Robin Hood'

"Robin Hood," the latest collaboration between star Russell Crowe and director Ridley Scott, may have its roots in the foggy past of 12th century legend about the man in tights who robbed the rich and helped the poor. But, with its origin-story approach, jut-jawed good guys, hiss-worthy bad guys, splashy action, and set up for a sequel, this beefed-up "Robin Hood" is more comic-book contemporary than history-book medieval; call it "Robin Hood and His Merry X-Men."
That's not to say that "Robin Hood" isn't slickly enjoyable. It sports some arresting visuals, a sense of rough-hewn realism missing from most productions of "Robin Hood," some notable performances - especially in the supporting roles - and doesn't drag too much, despite its 140-minute running time. But it also doesn't stick in the memory much after the lights go up.
The film starts with several loose strands, including England's King Richard the Lion Heart (Danny Huston) trying to fight off the French; Richard's younger brother, Prince John (Oscar Isaac), plotting to take the throne; and Marion (Cate Blanchett), whose husband is off fighting in Richard's army and who has to care for her father-in-law (Max Von Sydow), struggling to keep her farm together despite onerous taxation and harassment from the Sheriff of Nottingham (Matthew Macfayden) as well as thievery from local orphans.
Tying it all together is the conflict between a vengeful Robin Longstride (Crowe), an archer in Richard's army who unexpectedly finds himself upgraded beyond his pay scale to defender of the realm, and double-dealing nobleman Sir Godfrey (Mark Strong) who has allied himself with both Prince John and the French but needs to get upstart Robin out of the way to get what he wants. Like the hyperbolic promos for TV season finales always intone: It. All. Comes. Down. To. This.
The problem with this approach, as envisioned by screenwriter Brian Helgeland, is that there's little time for the camaraderie between Robin and his rather faceless crew. Little John (Kevin Durand) and Will Scarlett (Scott Grimes) show off a sense of humor and Friar Tuck (Mark Addy) sure loves his bees and honey mead but we get little more from them than one-liners. That's all probably being saved for the sequel when Robin and the boys will take up their more predictable places in Sherwood Forest.
More questionable is the lack of chemistry between Crowe and Blanchett who, despite her initial distrust of him, are supposed to be a great love match. But there's little evidence of it.
Keeping things afloat are Scott's sweeping sense of visuals, including some well-staged battle scenes that aren't too gruesome, and a couple of memorable performances including Isaac's sniveling Prince John.
Ultimately, "Robin Hood" may be remembered less as a stand-alone film than merely the first of what Universal no doubt hopes will be a reliably profitable franchise. As far as summer popcorn movies go, audiences could do worse. But considering what might have been expected from Crowe and Scott, who did "American Gangster" and "Gladiator" together, and Helgeland ("Mystic River," "L.A. Confidential"), they also could do better.Photographer's career
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BP Spill May Exceed Estimates, U.S. Congressman Says

May 14 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. Representative Edward Markey said he is concerned BP Plc’s well in the Gulf of Mexico may be leaking as much as 70,000 barrels of oil a day, compared with previous estimates of 5,000 barrels.
Underestimating the spill may hinder efforts to control it, the Massachusetts Democrat said in a statement yesterday. Markey said he plans to investigate how much oil is gushing into the Gulf and send a letter to the company asking about their methods of determining the size.
“If you don’t understand the scope of the problem, the capacity to find the answer is severely compromised,” said Markey, chairman of a House Energy and Environment subcommittee. Estimates have risen to as much as 70,000 barrels a day, he said, citing “independent analyses reported in the media.”
BP’s Macondo well, about 40 miles (64 kilometers) off Louisiana’s coast, began leaking oil after the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig exploded on April 20. U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu has picked a team of scientists to help BP and industry experts come up with back-up plans to stop the leak. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has estimated the well is spewing 5,000 barrels of oil a day.
On the Surface
“The assessment that is being used remains 5,000 barrels of oil a day, as estimated by NOAA,” Toby Odone, a spokesman for the London-based company, said by telephone today. Measuring the exact volume of oil leaking from the well is difficult and estimates are based on what appears on the surface, he said.
National Public Radio reported May 13 that 70,000 barrels of oil a day may be spilling into the sea, relying on analysis by an associate professor at Purdue University in Indiana. The accident may be worse than the Exxon Valdez incident of 1989, NPR said.
BP’s effort to use robots on the seafloor to close off the well failed, and a 40-foot steel structure meant to cap the leak was scuttled when the containment box became clogged with an icy slush of seawater and gas. The company is deliberating between using a smaller containment chamber to control the well or inserting a tube directly into the leaking pipe to channel the oil.
About $450 million has been spent on cleanup operations and settlements, or an average of $20 million a day since the rig exploded, up from the previous $6-million-a-day estimate. BP is also considering injecting debris including tire pieces and golf balls to seal the top of the well.
All of the options are interim measures to reduce the spill while the oil company drills a relief well that will permanently plug the leak. Drilling began on May 2 and will take about 90 days, the company has said.Fishing
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