Quartile rating: 7.5/10 · 1 rating
Leonard is an English tailor who used to craft suits on London’s world-famous Savile Row. After a personal tragedy, he’s ended up in Chicago, operating a small tailor shop in a rough part of town where he makes beautiful clothes for the only people around who can afford them: a family of vicious gangsters.
The Outfit is a tightly wound, single-location chamber thriller that earns its praise through an exceptionally clever, twist-laden plot full of double-crosses and reveals. Mark Rylance delivers a masterclass in understated menace and wit, anchoring the film with one of the finest performances of 2022, while the supporting cast matches him well. The cinematography is competent and atmospheric but ultimately conventional for its setting — the confined tailor shop is used well but not transcendently. Novelty is moderate: the film is sharply executed and feels distinctive in its theatrical, Hitchcockian DNA, but the mob-thriller genre and single-room setup aren't entirely fresh territory. The ending, however, is a genuine standout — a beautifully engineered payoff that recontextualizes everything with elegant precision.