Based on Donald E. Westlake’s 1963 novel of the same name (written under his pseudonym of Richard Stark), The Outfit is a 1973 neo-noir crime film directed and written by John Flynn, who’d later go on to make Rolling Thunder. “The Outfit” was the name of an Italian-American crime syndicate based in Chicago, and it’s this organization that propels the plot of the film. When Earl is released from prison, he immediately learns his brother Eddie was assassinated by the crime syndicate and that he’s next on their list. It turns out the bank that he robbed with his brother in the past has been owned by the Chicago mob and now it’s time to pay their debts. He, however, sees it differently, demanding an additional quarter of a million dollars from the syndicate as payment for the trouble they caused him.
Starring Robert Duvall, Karen Black, Joe Don Baker, Timothy Carey and Robert Ryan, The Outfit was shot by Clint Eastwood’s frequent collaborator, cinematographer Bruce Surtees and is embellished by jazz musician Jerry Fielding’s score. Roger Ebert called it a “classy action picture, very well directed and acted”, and it doesn’t really come as a surprise that The Outfit has found its way onto numerous lists of films you most likely haven’t seen but should. A really nicely crafted crime film with a nice flow, great action set pieces and an excellent cast.
In 1972 a neophyte Spanish media company created a rare platform for artists to explore classic genre imagery with a sophisticated cinematic sensibility.
Based on Jean-Patrick Manchette's 1976 novel "West Coast Blues" (or, in the original, "Le Petit Bleu de la côte ouest"), Jacques Deray's 1980 box office...
