Parents' Guide to

The Outsider

By Brian Costello, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 17+

Japanese mob story is very violent and bloody.

Movie NR 2018 120 minutes
The Outsider Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

  • The Outsider Movie: Scene #1
  • The Outsider Movie: Scene #2

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What's the Story?

In THE OUTSIDER, Nick (Jared Leto), a former American GI presumed dead, is languishing in a brutal Japanese prison in 1954. But after he covers for his cellmate Kiyoshi (Tadanabu Osano), a member of a Yakuza family, Kiyoshi returns the favor by getting Nick released. Kiyoshi brings Nick into the world of his Yakuza family in Osaka, a family that runs the gambling, prostitution, and shipping of the city. After Nick begins to prove his worth to the family against disrespectful gambling den operators, war-profiteering American dock managers, and the rival family all-too-eager to muscle out the Osaka family, Nick begins to fall in love with Kiyoshi's sister Miyu. This increases the tensions between Nick and some of the Yakuza, who distrust Nick as an outsider who they believe cannot possibly be a part of their world. Meanwhile, the fight between the two rival families reaches a boiling point, and Nick must decide if he wants to remain in Japan as a Yakuza or find a way back to America with Miyu.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say Not yet rated
Kids say (1):

While an entertaining and intriguing story, this movie comes off as being a little too self-aware of the similar movies that came before it, and a little too studied for its own good. Even if one isn't overly familiar with movies centered on Yakuza families, or even Mafia families from Sicily or New Jersey, it doesn't take much to spot the plot twists coming from a mile away. But perhaps this is what the more dedicated fans of movies like these want and expect. The problem is that a perfectly good "fish out of water" story gets overwhelmed with all these expected murders, betrayals, and literal backstabbings.

While there's no questioning Jared Leto's dedication to the role, it's often difficult to really get a sense of who exactly Nick is. It's assumed and subtly implied that he has found a sense of family and community he hasn't had in quite some time. A chance encounter with a character from his past reveals that the Nick we've seen is a more subdued shell of the more animated GI he used to be. But Leto's "strong and silent type" vacillates between Clint Eastwood's stoicism and Christopher Walken's menace, and it's jarring to reconcile the two. Nonetheless, a place and time (Osaka 1954) is certainly evoked, and The Outsider has some truly unforgettable moments.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about movies centered on the Mafia. While The Outsider is about Yakuza, how does it compare to other Mafia movies in terms of story, plot twists, character types, and violence?

  • Do you think the violence was necessary to the story? Did it help to define the overall style of the movie or did it seem gratuitous? Why?

  • This movie can be seen as a "fish out of water"-type story, in which an unexpected character is thrust into a world and culture where they are unfamiliar. What are some other examples of "fish out of water" movies?

Movie Details

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