One reviewer noted that it was obvious that this was written and directed by women. I thought the same thing. After all, it is a romance, first and a western second...distant second. The cinematography is brilliant, a bit dark at times, but considering how little electric light there was in the 19th century, it's appropriate. For the most part the acting is right on. The dialog, at times a bit forced, but is well written. But overall the film is predictable, the story line, as others have noted, is all too familiar. There's a scene where Johnny Gault tells Rebecca his life story. In a violation of the classic show, don't tell, rule. All of that would have been much more powerful had it been shown in flashback. Probably the worst part was the final shootout, yes, of course, you knew there had to be one. After Johnny had claimed to be good at killin', that he had "eyes in the back of his head", he doesn't see the old sneaking up behind 'em trick. But all in all, for a romance novel, it wasn't all bad.
Review of The Outsider
