The Outsiders (1983)

The Outsiders (1983)

Francis Ford Coppola is the visionary director who brought The Godfather films and Apocalypse Now to the big screen and he really made a name for himself directing these classics. After watching these films, I was very interested in what Coppola directed next. That film happened to be 1983’s The Outsiders. After watching this film, I thought it was…. merely fine. It was an interesting enough movie, but Coppola’s direction is actually one of the film’s biggest culprits. He really brought style to the movie in terms of lighting and the overall look, but he could have paid more attention to his characters. These characters were paper-thin and some of the dialogue was a bit sketchy. It was interesting to see what Coppola could do by tackling the theme of teen angst. I just wish he brought more life to the story.

Coppola and screenwriter adapted this story from S.E Hinton’s famous novel-one that was written when the author was sixteen years old. Ponyboy Curtis (C. Thomas Howell) is the youngest of three siblings. He lives with the eldest child, Darrell (Patrick Swayze) and the middle child, Sodapop (Rob Lowe). Their parents are deceased and the relationship between the children is muddled at best. These kids belong a gang called the Greasers, a working-class gang from the north side of town. Ponyboy, with his sensitive nature, believes the actions of this gang will split their family up-especially with the gang leader, Dallas Winston (Matt Dillon). The Greasers’s main rivals are the Socs-a gang of super rich kids from the south of town. These gangs are pitted against one another when a connection is formed between Ponyboy and a girlfriend of one of the Soc’s members, Cherry Valance (Diane Lane). This doesn’t sit well and lives of people from both sides may be threatened.

I’m amazed by this cast. Mostly big names here, but they were not big at the time of the movie’s release. Many of these names would go on to have long and big careers. (Swayze, Lane, Dillon, and yes even Tom Cruise is here). It’s ironic that the lead actor, C. Thomas Howell would be the least popular actor here. It’s a shame because I thought he delivered a nice performance despite the way the character was written. Same goes for Ralph Macchio-who played Ponyboy’s friend, Johnny. Although the characters were not written well enough, there were nothing wrong with these portrayals. Matt Dillon kind of reminds me of his My Bodyguard performance here. Patrick Swayze was also very good here.

I do like the themes the movie tries to bring across. I never read the source material, so it’s hard to say how well the film was adapted. But realism is a key factor. Through a new perspective, Coppola wanted to show how tough growing up without loved ones aka parents could be. In that regard, he did succeed. Many of the characters we come to know or even sympathize with here grew up without family, thus making their actions more believable. I definitely look towards Matt Dillon’s character this way. These characters were a bit romanticized, but definitely believable.

The cracks do begin to show in Coppola’s direction. His staging techniques were…. interesting. He does bring a playful style to the mix. The visuals were certainly captivating and I liked in the director’s cut of the film, he added 60’s music. The song “Gloria” is used to full effect in the movie. The performances were really good and they were a nice introduction for the actors’ future works, for the most part. The film can be slow at times and the dialogue is a little corny, but watching these “bad boys” grow up can be an interesting and memorable watch.

My Grade: B-