Photo via IMDb
By Keith Walther | Rose Law Group Reporter
Like an arrow that fails to hit its mark or even come close to the target, this film mires itself in a swamp of misery from which there’s no escape. “The Death of Robin Hood” turns this legendary hero into a murderous grump, aimlessly wandering a bleak landscape. This is the kind of feel-bad story that will make you schedule an appointment with your therapist afterwards and seek a pillow to bury your head under to shake off the fatiguing experience.
Languishing in the Irish countryside during the twilight of his years in the 13th century, Robin Hood (Hugh Jackman) is continually confronted by his dark past of murder and theft. When his only companion, Little John (Bill Skarsgård), gets him into a battle that leaves him broken and near death, Robin is taken to a nearby island. The local healer, Sister Brigid (Jodie Comer), tries to mend his physical wounds as well as his mental ones, but a past such as his is no easy thing to escape or redeem.
After his well-regarded feature film debut of “Pig” in 2021, writer/director Michael Sarnoski has struggled to repeat that success, having directed the somewhat disappointing sequel, “A Quiet Place: Day One” in 2024 and now this reimagination of the fabled Robin Hood character. While he makes a commendably bold choice to show this character in a much darker light than all prior iterations, he takes it too far, neglecting any hint of adventure and humor to lighten the mood even a little bit. His first film, “Pig,” was certainly dark in its own right but he still had the presence of mind to allow Nicolas Cage’s offbeat brand of humor to permeate the otherwise depressing story. From the opening scene, Sarnoski oppresses the audience with very medieval visuals of an unforgiving, cold, and bleak environment further depressed by a bland color palette of muted grays such as with the sky, costumes, and stone buildings. He even made the grass and trees seem sad. The constant beatdown of this hopeless atmosphere never allows the audience a glimmer of hope, tormenting them with every scene until the inevitable conclusion.
Even though Sarnoski’s choice to mire the film in overwhelming darkness is questionable at best, the technical aspects of his filmmaking style, specifically the cinematography, are quite sound. He uses the camera to capture the harsh realities of this medieval environment with big sweeping shots that are minimally lit in the first part of the film. Then he transitions to tighter framing for the island scenes to create a more intimate character introspective. However, when this transition takes place, the pacing suffers as Sarnoski moves from brutal violence to a dialogue driven film for the second half. Gone are the difficult, unbroken tracking shots that allow viewers to absorb the violence, in favor of claustrophobic closeups that help slow the momentum to a crawl. This abrupt shift oozes an undeserved pretentiousness of the filmmaker that will aggravate many.
The acting in this film is beyond reproach. Hugh Jackman in the titular role turns up the grim brooding to an all-time high, making his performance in “Prisoners” look joyously uplifting in comparison. The extreme and constant brow furrowing gives the sense that his character has never smiled a day in his life. His misery becomes an almost tangible weight, but his subtle micro expressions and line delivery allude to a sense of regret over his character’s past and an almost desperation for some form of redemption.
The supporting cast is highlighted by Bill Skarsgård and Jodie Comer. Bill displays his character as more of a simpleton, more dim-witted than previous interpretations of Little John, but with that same unconditional loyalty towards the main character. Comer, who was outstanding in 2023’s “The Bikeriders,” supplies another three-dimensional performance here, especially when she must confront her own morality in the face of startling revelations. She once again displays a genuine authenticity that feels effortless.
Ultimately, this is a torturous, exhausting drudgery to sit through that no amount of black lipstick and eyeliner, or My Chemical Romance songs can get you into the appropriate head space to enjoy. “The Death of Robin Hood” is dead on arrival and feels as morose as a funeral. There’s a pointless, tone-deaf nature to the production that fails to add value to the renowned character.
This movie earns:
