Outlaw Reviews

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Coulda shoulda

Nowhere near as bad as I was expecting, actually thought that Love was looking to get a point across here. However he lacks the finese to do so and although Bean is suitably cast and Dyer was somewhat better in this role than I would have thought the film lacks something. The plot is also rather aimless and showsreal character flaws, at one point this group of 'outlaws' cannot bring themselves to harm a man responsible for the death of a pregnant woman but then can engage in a gun battle with the police???? Allow us a little intelligence Mr Love.

[Highly rated reviewer]

Outlaw?

I conceded that OUTLAW is a strong title, but it's not really what the film is about. Sean Bean returns from service in Iraq to find his wife all cosy with someone else. So 'naturally' he walks away without a word and goes to a hotel. The hotel security guard is weird; he has the whole place locked down in illegal CCTV spy cameras - and he sees Bean with a cache-load of guns. He approaches Bean with the loose, somewhat vague idea of putting things right with the world by tackling those who go unpunished by the courts.... hmmm....

Danny Dyer has a weird, and somewhat convoluted story of dreaming of a car accident and being beaten up. This is too weird, because these scenes are not shot any differently to the rest of the film, so we don't know what to believe and you find your interest waning. Lennie James plays a barrister who's wife and child are threatened, concerning a case he's prosecuting. What does he do? He tells them he can't do what they want. Does he pack his wife off to somewhere safe? No, He doesn't even tell anyone he's been threatened. This is just one of the many holes in logic and character that Nick Love is banding about. Any husband of a pregnant wife would take such a threat very seriously, and would protect them even if he was sticking to his guns with the prosecution. You can guess what happens in one of the nastiest scenes in the film.

There's an air of vigilanteism in this film, but it's not right. The characters are unbalanced, and it's really hard to find any sympathy for most of them, so you find yourself becoming annoyed with how half-heart or psychotic they react to things. Bean's character bears much more scrutiny than we are given, but he's locked into a two dimensional stereotype and there's no getting out. We find out very late that he's actually been court martialled from the army - but we don't know why. It's a shame, because Bean is very good. So too, as usual, is Bob Hoskins, as the retired copper who helps them with information on targets.

The end, I won't tell you, but is very improbable, and you and I can see it coming from a mile away - but the characters appear to live in this twilight world where the bleeding obvious never occurs to them! We never see how these everday Joe Bloggs' become the vigilantes we see. We never see any training, never see any gun handling, never really believe the whole thing.

The film is in 2.35:1, but I don't know why. The camera shakes like the cameraman has a bad case of the DT's and the colour is bleached out to presumably add grit to the picture. I really don't like watching a big screen where my vision is constantly wobbling and being thrown about. It might work on TV or DVD but it didn't suit the cinema (which is where I saw it). I can't give this muddled film a good rating, it just doesn't deliver on the vigilante theme, and the characters are so vague it's not even funny. Thumbs down, but if you like Sean Bean you might want to give it a watch.

Hug a hoodie my arse!

Great film, part death wish part social commentary......shows the extent to which the fabric or English culture has unravelled to the point where we are held to ransom by rude and cowardly little twats who implement their rights more than the responsible hard working majority who are failed by the police and legal system time and time again. The violence and the situations in this film are not over the top.....if you read the papers in detail this stuff happens everyday on this island.

Personally this film has inspired me to severely beat any spotty teenager who so much as gawps or looks at me funny.

brill!!

its set in modern Britain, and explores the devastating effects of violent crime and the incompitence of the legal system. Sean Bean is a former paratrooper who takes the law into his own hands after returning from Iraq. Joining him on his social cleanup mission is a group of crime victims. including a grief-stricken barrister, a disfigured student and a mild-mannered Danny Dyer. this is a raw and sobering slice of urban life. strong performances throughout add to the film's overall intensity.

[Highly rated reviewer]

Brutally good - - an insight into the real world we live in.....

the good;

intelligent screenplay,

violent yet substantiated,

gripping, powerfull drama

a behind the scenes look at how the law cant protect the innocent

compelling , powerfull storyline

the bad;

at times, awfull use of camera shake 'technique'

digital recording lacks depth to image,

needed a better director

camera man should go back to college

[Highly rated reviewer]

Outlaw

Brilliant film Nick Love just keeps them coming...Outlaw just defines Modern Britian and that is a sad thing alot of people will slate this film for that very reason, I think the acting was spot on, great story and amazing subject. Hard hitting, gritty, smart, underground film from Nick!

4/5

Judge, Jury and Executioner

Well... not an easy one to review my friends. Not at all. Very strong concept and yes of course many of us love Sean Bean in this kind of role. Some great scenes that deliver on the premise but also a sense of confusion over where the story is going. As another reviewer here said there are missed opportunities here - clever and dramatic scenes that could have been. Nonetheless I kind of loved it. Or loved the film it almost was. It's a film blokes may return to a few times when they have the house to themselves and want to enjoy a modern British story about camaraderie in harsh circumstances. I don't feel the message of the film was an anti-teenage sentiment although I see another esteemed reviewer here felt that way. The justice meted to the teenagers was harsh and designed to make the viewer consider how much was too much. But the real challenges facing Sean's rifles were the adults involved in organised crime, corrupt police and each other. Btw - this is not for the faint-hearted.

Once Upon A Time in England

This is what British filmmakers often do best: good, low-budget thrillers with set piece shoot-outs. Unfortunately Outlaw takes itself too seriously by trying to justify Sean Bean’s vigilantes’ actions against the rising tide of violence in England. Rather than examining the rights or wrongs of taking the law into one’s own hand against petty criminals, Bean’s gang go after a powerful, murderous gangster and his cohorts who have the police in their pockets and deserve everything they get. So it’s just a retelling of the old western plot of hired guns helping small farmers fight off the cattle barons and their corrupt sheriff. This would have worked as an unpretentious revenge thriller but the poorly conceived motivations of the central characters seriously undermine the film.

[Highly rated reviewer]

Very good...but could have been excellent

This is a really good film, with what could and should have been a really gripping subject, we all know some idiots we want to 'take down' and Britain would be a better place without them. This explores the idea of (in the main) the apparently weak having the strength to fight back. All well and good, but it could have been done MUCH better, I expected to come away with the very satisfying 'yeah got 'em' feeling you get with some films, and without ruining it, I didn't. There are just too many holes in the plot and wrong turns that take the shine from this being brilliant to just being good. Having said that, I would definately recommend this as a must watch - well worth a rent when its out !

Dark commentary

A disturbing look at the current weaknesses of British culture and it's legal system, and the lengths it's injustices will push people to. Outlaw tells the story of the vicous circle of vigilante action, with each character pushed to violence by their own experience or frustrations, each being unable to pull themselves away from the violence once it has begun.

It's extremely typecast, but well acted, and not for the squeamish, the violence is pretty raw.

Worth a look, but don't expect anything more than a bleak commentary on 'justice'.