As mentioned, Netflix is going to have a historic fall movie season. I just can't see them not crashing the Oscar race at this point. Of course, David McKenzie's "Outlaw King" doesn't seem to be part of their awards plan, at least when compared to Alfonso Cuaron's "ROMA," Joel and Ethan Coen's "The Ballad of Buster Scruggs" and Martin Scorsese's "The Irishman," which I hear has a a shot at changing its 2019 release date for December of 2018, all depending on how the Oscar race is shaping up and if this year's crop of contending films is too stacked to add in Scorsese's gangster saga. Personally speaking, I think if Scorsese's film is released it will win Best Picture.
With all that being said, the upcoming “Outlaw King” has a trailer and it looks great. Telling the “untold true story” of Robert the Bruce, outlaw hero/revolutionary king, the film seems to recall Mel Gibson's "Braveheart," and Ridley Scott's "Robin Hood," although let's hope that 'Outlaw' is actually the former.
Mackenzie brought us 2016’s excellent neo-Western “Hell or High Water” and 2014's compulsively watchable prison-drama "Starred Up." He's the real deal, but this latest endeavor can easily backfire on him. These kind of historical epics have been done to death, they're a dime a dozen, but the trailer does hint at, possibly, a well-shot and fresh new take on the genre.
Mackenzie’s film also stars Chris Pine, who also starred in “Hell or High Water,” as well as Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Florence Pugh, Billy Howle, Tony Curran, Stephen Dillane, James Cosmo, and Sam Spruell.
“Outlaw King” is the opening night film at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival and will be on Netflix November 9.