A reluctant crusader, Jacob (Hayden Christensen)
has went
east down the Silk Road to China in the middle of the 13th century
as he looks for redemption (and a fellow crusader (Nicolas Cage) who saw the
Crusades fro what they
were). He gets addicted to opium and he
saves the lives of a young prince and his sister (Lian)- who are the run
from their ruthless older brother (who murdered their father). Their father
wanted the younger prince to
take over the kingdom knowing the older prince was a good-for-nothing despised
bastard. The older brother is blaming
the murder of their father on the young prince and he wants the royal seal which was given
to the nicer young prince. Jacob must keep his the prince
and princess safe as they journey to a safe place, but he may need help to
protect them while he faces his own personal demons.
Hayden Christensen gives a much better performance
as a war
weary knight (than he ever did in the STAR
WARS movies) who sticks out like a sore thumb in the foreign land
of China. Nicolas Cage gives an over-the-top
performance (while sporting another wild long hair and bearded look) where he
is only in about 30 minutes of OUCAST.
The cinematography is very erratic when it comes to the action scenes
which could have used less shaky camera motion (which is only good when you’re
in motion unless you have the skill of someone like director Paul Greengrass
with shaky camera action in the Bourne movies). The plot is a little underdeveloped
and most
of the characters are clichéd while OUTCAST could have used a main Asian
character to help Jacob in his quest to protect the prince and princess. Nicolas
Cage is an underused asset despite
one of his other universal appeal performances to add another type of character
to his acting resume. OUTCAST is good
enough for a rental and it is easily forgettable because it lacks a really good
script and better direction.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
Theatrical trailer
The MAKING OF OUTCAST featurette (about ten minutes
long) is
a behind-the-scenes promotional featurette which is a mix of interviews,
behind-the-scenes footage, and clips from the movie. You learn from producer
Jeremy Bolt that he
originally developed OUCAST as a Vikings vs Saxon drama ten years ago before he
redeveloped it as the movie that was made.
54 minutes of interviews with director Nicholas
Powell and
actors Nicolas Cage and Hayden Christensen which reveal more in-depth details
about the movie, how Nicolas Cage compares Hayden to himself and how he liked
Hayden’s work in the STAR WARS prequels, and
Nicolas talks a little bit about his acting
FINAL ANALYSIS:
OUTCAST is a passable action tale fit for rental where the acting is
good from Hayden Christensen while Nicolas Cage adds another performance to his
resume. The movie shows off China,
but it could have used a more developed script to make it stand apart and not
be forgettable direct to video fodder.
This review is ©4-2-2015
David Blackwell and cannot be reprinted without permission. Send all comments
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