Outlaw King

I've unfortunately skipped quite a few Netflix films -- 22 July and The Apostle come to mind -- this year that I did want to make time for. Certainly nothing is holding me back from seeing them, but there's only so much time in a week I'm willing to dedicate to movies and writing these reviews (despite me still loving to do it).

Outlaw King is arguably one of Netflix's first epics and was introduced on the awards circuits with Chris Pine as the lead. Knowing that it had strong Braveheart ties makes the expectations all that much higher so I made the time this weekend to check it out. 

Plus Game of Thrones has been of the air for a while now and I need my fix!

Having been edited down from it's debut time at TIFF (and apparently WAY cut down from its original 4 hour run time), this is a Braveheart-lite at just under two hours. That label works in more ways than one too, for better or worse, but overall Outlaw King is a good showing for Netflix and is in the upper echelon of their film attempts which, aside from a handful of awards circuits films this year, seems to be continuously struggling. 

Outlaw King truly is a "sequel" of sorts to Braveheart because of its place in history. After William Wallace's quest for freedom, it left England and Scotland in a bit of a flux. Wallace is mentioned often in the early scenes of Outlaw King and it sets the stage for a story that's nearly as impressive as Mel Gibson's was all those years ago. Robert the Bruce (Pine) led a small army against England in a quest to drive Wallace's dream forward. I won't divulge much more than that if you're not familiar with the history, but it is an interesting follow up to that story we know. Unfortunately, the re-edits and heavily trimmed time from the original cut make the story feel highly disjointed in several scenes. It's hard to track, especially early on, just exactly what is happening and who is who. Oddly enough the film seems to rectify this by about the halfway mark and those scenes flow, one into the next, much more smoothly. The overall story becomes easier to follow too, though there are still flashes of weird editing here and there. It's this editing and pacing that are the biggest things holding Outlaw King back; at times it truly does feel like a TV show with how often it wants to switch back and forth. 

Dude hasn't bathed in years!

Pine is our central performance and he provides not only a well-done Scottish accent, but a reserved and appropriate performance too. His King is thoughtful and slow to anger and Pine shows his temperament as measured. The film rests very comfortably on his shoulders and he's also got a stellar supporting cast. Aaron Taylor Johnson plays a much more crazed and violent Lord while Rebecca Robin is Queen Margaret and Pine's love interest. There are others I could mention, but they all play their roles and support Pine well. 

In some of Outlaw King's grander moments, it's an incredibly gorgeous and/or violent film depending on the scene. The cinematography is phenomenal for a majority of the runtime and there are several landscaping shots of Scotland that will take your breath away. Most of these seem to come in that much more refined second half but the non-landscape cinematography sets a good example throughout. The fight scenes, while nothing you'll really remember, are violent and appropriately bloody. Aside from a few scenes, this isn't all that gory of a film, but it has more than enough blood sprays to go around. The fights themselves are entertaining, but try to focus on so much at once and it's here where some odd editing begins to crop up again. Choreography for these time periods - with all the armor and heavy swords - is always a bit dull and slow, which is no different here. Even still though, the epic battles have some surprises and are never really the weak parts of the film.

*thinks to self*
"Now would be a great time for Spock to beam me up..."

In this current day where Netflix seems to be better at producing TV shows rather than movies, Outlaw King tries to stand out as an example that the company is capable of owning something more grand and perhaps even "blockbustery". It's a fine film with plenty of good to enjoy, and a highly interesting story to tie into Braveheart, but it struggles to find the how of telling its story and that ultimately holds it back from being nearly as great as it's Scottish movie brethren from many years ago.

CONS

• Struggles to find its footing with many players and being "inserted" into this world post William Wallace. This usually comes across in the form of weird editing and transitions
• Tries to focus on a lot at once during battle sequences
• This coupled with the dull choreography that often comes with that time period make for some monotonous battles
• Underutilized original score

PROS

• Highly interesting story and a cool "spiritual sequel" to Braveheart
• Pine provides a stoic central performance and carries the film well
• Supporting cast all do their part with Aaron Taylor Johnson and Rebecca Robin being the highlights
• Incredible cinematography at times and really good cinematography for the majority of the film
• When used, it has a solid original score
• Features some epic battles. Despite the issues I may have tied to them above, they're still entertaining and bloody

Rath's Review Score | 8/10