The Death of Robin Hood – Review

A slow, unhappy, melancholy, bleak and somber look at the year 1247 and the ‘true’ character of Robin Hood (Jackman), The Death of Robin Hood will not fit the bill for everyone. The picture is a creeping paced crawl through an old man’s late stages of life. This man has a storied past, and was involved in criminal events, taking from the rich, but only so much of it making its way to the poor. Rumors still grew however of this man and his “good deeds,” but what remains at this point is an aged and tired warrior.

Brisk winds blow throughout a cold countryside. A traveling girl searches for a hero in the hills who protects the meek, one Robin Hood. What she finds however is a tired older man with long greying hair who believes the stories about him are embellished, and his actual crimes are his true nature. Robin has a violent past in reality, having cut his way through plenty of people to get to his riches, and lead his band of “merry men.”

After a resolution of Robin and this girl who seeks his help, the sluggish path through the tale continues. This is not a forgiving and happy world, and definitely attempts to mirror a realistic history for this folk hero. It was said that the people sang lies, the foolish common folk. Lies about his heroism and goodness, however blood debts are owed, and generations of his victims hunt him. He is a murderous bandit.

The Death of Robin hood has a small cast, but it is full of great actors, so even some of the bit roles are filled with expert players. Dialogue is deliberate and planned which matches the slow marching pace of the story. The title gives people what to expect with the plot, but this is definitely not an action flick full of swashbuckling sword play, sharp arrow shootouts and mighty battles. Instead, we get gorgeous sweeping visuals, ethical dilemmas, moral considerations, a bleak and cold world backdrop, and a man marching to face his life’s destiny.

Does the past forever plague everyone’s future? Well, pretty much. Even an embellished 'hero' like Robin Hood is beholden to his prior deeds. As time catches up with Robin, there are moments of heart-beating tension and grisly fury, as the past hunts him. This drives the core story, and delivers the main character some psychologically challenging problems to face.

If you can handle a more grounded and realistic historical approach to a fabled character like Robin Hood, then this film will be your style. If you prefer more of an action star, beloved thief and arrow shooting trickster out to stop the evil Sheriff of Nottingham, this may not vibe with you. The film making qualities of the production cannot be denied as visually it is striking and the acting is great, but the story may just be too deliberate and introspective for some viewers.