lived much of her life alone. Her only friend is the sweet but plain Froderick ( Del Synnott), who clearly is in love with her. Upon the death of

King Richard the Lionheart Richard I (8 September 1157 – 6 April 1199) was King of England from 1189 until his death in 1199. He also ruled as Duke of Normandy, Aquitaine and Gascony, Lord of Cyprus, and Count of Poitiers, Anjou, Maine, and Nantes, and was overl ...

, Robin returns to see that the proper man takes Richard's place as

King of England The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the constitutional form of government by which a hereditary sovereign reigns as the head of state of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies (the Bailiw ...

. Robin is quickly foiled and imprisoned by his enemies, the

Sheriff of Nottingham The Sheriff of Nottingham is the main antagonist in the legend of Robin Hood. He is generally depicted as an unjust tyrant who mistreats the local people of Nottinghamshire, subjecting them to unaffordable taxes. Robin Hood fights against him, ...

(

) and Prince John (

). It is then up to Gwyn to save the day. She must complete Robin's mission to find and protect the young Prince Philip (

), who has just returned from exile in France to claim the throne – not an easy task since he has decided to forsake his true identity and is travelling anonymously under his

valet A valet or varlet is a male servant who serves as personal attendant to his employer. In the Middle Ages and Ancien Régime, valet de chambre was a role for junior courtiers and specialists such as artists in a royal court, but the term "vale ...

's name (who died en route protecting his prince). Though she does fortuitously cross paths with the prince, she is not aware of his identity. With a romantic spark budding between them, they must find the

Merry Men The Merry Men are the group of Outlaw (stock character), outlaws who follow Robin Hood in English literature and folklore. The group appears in the earliest ballads about Robin Hood and remains popular in modern adaptations. History The Merr ...

and join forces to free her father from the tortures of the

Tower of London The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, which is separa ...

before the evil Prince John ascends to the throne and brings England to ruin. After freeing her father, Gwyn along with her father and Prince Philip stop the coronation of Prince John. When Philip is about to be crowned as king, Gwyn with a heavy heart tells him that she can only serve and work for him, and they cannot be together. Robin later explains that he stayed out of Gwyn's life to protect her from the life he leads, but it did not make any difference because she grew up to be just like him. He then proposes a partnership between the two of them to serve Philip, with the only condition being that she take her orders from him (Robin) alone. She agrees, and at the end they are seen together leading Robin's men, side by side.

Characters

– Gwyn, the daughter of Robin Hood and Maid Marian *

–

Prince Philip Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 1921 – 9 April 2021) was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he served as the consort of the British monarch from E ...

, illegitimate son of

* Stuart Wilson –

* Del Synnott – Froderick, a young man who has grown up with Gwyn; he is studying to be a churchman *

– Sheriff of Nottingham, Robin Hood's mortal enemy *

– Prince John, King Richard's younger brother who attempts to steal the throne of England * Crispin Letts –

Will Scarlett Scarlet (also Scarlett, Scarlock, Scadlock, Scatheloke, Scathelocke and Shacklock) is a prominent member of Robin Hood's Merry Men. He is present in the earliest ballads along with Little John and Much the Miller's Son. The confusion of surnam ...

, Robin Hood's loyal friend and companion *

Roger Ashton-Griffiths Roger Ashton-Griffiths (born 19 January 1957) is an English character actor, screenwriter and film director. He is best known for his role as Mace Tyrell in the HBO fantasy series ''Game of Thrones''. Life and career Born in Hertfordshire, As ...

–

Friar Tuck Friar Tuck is one of the legendary Merry Men, the band of heroic outlaws in the folklore of Robin Hood. History The figure of the jovial friar was common in the May Games festivals of England and Scotland during the 15th through 17th centur ...

* Hannah Cresswell -

, the mother of Gwyn, and narrator

Production credits

* Director – Peter Hewitt * Executive Producers – Susan B. Landau, Robert Rovner, Jon Cowan, Antony Root * Art Director – Cristian Niculescu * Second Unit Director – Mary Soan * Composer (Music Score) – Rupert Gregson Williams * Editor – Sue Wyatt * Producer – Bill Leather * Production Designer – Chris Roope * Screenwriter – Robin Lerner

Reception

Scott Weinberg of eFilmCritic.com gave the film 4 stars, and wrote: ""Princess of Thieves" bucks all the odds by turning out to be an entertaining little movie." Nix of BeyondHollywood.com was unexpectedly bored by the film despite expecting to like it; she concluded "The movie was made for a targeted audience -- teen girls under 12 -- and everyone else will be bored by it."

References

External links

* *
''Princess of Thieves'' – Robin Hood Spotlight
A review of the film and an analysis of historical and legendary background, including a feature on Robin Hood's children {{Peter Hewitt 2001 television films 2001 films 2000s adventure drama films 2001 romantic drama films Adventure television films Disney direct-to-video films Films directed by Peter Hewitt Robin Hood films Films scored by Rupert Gregson-Williams Cultural depictions of Richard I of England Cultural depictions of John, King of England