[Movie] The Outfit (2022): One Shop, Too Many Secrets

You know those movies where you look at the premise and think, okay, this movie could either be really good or maybe really boring? That was the kind of thing that I felt about The Outfit. You know, A crime thriller that takes place mostly inside a tailor shop doesn’t exactly sound like something that should keep you glued to the screen, but somehow, this exact movie made that small setting work really well, and honestly, I enjoyed it more than I expected.

The Outfit that takes us to Chicago in 1956 and starring Leonard, played by Mark Rylance, he’s an English cutter who owns a small tailoring shop. And yes, he is specifically a cutter, not simply a tailor. His work is extremely important to him, and he takes a lot of pride in making sure everything he produces is perfectly okay. Unfortunately for Leonard, his shop has also become a place where some kind of members of dangerous crime organization come to exchange packages and information.

Leonard does not really want to get himself involved in their business, but it somehow becomes difficult for me to do. One particular night , Richie, the son of a powerful gangster, arrives at the shop with a gunshot wound. His associate comes with him, and before you know it, Leonard’s quiet evening has totally turned into something different.

What I liked about the setup in the thriller is that there is this feeling from the beginning that something is not right. You know, there is a particular item at the centre of everything, and everyone wants to get their hands on it so desperately. Opps! I won’t go into exactly what it is because discovering that while watching the movie is also part of the fun. What I liked is that almost every character has their own reason for wanting it, which means you are constantly trying to work out on who is playing who, you don’t know who has it, you don’t know who can be trusted or even what anyone is really planning.

Yeah, The fact that almost everything in the thriller happens inside Leonard’s shop was surprising. Normally, when a movie stays in one location for so long, I start feeling like I need to see something else 😂 . But in this thriller , the limited setting actually made things more uncomfortable , because every person who walked through the door will certainly bring another problem with them. And yes, there was a time I to start to feel like, what if the situation gets worse at any moment,where will Everyone hide!

Mark Rylance was probably my favourite part of the movie. He’s this kind of person who was not really loud,or most intimidating person in the room, but there is something about the way he observes people, and that makes you wonder what he is really thinking. Honestly, love the way the movie did not immediately tell us everything about him, but you’ll slowly begin to understand that there is more to this quiet man than what you see when he is standing behind his cutting table.

Dylan O’Brien, who was Richie in the thriller was also really good. His character initially was like a young gangster who is quick to lose his temper and trying to prove himself, but there are moments where you will see a different side of him. Specially, I enjoyed his interactions with Leonard because there is always this kind of tension between them, like both of them are trying to understand exactly what the other person knows.

I also enjoyed the dialogue, because there are plenty of conversations where the characters are not simply talking alone , but they are also trying to get information from each other without revealing what they already know, and you know, sometimes a simple question can feel more dangerous than a gun.

However, I still have a few issue about the movie, I think Some of the twists started becoming a little too complicated towards the end. And there were moments where I felt like the movie was adding another surprise when it could have just allow the story to breathe. The final stretch also became a little too intense somehow, compared to the calmer tension the movie built earlier in the thriller. Although, I still love where it ended. I love that the movie was not filled with unnecessary action that can end up making it boring.

Overall, the movie is entertaining. So, If you enjoy crime mysteries where you are constantly trying to figure out who is telling the truth,I think The Outfit is definitely worth checking out.

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^{Images were sourced from IMDb.}

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