Director: Michael Sarnoski
Starring: Hugh Jackman, Jodie Comer, Bill Skarsgård, Murray Bartlett, Noah Jupe
Certificate: 15
Run Time: 122 mins

The Death of Robin Hood is a new and darker adaptation of the 17th-century ballad and stars Hugh Jackman as an aged Robin who lives in a self-imposed exile. He soon finds himself wounded after a mission with Little John (an unrecognisable Bill Skarsgård) and recovers at a priory run by Sister Brigid (Jodie Comer), where he takes a shining to her and an orphaned girl. The film’s written and directed by Michael Sarnoski, who I haven’t been a fan of – I despised Pig, and A Quite Place: Day One was fine, but nothing more.

I feel similarly about The Death of Robin Hood. While a darker take on the heroic outlaw sounds interesting, there’s not much substance – certainly not enough for 122 minutes. Hugh Jackman’s reliably great in the lead, even if his accent wanders around a bit, but we’ve seen him play a washed-up wreck of a man many a time, for example in Logan. There’s a few good set pieces, especially the brutal central sequence where Robin sustains his injury. The film picks up somewhat once Jodie Comer’s prioress enters the fray, but not enough to sustain the film to the finish, where it begins to meander in its last act. I found Sarnoski’s meditation on the outlaw sporadically interesting, but I was never gripped and I think it would have fared better if 20 minutes were chopped.

Similarly, there’s the occasional arresting shot from cinematographer Pat Scola and the impressive sound effects of the changeable weather do a good job of conveying the harsh environment, especially when seen on a big screen. Jim Ghedi’s score is exactly what you’d expect for this kind of film, and doesn’t really bring much to the party. Ultimately, The Death of Robin Hood is a passable one-time watch that has a good Hugh Jackman performance and some occasionally interesting visuals, but that’s about it. Sarnoski has made a film that thinks it’s more important than it is.