Nerdly » ‘Outpost’ Review

11th May2023

‘Outpost’ Review

by Kevin Haldon

Stars: Beth Dover, Ato Essandoh, Dylan Baker, Becky Ann Baker, Dallas Roberts, Ta’Rea Campbell, Tim Neff, D.R. Anderson | Written and Directed by Joe Lo Truglio

I do love checking out directorial debuts, I so do. Especially when it looks like the first-time director is flexing that creative muscle in a realm you might not exactly associate with their usual body of work. So the thought of Joe Lo Truglio of Brooklyn Nine-Nine fame making what promised to be some sort of psychological survival thriller type thing starring actress Beth Dover (Orange is the New Black). Well, it is safe to say I was super intrigued by this prospect and couldn’t wait to check out Outpost.

Kate (Dover) is the victim of a horrific attack that has left her physically and mentally scarred. Unable to shake off the events and truly get on with life, she seeks the help of her best friend Nicki; who suggests she just gets away from it all and she knows the perfect place. Beth soon finds herself working and staying at an outpost tower looking over a reservation-type area watching out for wildfires and nefarious things.

Of course when you have been through an ordeal like Kate has, maybe solitude and being alone for weeks on end with nothing but your demons is not the best way to cope…

Outpost is a perfect blend of heightened tension due to the scenario, paranoia due to things not necessarily being what they seem and tying this together is a somewhat mesmerising performance from our lead, as she is able to take us down the track all the while making you feel all the emotions. Then there is some well-crafted misdirection from writer/director Joe Lo Truglio that to speak too much on could be spoilers but suffice it to say Truglio took me in a direction I didn’t expect.

Cast wise Beth Dover is doing all of the heavy lifting and in those darker moments of the character she really shines. There are some moments that are borderline just silly for me with her but overall it’s a strong performance. The MVP of the flick for me was Dylan Baker as neighbour Reggie. He only has a handful of scenes but brings another level to the performances and I thought his scenes with Dover were some of her best. Ato Essandoh and Dallas Roberts are our local ranger duo rounding out our core cast and both these guys were on fine form.

There really aren’t any ‘bad’ performances to speak of, are some better than others? Sure. However, for me, this movie really lived in its structure. By that I mean, so many movies that try to be clever or smart are ruined by the unsubtle art of telegraphing what is coming. I would rather have you drip feed information to me naturally because then when I do get something pointing to the truth… well I probably won’t believe it anyway because that’s not what I saw. That is what this movie does, it quietly plays off of your already untrusting nature towards this woman because you feel like she is losing her grip, and then the movie takes advantage of your sympathetic turn to her situation.

Overall I was a big-time fan of Outpost and it feels like this is a hell of first run-out for Truglio as a director, my only real negative here was that ending. It’s not awful by any stretch but it just seems to come to an abrupt finish. I kind of get why it did as it plays to the overall narrative/message but man did I just want a little bit more… and I truly hope to be seeing more from this director and his cast.