OUTLAW

"You should go after him next"

Returning from duty in Iraq, Danny Bryant (Bean) returned home to a London that he did not recognise. Disillusioned with the way he had been treated in the Parachute Regiment and what the country he pledged to defend has become, he decides to take matters into his own hand. Joined by Gene Decker (Dyer) who was brutally beaten after been involved in a car accident, Sandy (Friend) whose face is badly scared from a vicious attack, Simon Hiller (Harris) a disgruntled security guard and barrister Cedric Munroe (James) who is being terrorised by thugs working for a London crime lord he tried to prosecute, Bryant decides to take the fight to the criminal and deal out some real justice.

British writer/director Nick Love is no stranger to controversy but will 'Outlaw' cause even more debate and discussion?

After gaining a reputation for tackling controversial subjects in his previous two movies, 'The Football Factory' and 'The Business', Nick Love gives us another no holds barred look at another problem with society but this time on a much grander scale. Having already covered football hooliganism and the 1980s Costa Del Crime, his new project looks at the current state of the crime on the streets of London and the justice system as a whole.

The main emphasis of the movie is to highlight how the justice system in this country is more criminal than victim friendly. With the Police bogged down by excessive paperwork and a lack of manpower and resources, many crimes are classed as too minor to investigate or not a priority. The justice is system is the same. Criminals are released early because of overcrowding in prisons, sentences are been lobbied to be made shorter and known criminal organisations are left to flourish do to restrictions within the actual system of law. The movie posses the question 'What if the victims of crime took punishment into their own hands?' and how the public would react to these vigilantes. This is an extremely interesting storyline for debate but unfortunately while the film raises the question, it doesn't really answer it.

The first two thirds of the movie are extremely good. As we see how the 'Outlaws' came to want justice after becoming disillusioned with the justice system and how they are left to feel helpless, we quickly become attached to each of the men and feel sympathy for what they have had to endure. We also listen to Bryant's point of view and for the most part agree with it, as they set out to take down the criminal organisations that have free reign on the streets of London. It is the final act of the movie that lets the film down however. Rushed and going down an extremely obvious path, the movie seems to loose focus from its original message and turn into an excuse for excessive violence and lots of gun play.

The performances do distract you slightly from the disappointing ending however. Sean Bean leads the line as the disgruntled Danny Bryant. This is a role that Bean can play in his sleep but his presence in the part does make the film all the more watchable. Nick Love favourite Danny Dyer plays a role very different from the last two he portrayed for the writer/director. As the bullied Gene Decker he reveals a more timid side that his usual brass and arrogant self. Bob Hoskins brings some class to the production as the Outlaw's connection in the police force. There are also good performances from Lennie James as barrister Munroe and Sean Harris as the slightly mad Hiller.

'Outlaw' is another step forward for writer/director Nick Love. He still needs to work on his style as the constantly moving camera becomes slightly nauseating after a while, as does the pulling in and out of focus. His script writing skills have improved however and the film has quite a lot to say but the ending doesn't really finish the statement he is trying to make. After 'The Business' and now 'Outlaw', Nick Love is turning into a filmmaker that you might have to start taking notice of.

PICTURE & SOUND

Presented in Anamorphic Widescreen 2.35:1 with Dolby Digital 5.1, the movie is presented well.

BONUS FEATURES

Outlaw Video Diaries (13.58 mins)
Writer/director Nick Love, costume designer Andrew Cox and star Danny Dyer present the online video diaries taken from the official website. The trio talk about filming, the cast, the weapons, training for the movie, the outfits and the Plot.

The Making of Outlaw (30.54 mins)
Writer/director Nick Love, producer Allan Niblo and stars Sean Bean, Danny Dyer, Rupert Friend, Lennie James, Sean Harris and Bob Hoskins take you behind the scenes of the making of 'Outlaw'. With a breakdown of the plot, with an explanation for making the movie and extensive character profiles, the featurette gives you an idea what it is like to work on a Nick Love movie. We also see postproduction, the editing, the first test screening and the press and publicity for the movie.

The Rave and Riot (11.50 mins)
Writer/director Nick Love talks about the sequence that has been removed from the final cut of the movie. He explains why the scene was cut and you get to watch the full sequence that ended up on the cutting room floor.

Deleted Scenes (8.35 mins)
Nine deleted or alternative scenes suffer from the lack of a commentary track or introduction to reveal why they were removed from the final cut.

Theatrical Trailer (1.54 mins)
Watch the trailer that previewed the film at the cinema and on the Internet.

Big Hitter's Diary (16.34 mins)
To raise money for the movie, the film company and Nick Love offered the chance for the general public to invest in the picture giving them an executive producer credit and a role as an extra. These are their video diaries where they talk about how they got involved and how they found it on a movie set.

Audio Commentary with Nick Love and Danny Dyer
The writer/director and his star provide a funny and chatty commentary track. The pair react to the critical reaction to the movie from media and the response of the fans. They also talk about what it was like making the movie, working with Sean Bean and Bob Hoskins and the plot of the film, in their own unique and foul language filled style.

OVERALL

The DVD treatment for 'Outlaws' is extremely good. Nick Love and his creative team always but a lot of work into the DVD releases of their movies and this is no different. The behind the scenes featurettes are very good and brutally honest and the commentary track is just the same. Fans of the movie should be very pleased with this release.

DVD

The Business

---

The Usher Home | Hush, Hush... | The Big Story | The Usher Speaks

Stuck @ Home | Coming Soon | Links | Contact the Usher

2007