Netflix's War Epic 'Outlaw King': My New Favorite Historical Drama

In the world of cinema, there is one particular genre that I really enjoy: historical dramas.

Although I am not a fan of drama for the sake of drama and I do love me some strictly educational documentaries, there really is no replacing the feel of humanity that can be found in a film about a particular person or time in history. You can throw facts around till you are blue in the face but the plight or triumph of a people has more weight if you can see that these people were real and were just like you, flawed and imperfect.

Historical dramas are a somewhat touchy category as there is never really a perfect balance between the aspects of drama, creative license and historical accuracy. You might, for example, have a film that is visually beautiful and holds the feel of the time period it is placed in very well but the way the people speak or perhaps characters introduced have no place in the tale. I am one who prefers to have the story before me be as accurate as possible while allowing some creative license, as long as it doesn’t detract too far from the historical retelling. I’m happy to say that the Netflix original film Outlaw King was an ideal balance of drama, creative license and history.

The untold, true story of Robert The Bruce who transformed from defeated nobleman, to reluctant King, to outlaw hero over the course of an extraordinary year.

If you haven’t heard of it yet, Outlaw King is the story of Robert the Bruce (Chris Pine), the Scottish Lord who you will know from Braveheart starting from the time that the Scotts ended their rebellion with Wallace and swore fealty to King Edward I. But it doesn't take long for Robert the Bruce to realize that this was a mistake and sets out to unite Scotland and drive England, once and for all, from their home.

Most people will recognize the story of the Scottish rebellion against England from the 1995 hit movie Braveheart starring Mel Gibson. While Braveheart is a pretty freaking awesome film, it isn’t a very accurate depiction of William Wallace or the events of the Scottish rebellion and war for independence. While it did quite a bit to bring this piece of history to the minds of the American populace and is in and of itself a great drama, it is riddled with inaccuracies for the sake of said drama. I won’t sit here and tell you that Outlaw King is perfectly sound in the department of historical accuracy as some liberties were taken for drama, timing and the fact that the events of the film took place well over 700 years ago. However, there are several areas in which Outlaw King was more accurate than Braveheart and that accuracy helped strengthen the overall narrative. One major piece that I noted right away is the fact that the clothing worn by the characters is appropriate for the time period and there are no kilts is sight. Those didn’t come about until much later but were a focal point in Braveheart, much to the chagrin of history buffs like myself. The kilts didn’t necessarily take away from the story being told, they just didn’t belong there so I was glad to have them gone in Outlaw King. You can read this article HERE from History vs Hollywood discussing the historical rights and wrongs of Outlaw King. It’s quite informative.

As this is a story of war, there is bound to be bloodshed. The battle sequences are impressive and capture well the ferocity, the tumult and confusion of the battle and the brutal force of man against man. It’s one thing to read about person to person sword battles in chain mail from a history book, it’s another thing to see it. What a horrid yet imposing sight it was! The film also shows some of the awful injustices and forms of torture used against the Scots and allies of Robert the Bruce by the English to include being hung up and disemboweled or being drawn and quartered with your body parts hung all around Scotland for your followers to see as was done to William Wallace. Although I usually shy away from violence and gore, I felt that this film portrayed its violence in a very respectable way, in the sense that it was shown to be a part of the war rather than thrown in as a shock-factor. Thus it has its place and without it, the movie would be incomplete.

I once again have to applaud Netflix for creating a film that captures not only the feel of a country in a specific time period but also the pride and culture imbued there in. It’s freaking gorgeous! This film presents a beautifully crafted and accurate depiction of Robert the Bruce’s Scotland and doesn’t skimp on the scenery or the details worked into the castles, villages and battlefields. It feels so rich and real and not an idealized interpretation of history. There is also a distinction between England and Scotland displaying the contrast between the cultures and style of living, showing to us how very different these people really are.

It is possible in historical dramas to rely so much on the inter-person crisis that we lose focus on the overall narrative and purpose of the story at hand. We’ve all seen that one film with the random side plots that do nothing for the story and are just there for shock and awe. I was seriously relieved upon watching Outlaw King that this was not the case. Robert the Bruce has kind of gotten a bad rap with some people based on how he was written in Braveheart, like the fact that he did not betray William Wallace as was depicted, and I enjoyed the fact that we got to learn more about him and see him as more than just a Lord. He was a multifaceted individual, a family man, a leader, a man of honor and responsibility. You see that he is a man that people were willing to fight and die for, a man that people believed in, a man willingly to give up so much for freedom and unity among his people. Because care had been taken to build up the world of Robert the Bruce, filled with all the people he loved and cared for, the weight of his loss and struggle was more palpable and sickening. But it made the rise to victory all the more sweet and satisfying in the end.

I was thrilled by the actors chosen for this film. I was skeptical of Chris Pine as Robert the Bruce at first glance not because I didn’t think he could carry the part but I was worried about him pulling off a proper Scottish accent. As I am not a Scot, I cannot tell you whether or not he passed muster in that regard but I thought he did very well as Robert the Bruce all the same. I really like Chris Pine. He has the ability and stage presence to play a man of such importance while also being able to display the ranging emotions of despair, respect, love and compassion needed for this film. Tony Curran and Aaron Taylor-Johnson, who played Aonghus Óg Mac Domhnaill  and James Douglas respectively, were excellent in their portrayals of the real life allies of Robert the Bruce. Douglas definitely stands out against the two as being the most entertaining in his varying tempers but Aonghus carries his own as a level headed and loyal man. Both had not only a brotherly connection with the Bruce but also with each other, even if it was tumultuous at times.

Like any good historical drama, we need a love story and this one features the romance between Robert the Bruce and his second wife, Elizabeth de Burgh played by Florence Pugh. I’m not sure the historical context of their union but in the film, Elizabeth is given to Robert after he swears his fealty to King Edward I and their relationship slowly moves from strangers to allies to lovers. Elizabeth is written as a strong women with an educated and determined mind of her own but one that respects Robert and refuses to abandon and forsake him even when it lands her in prison. Florence Pugh was aptly able to display the strength of a noblewoman of fine character as well as the vulnerability of a woman torn between her love and devotion and her own survival. It was sweet to see their love and dedication to one another withstand distance, torture, loss and war. However, I definitely could’ve gone without the marriage consummation scene. I know its purpose was to show that they really do love each other right before they are torn apart and separated for years but, really , do we need to see their boinking in such high-def detail? No, no we do not.

Who remembers Edward II from Braveheart, the son of King Edward I? In Braveheart, he’s kind of a weak spineless character with really nothing to add to the film at all while in Outlaw King, he’s pretty unstable and sadistic with major Daddy issues. I don’t believe either version to be very accurate in their portrayal of Edward II but there was 2 scenes in the film that I felt made this version of Edward worth it.

Outlaw King begins with a 9-minute tracking shot that perfectly sets up the mood and scope of the film and that in itself is amazing! In those 9 minutes, Edward II challenges Robert the Bruce to a sword fight, to see who can best who. In this fight, Edward is being very petulant and pompous while Robert is barely putting up a fight as his heart isn’t really in it. He was also kind of drunk so there’s that.

Fast forward to the end at the Battle of Loudoun Hill where Robert and Edward are face to face once again. This time Robert is exhausted sure but he is fierce, quickly besting the soon-to-be King of England and leaving him to crawl away in shame. All though this end sword fight on the battlefield was a work of fiction (Edward wasn’t even at that battle), these two scenes were a proper metaphor for the people of Scotland and their fight against England. In the first instance, Robert embodied the exhaustion of his people, how tired they were, how burned out they were from the war and the suffering they had been enduring while Edward was England, overly confident and arrogant of their own strength, proud to be stepping on the throats of the Scots. In the second scene, Robert represents the Scots who were no longer downtrodden, done with being abused and were resolute in gaining their homeland back from England and Edward was England, humiliated and bested by the very people they looked down on. I cannot tell you with any certainty if this was the intention of the writers but it stood out to me as I watched it and I felt that this piece of creative license was worth the historical change in story telling as it helped to visually embody the rise of the Scottish people and the defeat of their conquerors.

Outlaw King is a grand embodiment of history, drama and the good ol’ story of the underdog. This film is a fantastic production of times past and brings a very real and personal touch to a long ago event that changed the course of history. There is no such thing as a perfect film but Outlaw King is going on my list of films that impressed me enough to tell you, my dear reader, to watch it as soon as you can.

And if you’ll excuse me. I think I’ll watch Outlaw King again.

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