From award winning writer-director Rachid Bouchareb (Days of Glory) comes the story of three brothers who fight for Algeria’s independence from France after World War II. After losing their family home in Algeria, three brothers are scattered across the globe. Messaoud joins the French army fighting in Indochina; Abdelkader becomes a leader of the Algerian independence movement; Said moves to Paris to make his fortune in the shady clubs and boxing halls of Pigalle. Gradually, their interconnecting destinies reunite them in the French capital, where freedom is a battle to be fought and won.
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Video Quality
Outside The Law comes to Blu-Ray in a 1080p presentation that knocks it out of the park. This is a film with varied looks over the course of several decades which are all handled with care. You do not go very long without seeing gorgeous shots of the city or the countryside where you can see an incredible amount of detail. From the opulent nightclubs to the grungy locker rooms of the boxing match, this transfer feels as if you could reach out and feel the textures on display. The skin tones look very detailed and natural all around. The white levels are very strong when the situation arises along with the intensely deep blacks that do not appear to suffer from any compression artifacts. Colors leap off the screen with the splendid hues of clothing and elements of the production design. There are no instances of intrusive digital noise in the presentation. This presentation is very fetching from Cohen Media Group.
Audio Quality
The film comes to Blu-Ray with an engaging DTS-HD 5.1 and 2.0 Master Audio track in the original French. The movie does feature some bursts of violence and action which stand out, but even the more calm moments provide environmental activity which comes through particularly well. Surround channels get some nice activity from the chatter at secret meetings to the ringing of bullets or explosions of cars. The score gives this film a sense of momentum as it flows through with flawless fidelity. The low end of the track does become active when the scene calls for it in a really memorable way. The dialogue and sound effects are appropriately balanced with the score where nothing gets lost in the track. This track does everything it needs to do well.
Special Features
- Making-Of: A nearly 28-minute piece in which the cast and creative team discuss the desire to bring this piece of history to the screen, recreating this time period through production design and costumes, the arc of the story, the characters and performances in the film, the choreography of the stunt work, the heightened emotions behind the project and more.
- Deleted Scenes: A 28-minute selection of unused material is provided here in 720p. There are some interesting moments worth exploring for those who enjoy the film, but it is understandable why things were cut with the film already being fairly lengthy.
- Interview with Director Rachid Bouchareb: A 12-minute piece with the director in which he discusses the birth of the project, how he prepared for production, the difficulties that arose and more.
- Cast Interviews with Laurent Weil: A 20-minute which finds Weil interviewing the main cast members as they discuss collaborating with Bouchareb, why they wanted to tell this story, the themes of the film and more.
- Trailer: The two-minute trailer is provided here.
Final Thoughts
Outside The Law may be difficult to assess when it comes to accuracy for those who are not as educated on the conflict, but the movie as presented is very engaging and well crafted. The story is given a nice sense of gravitas through its presentation by director Rachid Bouchareb, who finds impactful ways to draw the viewers into the narrative. The core performers all do a strong job of getting you invested in these characters, but some developments and secondary characters can feel a bit glossed over in favor of trying to cover more territory within this sprawling epic. Cohen Media Group and Kino Lorber have released a Blu-Ray featuring a great A/V presentation and a pretty nice assortment of special features. If you are interested in learning more about international conflicts that have not been given as much time on screen, try this one out. Recommended
Outside The Law is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray and Digital.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Cohen Media Group and Kino Lorber have supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.