Artisan Home Entertainment presents

Outrage (1998)

"One man is taking control of the streets...."- Tagline

Stars: Rob Lowe, Jennifer Grey
Other Stars: Kathryn Harrold, Eric Michael Cole
Director: Robert Allan Ackerman

Manufacturer: WAMO
MPAA Rating: Not Rated for language, scary moments
Run Time: 01h:29m:41s
Release Date: 2002-10-22
Genre: suspense thriller

Style Grade	Substance Grade	Image Transfer Grade	Audio Transfer Grade	Extras Grade
B	C	B	B-	D+

 

DVD Review

Tom Casey (Lowe) is an easy going insurance salesman who has a pregnant and loving wife (Grey) and a nice life in the perfect community. Suddenly, his world is turned upside down when three juveniles begin wreaking havoc on his street by breaking into cars. Tom calls the police, who arrive just in time to find the trio breaking into Tom's car and apprehend them. Unfortunately, Tom has an unlicensed firearm that is found under the seat and so he, too, is apprehended, sentenced to fifteen days in jail for breaking the law.

When Tom is released his outlook on the world has changed drastically. What was once the perfect life has become a sort of nightmare as the same juveniles have begun terrorizing his family, going so far as to kidnap Tom's wife. Fed up, Tom takes action and becomes something of a shadow of his former self.

Outrage is a movie-of-the-week with a shot of adrenaline that propels the action to be better than average, but it can not save a ludicrous plot from derailing an otherwise enjoyable piece of B-grade filmmaking. The idea that a single incident can force someone's life into a tumultuous turnaround is promising on a dramatic level, but this take misses the very idea of what makes it so. The film borders on being hypocritical in that Tom becomes exactly what he's rebelling against. By the time he brandishes another illegal gun and is out for vengeance, the character that has been so precisely built goes out the window. It is one thing to promote a message in a film; it is another to abandon it for the sake of exciting filmmaking.

That said, it is the style of Outrage that makes it enjoyable. Director Robert Ackerman handles his low budget well, composing shots that give the film a sense of flare, making the scope seem larger than it is. Lowe is good in his performance, though I am in the camp that nearly everything he does is of high quality. Grey does nothing more than stand around helplessly and while she is adequate, she often looks as though she would rather be doing something else.

In many ways this is Unlawful Entry "lite," as it fails to offer the subtle tension of the Kurt Russell/Ray Liotta movie. Still, it is mildly enjoyable if only for Lowe's performance and a promising job behind the camera by Ackerman.

Rating for Style: B
Rating for Substance: C

 

Image Transfer

	One
Aspect Ratio	1.33:1 - Full Frame
Original Aspect Ratio	yes
Anamorphic	no

Image Transfer Review: Presented in its original full-frame aspect ratio, Artisan provides a transfer that is simply adequate. Colors are fine, as are sharpness and detail, although I did notice some moiré patterns throughout. The quality of the print used is pristine, as the film is devoid of any dirt or scratches. This is a good transfer, if you can get past the fact that it is quite soft looking.

Image Transfer Grade: B
 

Audio Transfer

	Language	Remote Access
DS 2.0	English	yes

Audio Transfer Review: The Dolby Surround track is dialogue-based with the surround speakers offering little to no support. Dialogue is crisp and clear throughout with no distortion. The musical score is recreated nicely in the left and right speakers.

Audio Transfer Grade: B- 

Disc Extras

Static menu
Scene Access with 12 cues
1 Disc
1-Sided disc(s)
Layers: single

Extras Review: No extra features are available. Twelve chapter stops are accessible via static menu pages.

Extras Grade: D+
 

Final Comments

I have trouble recommending Outrage given that it is just another "villain in the house" film, and not at the top of the genre.

Kevin Clemons 2002-12-18