"The Outfit" is a cheap, talky and stagy chamber drama that thinks it is clever. But the smartest thing about director and cowriter Graham Moore's film is casting Mark Rylance as Leonard (aka "English") the main character, a cutter — not a tailor — who makes bespoke suits. (To be fair, the suits are quite sharp.)
Playing a discreet gentleman who knows exactly what to say — or not to say — and when, Rylance gives a performance that is reminiscent of Michael Caine in his prime. Leonard is one of those screen characters who is easily underestimated, which is why viewers keep their eyes on him. And Rylance is able to suggest so much of what Leonard is thinking with just his eyes or his mouth. But as good as the Oscar-winning actor is here, it is disappointing he is not in a better film.
