The Death of Robin Hood will be released in theaters on June 19.
Robin Hood and Little John, murderin’ through the forest, Oo-de-lally, oo-de-lally, golly, what a slay! That’s basically The Death of Robin Hood in a nutshell. While its gloomy visuals, gory kills and sharp performances impress, writer-director Michael Sarnoski’s cerebral, artsy drama will likely appeal more to medieval folklore scholars and fans of gritty period pieces than general audiences expecting a more traditional, escapist Robin Hood movie.
The story draws its inspiration from the medieval ballad A Gest of Robyn Hode, the last section of which is titled “Death of Robin Hood” where the outlaw visits the Prioress of Kirklees. The ailing Robin goes there for treatment because the Prioress is his kin, but she and her lover are actually plotting to kill him. Sarnoski’s film keeps the idea of Robin Hood going to a priory for healing but otherwise reworks and demystifies the entire legend of the English folk hero.
This Robin Hood – played with solemn intensity by a never-hairier Hugh Jackman – is no altruistic hero but rather a vicious, thieving nomad who freely admits that all the stories about him are myths, most of which don’t even have a kernel of truth to them. There was never a Maid Marian, he robbed from the rich and the poor alike, and he killed women and children.
Like Unforgiven’s William Munny, Jackman’s Robin Hood is a grizzled killer haunted by an unimaginably violent past that continues to chase him. He’s killed so many people over the years that there is always someone’s relative hunting him down – no matter how far in the hills he hides – to avenge their fallen loved one. Robin is old and tired and, frankly, death would be a gift, yet he keeps killing those who pursue him. Despite the bouts of sudden and often senseless violence, there’s a haunting silence that permeates the entire film, an audible loneliness, if you will, that captures Robin’s isolation from the society he’s wronged.
The only member of the Merry Men who appears in this film is Little John (a barely recognizable Bill Skarsgård, employing yet another of his signature weird, guttural voices). It’s been many years since Robin and Little John last saw each other, with the latter living a relatively content life under an assumed name with a wife and child who are unaware of his wicked past. Now his family are in peril so Little John enlists the aid of his former leader (and surrogate father figure) to save them and exact vengeance.
Both men end up getting far more than they bargained for, with Robin suffering grave injuries in the ensuing battle. In order to save his life, Little John delivers Robin to the film’s version of the priory from A Gest of Robyn Hode, whose prioress is renowned for her healing abilities.
The prioress, Sister Brigid (Jodie Comer, at her most tender), nurses Robin’s wounds, but the longer he stays there and becomes acquainted with its community, the more his soul might be rehabilitated as well. There’s a stillness to both Sister Brigid and to the priory itself that lends an appropriate serenity to this portion of the film where Robin tries to reclaim his humanity.
Robin’s bond with Sister Brigid and a traumatized little girl named Margaret (a compelling Faith Delaney) is the emotional crux of the film and is its most effective and rewarding aspect, lending a much needed humanity to an otherwise savage and seemingly irredeemable Robin Hood. Robin also has a compelling friendship with an enigmatic leper (a moving Murray Bartlett, who barely ever shows his face), who also helps the outlaw inch closer to the light.
The Death of Robin Hood ably mixes the meditative myth-busting of Unforgiven, the medieval ultra-violence of The Northman, and the dreary Celtic aesthetic of The Green Knight. Yet the film also benefits to a large degree from the enduring memory of Jackman’s other, better “violent badass cursed by his past” film, Logan (a comparison Sarnoski understands people will make). Instead of adamantium claws, he uses a knife and a bow and arrow to eviscerate his foes. While that doesn’t diminish Jackman’s performance as Robin Hood, I could never quite shake the knowledge that I’ve seen him do this all before.
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