MovieChat Forums > Outlaw (2007) Discussion > Like Harry Brown, always going to be hat...

Like Harry Brown, always going to be hated by the chattering classes

posted 14 years ago by PurpleProseOfCairo
4 replies | jump to latest

Don't get me wrong, I don't think it's a great movie - I think it totally loses confidence in itself and goes in the wrong direction in the final third - but the "intelligent" film critics were never going to approve of a movie about vigilantism and revenge. "Right wing", "reactionary" - you could write the reviews before it even came out.

What's wrong with a bit of revenge-fantasy, wish-fulfilment escapism? We've all been bullied or treated badly in our lives, we've all seen injustice - when these guys were preparing to embark on a campaign of revenge against the bullies and murderers, it was thrilling, visceral entertainment. We were cheering them on. But the reviewers tut-tutted, knowing what was best for us - maybe a couple of hours of tedium like Lost In Translation or some thesp hamming it up in There Will Be Blood?

It was enjoyable hokum - you don't have to believe in vigilantism to enjoy seeing broadly drawn villains getting theirs onscreen.

Awight we're The Daamned we're a punk baand and this is called Carn't Be Appy T'day!

[–] BanaBon 14 years ago

Think your onto something there, it's certainly got it's moments both good and awful, the exposition in the writing, "oh we are engaged oh we are in love blah blah blah" but it doesnt half get you fired up which is an achievement for film nowadays.

Im only 20min in on my second viewing and thought id swing by to see if anyone else thought the camera work set a new standard for awful.

Shame really as it's verging on something special

[–] youngian67 13 years ago

I'd agree with the OP. This film is not meant to contribute to the Law Society debating club. If anything it wasn't cartoonish enough and they were a pretty incompetent bunch.

[–] Blarhhh 13 years ago

It might have done better if it wasn't so terrible. Perhaps it was Channel 5 screwing it up, but what the hell was with the speeded up sequences of film? - Bizarre and comical.

broadly drawn villains? More like badly drawn. (oh ho ho ho.)

Harry Brown was at least watchable. This was just embarrassing.

"No Silicon Heaven? Preposterous! Where would all the calculators go?"

[–] simian_ninja 12 years ago

I really dug Harry Brown, thought it was a great film. I think I gave it an 8/10 and I'm not really into revenge films. It had some incredibly fantastic moments as well.

I'm about 10 minutes into this...and the dialogue and camera work is awful. Is it supposed to be a piss-take on American action films that have constant shaky cam? I'm not sure if this is supposed to be satire or a parody or what. From my understanding this film is meant to be serious but I'm thinking it's a bunch of film makers having a laugh.

--------------------------------------
Death is the standard breach for a complex prize.