Outside the Law
Cohen Media Group | Release Date: November 3, 2010 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
59
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 14 Critic Reviews
Positive:
8
Mixed:
5
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
91
Entertainment WeeklyLisa SchwarzbaumNov 3, 2010
Rachid Bouchareb's intensely dramatized, passionately partisan story of militancy in the struggle for Algerian independence from France after World War II makes effective use of "Godfather" storytelling theatrics. Read full review
80
EmpirePhilip WildingMay 2, 2011
Controversial and contended it may be in France, but whatever your stance this is another thrilling and thoughtful slice of history from the "Days Of Glory" director. Read full review
80
Arizona RepublicBill GoodykoontzFeb 24, 2011
An epic film about Algeria's fight for liberation from France, with three outstanding performances and a grand, sweeping feel. Read full review
75
Philadelphia InquirerCarrie RickeyFeb 17, 2011
A gripping French-Algerian coproduction that makes Algeria's epic struggle for independence from France look like a gangster movie. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertNov 23, 2010
At the very least a superior action film, in which the action sequences are plausible and grounded in reality. Read full review
75
New York PostLou LumenickNov 5, 2010
A powerful, decades-spanning epic about that country's fight for independence centering on three brothers. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesBetsy SharkeyNov 11, 2010
The filmmaker is at his best unspooling the politics of independence, which he does with such confident fervor that you always understand the fight. Read full review
65
MovielineMichelle OrangeNov 3, 2010
A companion film to "Days of Glory," Rachid Bouchareb's 2006 feature about Algerian soldiers who fought for France in World War II, Outside the Law is another historical drama with a heavy heart and a knack for genre. Read full review
60
Time OutDavid FearNov 3, 2010
Even the movie's trio of outstanding actors come off like mouthpieces from a creaky Group Theater play, spiced with an occasional Cagneyism or two. Read full review
50
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Jennie PunterMar 24, 2011
A great-looking, fast-paced film and, to his credit, Bouchareb doesn't bathe the F.L.N. in a completely flattering light. But narrowing the focus to one central conflicted character and tightening the time frame might have given the audience something more to ponder than the action of a historical revenge thriller. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleWalter AddiegoFeb 10, 2011
Aims to make epic drama of Algeria's battle for independence, but there are moments when you would swear you're watching a "Godfather" knockoff. Read full review
50
The New York TimesStephen HoldenNov 4, 2010
As powerful and well made as it is, Outside the Law is too schematic and single-minded to lodge itself in your mind as a fully realized cinematic epic. Its few female characters are sketchy at best. It is all politics, all the time. Read full review
40
Village VoiceNick PinkertonNov 2, 2010
The production design is nice enough, but Bouchareb's four-country co-production isn't an epic-it's just long. Read full review
25
Miami HeraldRene RodriguezMar 25, 2011
A stiff, unconvincing epic. Read full review
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