Outlier (2021) Film Review
It isn’t a secret that some films are made better because of the circumstances they were made in. It’s also a way to celebrate films and the independent industry has many stories to tell. Among those, Outlier stands out as an achievement of a vision by someone who used our current lifestyle to make a film. One that isn’t effective, but makes us think of ideas we’ve discarded in the past just because they seemed too hard to accomplish.
Thrillers are built with tension as a reason. They wouldn’t exist if it weren’t for a relationship built on the grounds of danger imposed on a character that maybe knows what’s coming for them or not. In Outlier, a compassionate act sparks a relationship that isn’t easy to believe in but we’re in for the sake of a girl who needs to be taken out of a place that’s not good for her. Domestic abuse is all too real to look away from, and it’s why we’re initially in the film. The engagement is there.
What follows is a predictable tale of a hidden monster that gets revealed slowly until a climactic ending shows the true nature of his acts. Is this something new? No. But the film’s theme has a secondary blurb of technology that feels all too important to omit.
And to spoil for you.
After Olivia gets saved by Thomas, she decides to follow his advice. She had an abusive partner in James and after a scene in a gas station she decides to scream for help. Thomas arrives and offers her help and James backs off. Thomas insists she spends a few days clearing her head and deciding where to go from here. They head over to a remote cabin Thomas has.
But after a few days Olivia begins suspecting of Thomas. The letters she writes are always checked by him, and she isn’t allowed to make calls. It seems she escaped an abusive relationship to enter a prison.
And that’s all I will say. Outlier isn’t very original in its development but the reveal of the film is pretty intense as we find out the intentions of a guy that doesn’t look harmful. It’s that appearance we see today in every man on the street. The wolf that lures you in while looking like a sheep. In an extended sequence, the reasons behind Thomas’ kindness are explained thoroughly. They’re quite hard to digest.
Outlier is an exercise in tension made by Nate Strayer during a pandemic. It’s an effort by four people who decided to make a film when the big studios weren’t able to gather together massive teams and units to make blockbusters. The director makes a film during a lockdown and he makes it about being imprisoned. This big “message” is extended throughout a film that’s claustrophobic in nature but it lacks a sense of peril for its main character. It could be that Thomas Cheslek (playing Thomas) looks too much like a nice guy.
Nevertheless, Jessica Denton as Olivia is very good in her performance. She doesn’t allow herself to be something she isn’t. Olivia isn’t heroic but the survival instinct is there and she’s not afraid to show it.
An indie flick that deserves more attention. Outlier won’t change your life but it will do for a few hours of tension, and that’s what we look for in thrillers.
