The Death of Robin Hood

This isn't your dad's Robin Hood. Hell, it isn't anybody's Robin Hood. What you get here is an old, broken-down outlaw who's been living off the land for years, and a movie that delivers exactly what the title promises. No fanfare. No merry men montage. Just the title, played straight.

Hugh Jackman is the reason this thing works at all. At this point in his career, the guy can power a movie on fumes, and he basically does here. You buy him as a weathered, used-up version of the character because he sells it. Whatever the movie is doing, he's locked in.

Disappointing? Yeah, against what I was hoping for.

The lighting is dark. Like, genuinely dark. Normally that's the kind of thing I'd gripe about, but for a movie called The Death of Robin Hood, yeah, fine, it fits. You're not supposed to be having a good time visually. Mission accomplished.

Here's where it lost me, though: it drags. I caught myself checking the time more than once, and I'll be honest, I briefly thought about walking out. That's not a thing I do lightly, especially in a theater. The movie just sits in its own mood for long stretches and dares you to stay with it.

And look, I get that this isn't supposed to be a swashbuckler. I understood the assignment going in. But it's still a Robin Hood movie, and I wanted more action. Some. Any. Give me a little something to chew on between the brooding. The bow is right there.

Took the kids, which in hindsight was maybe not the play for a slow, grim meditation on a dying outlaw. Lesson learned.

The weird thing is, it stuck with me. I'm not going to watch it again, and I wouldn't tell most people to bother, but days later I'm still thinking about it. There's something there. Jackman dragging this beat-up version of a legend toward the inevitable, the quiet of it, the refusal to do the crowd-pleasing thing. It earns a little credit for that, even when it's testing your patience.

Disappointing? Yeah, against what I was hoping for. But not forgettable. If you're a die-hard Jackman guy, you'll find something. Everyone else, tread carefully.