‘The Death of Robin Hood’ Review: Violent, Dull, And Stagnant

For a film so visually polished, A24’s The Death of Robin Hood is remarkably inert. Crafted with a touch that transports viewers to another time and place, the final product pulls no punches with its violence, yet remains dull and stagnant from beginning to its fairly predictable end, following the playbook of some manh films before it, where the main character has a moral arc, finally dealing with his devious, murderous, and criminal ways.

That being said, there is something refreshing about this new take on the legend in The Death of Robin Hood. This is not your Kevin Costner’s Robin Hood, with wispy hair and Hollywood’s earnest ’90s star, a man with a penchant for horrible accents, being paid a king’s ransom to show off his naked backside under a waterfall for everyone’s enjoyment while Bryan Adams whines in the background, singing “(Everything I Do) I Do It for You.”

This version is bleak, uncompromising, and, at times, powerful. Yet, you cannot help but be taken with Hugh Jackman’s take on the legendary figure, a version so damaged that even Wolverine might run across the Hood, take a step back, and say, “Guy, what is your problem?” The moral decay is there, with this version attempting to craft a William Munny-like figure out of a legend as old as time.

However, the approach is so pretentious that, ultimately, the only one who suffers is the audience.

The story follows Hugh Jackman’s Robin Hood around 1247 A.D., sitting alone by a fire in the Irish countryside, fighting off the cold nip of a winter wind. A young woman approaches, and Robin can plainly see she is a teenager trying to pass as a young boy. She does not fool him for a second. When she pulls out a weapon, Robin uses it against her, stabbing her in the throat and temple, killing the assassin who came to avenge her family’s death.

That is the set up, where anyone can be killed. Women, children, and as we plainly see, both. Jackman has a beautiful main of white hair. Writer and director Michael Sarnoski (A Quiet Place: Day One) has him weathered, grizzled, and frightening. That’s why his friend Little John (It’s Bills Skarsgard) comes by, asking Robin to go with him to rescure the love of his life. What happens next is just pure brutality.

This sparks a stunning scene in which Robin shoots a young boy in the head from a football field away. (Not to mention a battle that will make anyone queasy.) Robin is shaken and on the edge of death. A week later, he wakes up in a leper colony. He is tended to by a local nun (Jodie Comer) and prioress of a convent perched on a cliff. What happens next is a story of redemption and revelations that only the most ardent history buffs will fully appreciate.

The only thing new to the tale is viewing Robin Hood in a film where he is the villain. And that, by the way, is an understatement. Yes, that is a new version of the legend, but the violence goes for Game of Thrones–style spectacle in a way that is simply unpleasant. The late-stage redemption arc, as Jackman’s titular character comes to grips with his past, feels false, as if one battle and being nursed back to health would suddenly change his outlook after decades of devilish deeds.

This goes back to the old psychological adage that people’s behavior does not change. The Death of Robin Hood makes it feel just as likely that the legend would rape, kill, and pillage the entire convent as actually give a damn about anyone in that facility. The twist involving Comer’s character also feels out of place. The writing is an out-of-left-field fly ball meant to wrap things up in a tight little quiver. The end result is a suffocating experience that takes too long to put the viewer out of their misery.

You can watch The Death of Robin Hood exclusively in theaters starting June 19th!