Rollicking adventure from Disney
THE STORY: Rob Roy MacGregor (Richard Todd) is the leader of the MacGregor Clan of Highlanders in Scotland in 1715, and they are unhappy with the domination by the new English king, George I. Their answer is to rebel with force. Rob Roy is declared an outlaw, and must constantly avoid capture by the British. In between he has time to court Helen Mary (Glynis Johns). Helen asks Roy to surrender as she is certain he will be killed. Rob Roy even captures Inversnaid Fort. Terrific costumes and sets in this period piece, along with high adventure and swordplay. I prefer this version of the classic story, for starters it is not depressing or exceedingly violent and gory. It is very family friendly.
BEHIND THE SCENES & TRIVIA: This was the 4th in a series of live action films shot in Britain, during a period when the assets of American companies, including the Walt Disney Studio, could not be taken out of that country due to the economic devastation they suffered during the...
Rob Ruaidh, Outlaw or Hero?
My father took me to see this film when it was shown in theaters in the 1950s. A lot of the history was over my head at that time, but I was thrilled by the swordplay and adventure, because Rob Ruaidh was supposed to be one of my ancestors, according to family legend. I was extremely disappointed in the modern version of the film with Liam Neeson. They should have named that film, "Rob Roy, Lumbering Highland Oaf." The real Rob was a smaller than average man of the time, but very well put together, nimble, athletic, extremely hardy and durable. He had an education, could read and write, and spoke several languages. His wife, Mary, was his second cousin, and every bit of a match for Rob when it came to toughness. She wasn't raped, as they portray in the more recent film. Rob made the mistake of taking a loan from the Duke of Montrose, which put him into bankruptcy, and caused him to flee into the mountains around Loch Katrine, which was a notorious hide-away for "renegades". His home...
Fighting for Scotland's freedom
Based upon Sir Walter Scott's novel Rob Roy (Oxford World's Classics), this is a Wonderful World of Disney double segment focusing on the struggle of the Scottish clans against the Hanoverian Royal House of England in 1715. Rob Roy MacGregor (Richard Todd), known as "Robin" (and a sort of Robin Hood to his countrymen), is a leader of the Jacobites and the chief of his clan, a patriot who long resists the prospect of marrying his sweetheart, Helen Mary MacPherson (Glynis Johns) for fear of leaving her a widow, but is finally persuaded to follow his heart--only to have his wedding feast invaded by a force of British redcoats with the news that his clan has been excluded from the general amnesty negotiated by the Duke of Campbell (James Robertson Justice). Outraged, he takes to the heather as an outlaw to continue the fight, and his efforts earn him admiration all the way to London, where even King George I (Eric...
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