Hugh Jackman stars as a brutal, murderous Robin Hood in Michael Sarnoski's 'The Death of Robin Hood'

A myth turned inside out

Michael Sarnoski's third feature, 'The Death of Robin Hood', presents a radical departure from the swashbuckling hero of popular imagination. The film, distributed by A24, portrays the legendary outlaw not as a champion of the poor but as a remorseless killer haunted by his past. Hugh Jackman plays Robin as a haggard, nihilistic vagabond wandering 13th-century Britain, seeking a dignified death while evading the families of his countless victims.

“When I read the script, I saw it wasn't the typical fairy-tale idea I had of the character, but that more human vision seemed very interesting to me.”

A history of Robin Hood on screen

The character has been a cinematic staple for over a century. The first film adaptation appeared in 1922 with Douglas Fairbanks, but it was Michael Curtiz's 1938 'The Adventures of Robin Hood' starring Errol Flynn that cemented the romantic image. Later portrayals by Sean Connery (1976), Kevin Costner (1991), and Russell Crowe (2010) each added layers, but none approached the brutality of Sarnoski's version.

Violence and redemption

The film opens with graphic violence: crushed skulls, severed limbs, and mud-soaked battlefields. Sarnoski, known for 'Pig' (2021) and 'A Quiet Place: Day One' (2024), leans into a sensory, almost tactile style. Yet the narrative shifts toward introspection, as Robin confronts the possibility of redemption. The film becomes a series of philosophical conversations among damaged souls, captured with a static, unforced camera.

Critical reception

Spanish critics have responded with a mix of admiration and reservation. El Mundo praises Jackman's "agonizing and superb performance" and calls the film "a deeply heartless drama, perfectly self-aware." El Periódico notes that the film "is at times on the verge of suffocating in its own melancholy," while El Confidencial compares its ultraviolence to Nicolas Winding Refn's 'Valhalla Rising'. La Razón highlights the supporting cast, including Bill Skarsgård and Jodie Comer.

Deconstructing the hero

Sarnoski's script questions the very nature of myth-making. The film suggests that the Robin Hood legend is a sanitized story built to serve political and social needs, obscuring a far darker reality. As El Confidencial puts it, the film is "the overthrow of the very concept of myth," exploring the gap between witnessed events and the testimonies that become history.