Customer Reviews

Outlaw

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Hmm... It's a good cast, a good premise and it taps into the fear aspect very effectively. As the film moves along, the various trials and brutalities bring the characters together. In some respects you could say the film actually hones in on a real 'vibe' in society (in the UK, at least). But then, just when you think "this is pretty good", it chickens out, like someone aggreeing with your problems then, when push comes to shove, they just stay quiet and won't back you up. It's good up 'til the last fifteen minutes, then tries to tone itself down, like it won't take the responsibility for being 'right'. It tells you that standing up for yourself ultimately leads to self destruction. Shame, because it could have been like a modern "DEATHWISH", but fresh and more credible. And for such a bold stab at some really relevant issues, it takes the easy way out with its choice of positive stereotypes, with regards to "second thoughts" of their actions. Could have been a cracker.

Baby Cromwell

This film could have been something big, something really impressive. It missed it's mark though due to the writer(s) bad taste in climax and in structure. The plot itself is deceptively simple, a group of men feel justice isn't being met by the law and decide to take matters into their own hands, the movie delves much deeper though and the style of filming was very well done considering the concept of the film.

The film portrays England's underbelly very well and the gritty realism in the scenes puts out an unmistakable talented and accurate feeling of crime and the corrupt system. The acting was good, surprisingly good, though I had of course expected something good of Sean Bean. Bean's character wasn't written well enough to give the actor the full potential of the character but he still managed to pull of a great performance, very convincing. His supporting cast is what surprised me more, their acting was great, very detailed and very realistic. You didn't get the feeling you were watching a movie at all.

Overall this movie could have been something really great but lacked the big guns to pull it off completely. However, it is still definately a film worth watching if your willing to invest an hour and a half into really thinking through a movie and getting a feel for the corruptness and perversion in the system.

Now don't get me wrong, I really like "The Boondock Saints." But let's be honest, it's about as realistic as "Batman." In the real world, meting out vigilante justice would not offer a cloak of (near) invincibility; nor would it be morally uncomplicated. Murder is murder ... an indifferent killer is, well, a psychopath --- not a saint (Boondock or otherwise). OUTLAW tries to offer a bit more reality, and succeeds, to a point.

There's a strong (and I think healthy) interest in movies about vigilante justice -- whether it's the "Boondock" brothers, "Taxi Driver," "The Brave One," "Death Wish," your basic samurai movie, etc., etc. The list is endless. OUTLAW is a movie in this vein, and unlike many, it attempts (with limited success) to portray some real-world vigilantes, with all the ambivalence, fear, moral complexity and mortal risk that such a decision would entail. Like some of the other reviewers, I thought this goal lost a lot of focus in the last 20 minutes or so, when the movie degrades into "Death Wish II" or something.

But that's not why only 2 stars: I gave OUTLAW just 2 stars because ... it's almost unwatchable. Literally. I cannot fathom why this movie was filmed with such a random mix of (deliberately jittery) handheld shots and conventional tripod shots. There are very few movies, generally much more intimate films, that benefit from such self-conscious "style." I mean really -- if you're using two or three cameras to film a simple conversation, why would you cut, over and over again, between tripod-mounted and hand-held cameras? So in the middle of a sentence an actor goes from a steady frame to a wobbly close-up, then back? Over and over? Wandering from in-focus to out-of-focus, jittering throughout, when all I need is to watch a good scene unfold?

Is this supposed to lend a "gritty" or some kind of cinéma vérité feel to the flick? This was a terrible decision, since the "artsy" camera work distracts us, again and again, from an otherwise straight-forward action movie that needs no such stylistic support. This ain't "The Blair Witch," and it sure as hell isn't a John Cassavetes film... there's nothing in OUTLAW that requires that sort of camera work, and in fact, it just about ruined the movie, for me.

I remember reading someone saying that the plot was muddled. It was. The ending was one of the worse I've seen in movies. I expected Sean Bean and his compatriots to get even, but all they did was get their as**** kicked by the Gov't. I mean, just when you think his little army of misfits are going to complete what they set out to do; they bollix (or bollox) it up.
Even Bob Hoskins part in helping out the "vigilantes" was predictable and so bad you knew when "his time was up." Bad script and bad direction.

Soldier returns to the UK and with the help of a small group - decide to take justice into their own hands. A great cast including Sean Bean and Bob Hoskins are unable to do justice to a terrible script.
Although this does show a little of the underbelly of the UK it is bleak and unpleasant and Bean's character has no redeeming features at all which makes it hard to sympathise with his views.
SPOILERS...As an example of how this fails to work - within a couple of days one character (a barrister) goes from balking at executing a murderer to getting involved in a machine gun shoot out with the police! There are few characters you associate with and this tagged onto a tedious script makes for some very poor viewing.
Best avoided, even if you (like me) enjoy action films

'Outlaw' started out looking very promising with a good premise and cast. Sadly by the end it has descended into farce and strayed away from the themes of the film, namely that of a fractured society and a vigilante group fighting back against injustice. If it had stuck to this then this film may well have impressed me more. It moved from a wider dissatisfaction and fighting back against wayward society, to a personal vendetta against one mans criminal activities. Never-the-less it is pretty well acted, shot and directed and it managed to keep my interest for most of the film. The violence is pretty shocking in places but is integral to the themes in the film. Sean Bean is good as you would expect and the other actors hold up their end well. Overall this is a good film, with timely themes and portrayal of modern society (sadly), it's just a shame it wasn't followed through better. A solid 3 stars and still worth a viewing.

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Sean Bean and Lennie James............two amazing English actors at their best. Rough, tough, definitely not for kiddies. But a great take on what happens in society when people just can't take it anymore. If you enjoyed Sean in "Essex Boys" or "Extremely Dangerous", or you enjoyed Lennie in "Snatch" you will definitely like "The Outlaw". Sean is more than a lusty heartthrob and sexy voice ("National Treasure", "Lord of the Rings", "Troy", the "Sharpe" tv series)...........Lennie is more than amazing FBI spy Robert Hawkins in the tv show and soon to be movie "Jericho" and "The Prisoner" remake. Check out "The Outlaw" and enjoy more of their work, you won't be disappointed!

I am a sean bean fan, but this is not one of his best movies.

Sean Bean, Bob Hoskins, and the rest the cast do an excellent job, but the screenplay seems disjointed from time to time. The dialogue is sometime awe inspiring and other times boring. As one reviewer noted they just missed brilliant. I couldn't agree more. This had alot of potential that wasn't realized. The idea of a soldier coming home and not liking the crime he saw at home is not new but certainly more than adequate. Him meeting a security video electronics expert and a veteran cop that wants to help him stop this violent crime wave vigilante style is definitely intriqueing and you think, alright we really have something here. Then they even throw in a guy whose a bit of a psycho for another twist. Sounds good right? Yeah well it just seems to fall apart or not quite mesh. It is still certainly worth a rental, but I wanted it to be so much more. It had good actors that could have made it great but the production values weren't quite as good as they should have been and the directing wasn't spot or nor the screenplay and dialogue. So overall it falls a little short of being great. Fair quality DVD with some replayability. If you enjoyed this, catch "Band of the Hand", "Snatch", and even "Darkman" for a little more fun. - C. Luster

I like Brit crime, and I think Sean Bean is very good, so I was eager to see this.
Hugely disappointed, to say the least. First of all, the story was stupid, simplistic, full of gaping holes, and completely implausible. The characters were totally undeveloped. Now for the "look" of the film.
Whoever is responsible for the infantile, pretentious and sickeningly annoying camera shaking should have his/her arms cut off! This ridiculous gyrating camera, intended to suggest a "gritty, cinema verite, "you are there" documentary" feel, is now an established film technique, probably hatched by some MTV hack. Of course, if you are an ardent camera shaker, you must also fill your film with huge closeups of the actors' faces, to suggest gravity and deep emotion. And to complete this unholy trinity of cinematic disaster, you need to have your editor slash a scene into as many cuts as possible, because today's viewers do not have the patience to sit still and watch a scene unless "it moves", or "is action-packed".

Pardon me while I puke. The same thing happened with the last Bourne movie. The first one was good, but then they started bringing in the hacks and the slashers and camera shakers, until the last one was pretty much unwatchable.

This is sad. Nobody else seems to be bothered by this.