The Outfit - Verbrechen nach Maß

The Outfit proves that you don't need a bunch of over paid actors and a huge budget to make a great film. A good script and solid acting works just as well. 7 stars.

Greetings again from the darkness. Graham Moore won an Oscar for his screenplay on Alan Turing's life in THE IMITATION GAME (2014). Now he has directed his first feature film, one he co-wrote with Johnathan McClain. The final product is a bit unusual in that it takes place almost entirely in one spot ... a tailor's shop ... and features only a handful of characters. It's a film that would transition easily to the stage for live performances.

Mark Rylance (Oscar winner for BRIDGE OF SPIES, 2015) excels here as Leonard, a Savile Row-trained tailor now working his craft in his own shop in 1956 Chicago. His path from London to the windy city is a bit murky, but we immediately take note of Leonard's calm and elegant presence accompanied by his soothing voice. Rylance uses that voice as narrator to explain the intricacies involved with creating a man's suit, and the importance of reading the man prior to utilizing the 4 fabrics and 38 pieces that make-up the outfit. Leonard is also protective of Mable (Zoey Deutch, ZOMBIELAND: DOUBLE TAP, 2019), his assistant who dreams of traveling the globe.

An early montage shows us how the mob utilizes Leonard's shop for drops, and trusts him due to his 'see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil' demeanor. Leonard is one cool dude, and it's obvious we (and the mob) are underestimating him ... but we can't quite figure out why or by how much. One crazy night changes everything. Richie (Dylan O'Brien, THE MAZE RUNNER franchise) is brought into the tailor shop after being shot by a rival gang ambush. He's accompanied by Francis (Johnny Flynn, EMMA., 2020), and the dynamics between these two is quite interesting. Richie is the son of the Boyle family patriarch and has been seeing Mable on the side, while Francis is the favored employee after saving Roy Boyle (Simon Russell Beale) by taking gun fire. Richie is a whiny, spoiled wannabe tough guy, while Francis is volatile and constantly sneering.

What follows is a bit Hitchcockian. We have plot twists, murder, backstabbing, danger, and surprises. When it's discovered the Boyle family has a rat that is feeding details to the rival cross-town gang and the FBI, things get tense thanks partially to a MacGuffin audio tape. It all leads to confrontations in the shop, and some nice scene-chewing from Simon Russell Beale and Nikki Amuka-Bird as the leader of the rival gang. An elaborate plan by one of the characters is a pleasant surprise (to us, not the others). As Leonard points out on a couple of occasions, he's a "cutter", not a tailor - a distinction he takes as seriously as his skill with shears. The film's title has double meaning: the suits Leonard crafts, and the national syndicate that involves the Boyle family. Most of this we've seen before, but it's Rylance's portrayal of Leonard that offers a different look and feel. Fans of deceptive thrillers will find some joy here.

Opens in theaters on March 18, 2022.

Starts out slow and unassuming. Nothing much happens at first. Is this another boring movie? No way.

The good: excellent acting performances. And a truly surprising and original story, which I did not see coming. Lots of twists that spun my mind. Really enticing to watch, with a shocking final.

Any bad? One has got to have the patience to bridge the first minutes of this movie, because at first looks this movie might seem a bit slow and even a bit boring, but that doesnt make it less intrigueing and surprising.

The story: a gentleman tailor is pressed by the mob, to hide an important briefcase in his premises. What is in it? And what dangers will come of keeping it?

This 'little' film very much has the feeling of a stage play. There is really only one set (the tailor Leonard's shop) in which everything happens. To go along with that, it has an almost claustrophobic atmosphere as the different Chicago gangster characters come and go, threaten Leonard and his receptionist Mable (nicely done by Zoey Deutch), argue, leave again. Leonard basically has to outwit them at every twist and turn (and there are lots of twists and turns), and that is about it for the plot. Add to that the fact that no one is entirely who they seem and we get a fascinating hour and a half of intense 'locked room' drama.

I wouldn't quite call this minimalist ("Wating for Godot" would classify as minimalist in my books). It's continually absorbing and yet built out of nothing but carefully rendered dialog. Mark Rylance is as always superb, he somehow builds a character out of measured dialog and changes in expression that might not be anything more than a raised eyebrow or a tightening of the mouth. Amazing to watch.

I first noticed Zoey Deutch in Before I Fall (2017) in which she was about the only standout. Nice to see that bigger and better roles are coming her way.

Saying anything more at all would give away too much since The Outfit is, in part, a mystery as well as suspense drama. Just go see it!

Suspend your disbelief - it is possible to do so. Especially because the actors and the setting is so well chosen, that you will just fit right into it. No pun intended - and even though there are certain things that seem quite coincidental and based on luck rather on skill or whatever else you would want to call it, the movie and the characters in it, really draw you in - I guess that could also be considered a pun.

While the not tailor (don't call him that, he is a cutter) is at the center of the story and many things seem simple ... there are quite a few revelations that might be able to surprise you. Again do not worry about what makes sense or not too much - just enjoy how well woven it all is - ah another pun. Well I can't help it, it feels good when I put them on and they work like a charm ... charm(e) also something that can be said about the actors involved in this. Not many people in it, but those who are give it their best ... great thriller, with touches of evil and Hitchcock ...