The Outsider (2018 film)

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The Outsider
The Outsider (2018 film poster).png
Film release poster
Directed by Martin Zandvliet
Written byAndrew Baldwin
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyCamilla Hjelm Knudsen
Edited byMikkel E.G. Nielsen
Music bySune Martin
Production
companies
  • Linson Entertainment
  • Waypoint Entertainment
Distributed by Netflix
Release date
  • March 9, 2018 (2018-03-09)
Running time
120 minutes
Countries
  • United States
  • Japan
Languages
  • English
  • Japanese

The Outsider is a 2018 action thriller film [1] directed by Martin Zandvliet and written by Andrew Baldwin. A Japanese-American production, the film stars Jared Leto, Tadanobu Asano, Kippei Shiina, Shioli Kutsuna, and Emile Hirsch.

Contents

The Outsider was released by Netflix on March 9, 2018, and received generally unfavorable reviews from critics.

Plot

In 1954, nine years after the Pacific War, ex-United States Marine Corps Captain Nick Lowell is the only non-Japanese inmate in an Osaka prison. Most of his fellow inmates are yakuza criminals, recognizable by their irezumi tattoos. Nick saves a yakuza named Kiyoshi from being hanged to death; the Shiromatsu, a yakuza clan to which Kiyoshi belongs, repays his debt by arranging Nick's release. He is also offered a job: Anthony Panetti, an American businessman with a deep hatred for the Japanese, has refused to negotiate a deal with the Shiromatsu but has agreed to a deal with a different clan, the Seizu, because they sent an American negotiator. Nick goes to speak with him, but ends up violently beating Panetti on the head with a typewriter just a minute into the conversation instead, assuring Kiyoshi that he'll reconsider.

When a group of Seizu clan members arrive from Kobe to intimidate the Shiromatsu at their nightclub, Nick attacks one of them, nearly causing a shootout. Kiyoshi takes a liking to Nick, giving him an expensive apartment to live in and a suit to wear. He further entrusts Nick with driving his drunk younger sister Miyu home after he catches her partying at the Shiromatsu club. Nick spends the night with her and slowly gets more involved with the Shiromatsu clan, becoming one of their enforcers alongside Kiyoshi. He continues his relationship with Miyu and gets an irezumi tattoo on his back to match hers.

The Shiromatsu come under pressure from rival yakuza families, largely due to the aging Shiromatsu patriarch's refusal to adapt to the rapidly changing post-war economy. Kiyoshi sends Nick to the harbor to handle a black market weapons deal, where he is ambushed by four Seizu members, killing two. To avoid a war with the Seizu and as an apology to their patriarch, Nick and Kiyoshi perform an act of yubitsume. The severed fingertips are sent to the Seizu patriarch, who accepts them. Nick is taken to a countryside temple, where he becomes a full member of the Shiromatsu through an initiation ceremony.

During a sumo contest, the two families hold a meeting, with the Seizu patriarch offering his counterpart the chance to retire in peace by absorbing the Shiromatsu; the patriarch refuses and threatens him.

While walking home, Nick is recognized by Lieutenant Paulie Bowers, a US Marine on leave. Paulie remarks that Nick, his former captain, was presumed dead by the Marines after being sought for court-martial. When Paulie tries to blackmail Nick, he lures him back to his apartment and kills him.

Nick learns that Miyu was assaulted by her former lover Orochi, a fellow yakuza, but Miyu stops him from taking revenge by telling him that she is pregnant. Nick goes to Kiyoshi's home and reveals his relationship with his sister. Telling Nick that he is now responsible for keeping Miyu safe, Kiyoshi gives him a daishō, a pair of swords signifying honor. The two men then bury Bowers' body in the woods.

A few days later, Nick saves his patriarch from being strangled to death while at the tailor shop, but Kiyoshi is shot dead during their escape. It becomes clear that most of the Shiromatsu, including Orochi, have betrayed the clan and defected to the Seizu. Nick persuades the patriarch that war is the only option, and takes part in the assassination of several Seizu members. The Seizu patriarch calls for peace talks at the local harbor, which turn out to be a trap. Orochi kills the Shiromatsu patriarch, and Nick is wounded by a shot in the leg from a sniper. Shortly thereafter, police officers burn down the Shiromatsu club.

Undeterred, Nick travels to the Seizu clan dōjō with Kiyoshi's sword and demands an opportunity to kill Orochi. Orochi refuses to fight him, saying that Nick is only a gaijin (outsider) and could never truly be a yakuza. When Orochi hands him back his sword, Nick quickly draws it and cuts Orochi's throat. The Seizu patriarch intervenes and tells Nick to leave now that he has avenged his patriarch. Nick travels to a secure apartment where he has hidden Miyu under the guard of the few remaining Shiromatsu members. He embraces her as the yakuza bow reverently as he is now the new head of the Shiromatsu clan.

Cast

Production

Development

On November 16, 2016, Netflix entered negotiations with Bloom and AFM to acquire exclusive global rights to the film.

Casting

Michael Fassbender was considered to star in the film when Daniel Espinosa was in talks to direct. Then, Japanese filmmaker Takashi Miike was slated to direct the film with Tom Hardy in the titular role. However, the search for a new lead after Hardy's departure from the project conflicted with Miike's own commitments, which caused his dropout as well. Jared Leto was confirmed to join the cast on April 5, 2016. [1] Tadanobu Asano was added to the cast on May 12. [2] Rory Cochrane was confirmed to join the cast on November 16. [3] Emile Hirsch was added to the cast on December 6.

Filming

Principal photography began in Tokyo, Japan in late September 2016. Principal photography wrapped in Osaka, Japan in December 2016.

Release

The film was released on Netflix on March 9, 2018. [4]

Critical response

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 17% based on 24 critic reviews, and an average rating of 3.6/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Starring a disengaged Jared Leto and stuffed with gangster cliches, The Outsider never distinguishes itself enough to gain admittance into the inner circle of good yakuza pictures." [5] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 30 out of 100 based on reviews from 12 critics. [6]

On RogerEbert.com , Nick Allen gave The Outsider 1 1/2 stars. He wrote that "“Jared Leto in a yakuza drama” isn’t the most palatable of pitches, but that somehow turns out to not be the movie's biggest problem." [7] Andrew Barker of Variety magazine called it "Dull, flavorless, and fundamentally incurious, “The Outsider” is a clueless misfire, the cinematic equivalent of a study-abroad student showing off the kanji forearm tattoo whose meaning he never bothered to learn." [8]

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References

  1. 1 2 "Jared Leto To Star In Action Thriller 'The Outsider'". Deadline. 5 April 2016. Retrieved 5 April 2016.
  2. ↑ "Jared Leto's 'The Outsider' Adds Japanese Actor Tadanobu Asano (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. 12 May 2016. Retrieved 12 May 2016.
  3. ↑ "Netflix Circling Jared Leto Crime Thriller 'The Outsider' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 16 November 2016.
  4. ↑ "What to watch on Netflix in March 2018 - best films and TV shows for International Women's Day". Mirror. UK.
  5. ↑ "The Outsider (2018)". Rotten Tomatoes . Fandango . Retrieved October 30, 2021.
  6. ↑ "The Outsider Reviews". Metacritic . CBS Interactive . Retrieved March 13, 2018.
  7. ↑ Allen, Nick. "The Outsider Movie Review & Film Summary (2018) | Roger Ebert". www.rogerebert.com. Retrieved 2018-05-25.
  8. ↑ Barker, Andrew (8 March 2018). "Film Review: 'The Outsider'". Variety.
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