The Outsider (2002)

★ 5.8 1h 59m IMDb

Drama Romance Western

Montana sheep farmer Rebecca Yoder offers sanctuary to an on-the-lam outlaw, Johnny Gault, who is suffering from a gunshot wound. Yoder is a recent widow, and her decision to help the outsider doesn't sit well with her Quaker community. As a romance brews between her and Gault, it puts in jeopardy her standing among her devout neighbors. But when an evil rancher makes a play for the community's land, Gault's sharpshooting skills might prove his worth after all.

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Cast

Tim Daly as Johnny Gault Age 70 · New York City, New York, USA James Timothy 'Tim' Daly (born March 1, 1956) is an American actor and producer. He is known for his roles as Joe Hackett on NBC's sitcom Wings, Pete Wilder on Private Practice, Henry McCord (husband...

Naomi Watts as Rebecca Yoder Age 57 · Shoreham, Kent, England, UK Naomi Ellen Watts (born September 28, 1968) is a British actress. She has been nominated for two Academy Awards for Best Actress for her performances as a grief-stricken mother in Alejandro González I...

Keith Carradine as Noah Weaver Age 76 · San Mateo, California, USA Keith Ian Carradine (born August 8, 1949) is an American actor and singer-songwriter. In film he is known for his roles as Tom Frank in Robert Altman's Nashville, E. J.

David Carradine as Doctor Lucas Henry Died 2009 · Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA David Carradine (born John Arthur Carradine Jr.; December 8, 1936 – June 3, 2009) was an American actor best known for playing martial arts roles. He is perhaps best known as the star of the 1970s tel...

Thomas Curtis as Benjo Yoder Age 34 Thomas Curtis (born April 20, 1991) is an American actor. Curtis has starred in The Cactus Kid, Sweet Home Alabama, Red Dragon and The Chumscrubber. He also act in Hansel & Gretel and North Country..

Brett Tucker as Ben Yoder Age 53 · Melbourne, Victoria, Australia Brett Tucker is an actor..

Director Randa Haines

Cast Tim Daly, Naomi Watts, Keith Carradine, David Carradine, Thomas Curtis, Brett Tucker, John Noble, Grant Piro, Peter McCauley, Jason Clarke

dennyjt 6/10 Aug 01, 2022

Shades of “Angel & The Badman” in this tale of wounded gunfighter Daly turning up at Quaker Watts’ shack. She takes him in and nurses him back to health, although wary of his quick temper. As he recovers, he is shadowed by her wide-eyed son, in the manner of “Shane”. Despite the obvious antecedents, this succeeds on its own merits as a rewarding adult Western. The local gang are gunning for Daly, having earlier swiftly dispatched Watts’ husband, but she finds opposition to her burgeoning love from the leaders of her cult, as Daly goes to town to face the gang. Keith Carradine is the religious leader, David Carradine the doctor.

Wuchak 8/10 Sep 13, 2025

**_Hidden gem of a Western_**

In Montana, 1887, a shootist (Tim Daly) finds sanctuary with a widow (Naomi Watts) & her son, who happen to belong to a Plain People sect. Keith Carradine plays a neighboring elder while David Carradine is on hand as the local doctor.

"The Outsider" (2002) meshes ideas from “Angel and the Badman,” “Shane,” “Witness” and “The Scarlet Letter” (1995) and is pretty much on par with the best of ’em in its own unique way. There’s a reverent, beautiful vibe reminiscent of “The Last of the Mohicans” (1992), just with the setting & tone of the future “Forsaken” with Donald & Kiefer Sutherland.

Two heavy topics are addressed. One is absolute pacifism vs limited pacifism. The small sect advocates the former while the movie advocates the latter. Rebecca Yoder (Naomi) argues her case on the grounds of “turning the cheek,” but the Lord was talking about ignoring an insult for the sake of peace in that passage (since the statement referred to responding to a backhanded slap to the face); he wasn’t talking about dealing with serious criminal acts, like murder.

As far as criminal acts go, Christ plainly said, “If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into.” Nehemiah 4 emphasizes how the returning Hebrews to Jerusalem “did their work with one hand and held a weapon in the other.” In other words, self-protection (including protecting your loved ones) against criminal threat is a natural right.

For anyone who argues that Christ condemned living by the sword, there’s a vast difference between “living by the sword” and utilizing it when necessary. This explains why the disciples had swords in their possession for protection against thieves and cutthroats in their long travels, as shown in Luke 22:49-50.

The other interesting topic concerns religious sectarianism and the issues thereof. The group shown in the movie are noble people, no doubt, but Johnny Gault (Daly) observes that they’ve inadvertently hindered their faith by an obsession with rules, which is legal-ism. The problem with this is that “the letter kills”; and this explains what happens to Rebecca’s brother. Will she allow legalism to kill her & her family (literally or figuratively) or will she escape? This has nothing to do with faith in God and everything to do with not putting God in a man-made box, which stifles life and stultifies growth.

It runs 1 hours, 58 minutes, and was shot in Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia.

GRADE: A-