Rob Roy (1995)

When it comes to Scottish folk heroes, only a few are better known than Rob Roy McGregor, most often referred to only as "Rob Roy." A cattleman by trade, he borrowed a good deal of money to enlarge his herd. Unfortunately, his chief herdsman disappeared, which led Rob Roy to default on his loan. This led to him being labelled an outlaw. It was after  James Graham, 1st Duke of Montrose seized Rob Roy's property that Rob Roy began a feud against the Duke. Another version of the story is that Rob Roy's property was seized following the Jacobite Uprising of 1715 and that the Duke of Montrose bought the property in 1720 from the Commissioners of Enquiry. Either way, Rob Roy continued his feud against the Duke of Montrose  until 1722. In doing so he would attain fame that lasts to this day. Indeed, it was in 1723 that The Highland Rogue, a fictionalized story about Rob Roy was published. Sir Walter Scott's 1817 work Rob Roy would only add to his fame.

Since then there have been several works about Rob Roy, of which the 1995 movie Rob Roy might be the most famous. With regards to film, there were two adaptations before the 1995 film. Rob Roy (1922) was released in the silent era. Walt Disney also made a film based on Rob Roy's story, Rob Roy: The Highland Rogue (1953). Rob Roy (1995) was very loosely based on the novel Rob Roy by Sir Walter Scott and it did depart from history a good deal as well.

While Rob Roy (1995) wasn't particularly faithful to Sir Walter Scott's book or Rob Roy's actual life, it was shot in actual locations in Scotland. Among the locations were Glen Coe, Glen Tarbert, Drummond Castle, Crichton Castle, Rannoch Moor, and many others. Some of the locations in the Highlands could only be accessed by helicopter.

If the locations in Rob Roy were all genuinely Scottish, it must be pointed out that its leading man wasn't. Playing Rob Roy was Liam Neeson, who was born in Ballymena, County Antrim, Northern Ireland. While Liam Neeson is Irish, he did do a fine job of speaking with a Scottish accent in Rob Roy. His usual County Antrim accent isn't to be heard. Rob Roy wasn't the first movie based on folkore in which Liam Neeson had starred. One of his earliest roles was Sir Gawain in Excalibur (1981).

Rob Roy (1995) may have been unfaithful to Sir Walter Scott's work. It may have departed from history a good deal. Its leading man wasn't even Scottish. That having been said, it did receive largely positive reviews upon its release on April 7 1995. Roger Ebert described it as "...a splendid, rousing historical adventure..." The critic at Entertainment Weekly gave it a B+. What is more, Rob Roy has its fans to this day. Some of us even consider far superior to another 1995 Scottish film that just happened to win the Oscar for Best Picture.

While Roy Roy does depart from history, it features some great performances by Liam Neeson, Sir John Hurt, and Tim Roth. What is more, the script goes far more in depth on the characters than many historical adventure movies have before it. The sword fight at the climax ranks among the best ever made, easily matching those in Scaramouche (1952) and Ladyhawke (1985). Rob Roy isn't particularly well remembered today, but it really should be.