After accidentally locking himself out of his building, an introverted
editor is forced to confront the world he's been avoiding in search of a
way back inside.
Review by
Musanna Ahmed
Directed by: Casimir Nozkowski
Starring: Brian Tyree Henry, Sonequa Martin-Green, Sunita Mani, Asia Kate Dillon,
Olivia Edward, Rebecca Naomi Jones, Maria Dizzia
Though it was made in the Before Times, The Outside Story is
essentially a COVID-19 movie flipped on its head. Where the quarantine has
generated tales about creating virtual spaces to connect with one another
(Host, Coastal Elites) or simply spending a vast amount of time cohabiting with those in our
limited vicinity (Recovery, Locked Down), here is a story in which the protagonist has the freedom to avoid all
physical contact while life goes on as normal. Until he has no choice.
Charles Young (Brian Tyree Henry) is a video editor who wants to
live in solitude after breaking up with his girlfriend Isha (Sonequa Martin-Green). His job can afford him to stay indoors anyway, and he only needs to
take one look outside the window to see a busy community that would only
disrupt his self-isolation. A food delivery utility provides him with the
basic hierarchy of needs but, one time, the driver sadly walks off without
a tip, noting to Charles that Isha was generous compared to him.
Tripped by guilt, Charles runs out of the apartment to hand him loose
change and show appreciation for his service. On the way back, though, he
realises he has locked himself out of the apartment, thus ensuing a long
day in which he’ll get to know the people of his neighbourhood. From
talking to the local police officer Slater (Sunita Mani) to a
nine-month pregnant woman named Paige (Hannah Bos) to his
hard-nosed neighbour Juliet (Maria Dizzia) and her exuberant
daughter Elena (Olivia Edward), Charles understands that he isn’t
the only one trying to navigate difficult emotions. Naturally - obviously
- it’s a message film that instructs us to not keep our feelings literally
locked inside.
And though the moral may be hammered into our head, it’s alright because
the hammer has a soft touch. It feels nice to be in the company of these
gentle characters, played by lovely actors led by the great
Atlanta star. Part of its charm also lies in the fact that
Charles’ long afternoon entails a series of events that are grounded and
relatable, almost feeling like a lived-in experience. We’ve all had one of
these sorta days, finding serendipitous connections that help us make the
best out of an unfortunate episode.
At this point, one year removed from the outset of the pandemic, it is
boring and predictable to merely label a lightweight, feel-good film
as the sort of film we need right now. Particularly when it’s a film that
exports a diverse, liberal, happy-go-lucky image of America at a time when
that is simply not the case. But the coincidence of
The Outside Story being an inverted timeline of our actual
events gives me confidence to recommend it for this reason – it is
absolutely a pleasant way to pass the time, finding unexpected humour in
its parallels to the state of the world in the last year. Appealing
performances from a medley of underappreciated talent bolster its appeal.
The Outside Story is on US
VOD/Digital from April 30th. A UK/ROI release has yet to be announced.
