148. The Outfit; movie review

 

 

THE OUTFIT

Cert 15

105 mins

BBFC advice: Contains strong language, bloody violence, injury detail

He is acclaimed as Britain's finest current stage actor and won an Oscar for his role in a Tom Hanks movie but Mark Rylance could probably walk down the street unnoticed.

Indeed, the only reason that he might turn heads at the moment is that two of his films are running at cinemas.

Just two weeks after the release of the effervescent The Phantom Of The Open, Rylance proves his range with a much different role in Graham Moore's The Outfit.

He plays 'a cutter, not a tailor' in his own bespoke suit shop in Chicago where he moved from London after the Second World War.

He becomes embroiled in the gang wars which exploded in the Windy City at the beginning of the 1950s.

Zoey Deutch is his feisty assistant who has dreams of love and travelling the world.

The Outfit is set up as a theatre piece, never straying from the shop where the pair work but what really impressed me is how the characters are drawn.

Dylan O'Brien and Johnny Flynn play the young gangsters who use the cutter's premises as a hideout where messages are left and read.

They become paranoid that a 'rat' is passing on details of their activities to either the authorities, or even worse, to their deadly rivals.

Simon Russell Beale plays their father and boss respectively and enters the fray throwing his considerable weight around.

Thus, the excellent cast deliver the verbal shots with almost as much impact as those from their guns.

The Outfit has not gained much traction in the UK ahead of its opening but it grabbed Mrs W and me, possibly because we both enjoy gangster movies but also because Rylance's character is so quietly smart.

Indeed, he has a mind which is so sharp and forensic we compared it to Sherlock Holmes.

Moore also creates a firecracker atmosphere despite the constraints of such a small working area.

Reasons to watch: Another great portrayal by Mark Rylance

Reasons to avoid: To much like a theatre production

Laughs: None

Jumps: None

Vomit: None

Nudity: None

Overall rating: 8/10

Did you know? It's typical for an entry-level bespoke garment to start at over $2,000, whereas you can theoretically spend over $10,000 if you get a handmade three-piece suit made from a high-end, specialty fabric. On average, bespoke suits cost between $3,000-$5,000.

The final word. Graham Moore: "In the preproduction phase, we got to spend a lot of time at the shop Huntsman on Savile Row, which is a 300-year-old cutting house. Mark actually got to train with their head cutter for a while and he used some of the moves in the opening sequence where he’s building a suit. We spent a lot of time making all of the work that he does extremely accurate." The Credits

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