ROB ROY
A film review by Ben Hoffman
Copyright 1995 Ben Hoffman
Robert Roy MacGregor (1671-1734) is the most famous of the Scottish MacGregor clan. It was he who fought to keep the clan together despite the poverty they faced and the greed of the lords. The photography of the film is something to behold; its lakes and mountains and the barrenness of so much of the country. This is all captured by Director of Photography, Karl Walter Lindenlaub.
Rob Roy (Liam Neeson) is a cattle drover. When he seeks to better his condition for his wife (Jessica Lange) and his family, he borrows 1,000 pounds from his lord, the Marquis of Montrose (John Hurt) in order to buy cattle and make a profit. The money is stolen from him and he must now repay his lord. How the stealing came about and how he is harassed is the story of the film.
What lifts the movie way up is the acting of Tom Roth who plays the role of Cunningham, a fop, a dandy, and a most malicious villain whose face never loses its constant sneer. Roth just about steals the film from the much better known Neeson and Lange.
The only thing that made me laugh was in a final duel when he takes off his wig (which all the nobility wore) and tosses it aside while I thought ""No more Mr Nice Guy."
Also in the cast is Eric Stoltz who seems to be in everything these days.
Directed by Michael Caton-Jones.
3 bytes 4 bytes Superb 3 bytes Too good to be missed 2 bytes So so 1 byte Save your money.
Ben Hoffman
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