Outland (1981)

"...essentially High Noon in outer space, and one of the most entertaining sci-fi flicks ever made.  Chuck O'Leary, FulvueDrive-In.com
"...an enjoyable sci-fi action flick.  David Nusair, Reel Film Reviews

Editor's Note A federal marshal on an outer-space mining colony uncovers a hideous secret that threatens the sanity of miners working in the depths of an outer planet. Academy Award Nominations: Best Sound.

	Frances Sternhagen
	John Ratzenberger
	Peter Boyle
	Sean Connery
	Jerry Goldsmith - Original Music By
	Malcolm Middleton - Art Director
	Peter Hyams - Director
	Peter Hyams - Writer
	Philip Harrison - Production Designer
	Richard A. Roth - Producer
	Stanley O'Toole - Executive Producer
	Stephen Goldblatt - Cinematographer
	Stuart Baird - Editor

Sometime in the future, an upstanding federal marshal arrives at a space colony located on one of Jupiter's moons. Alarmed by the strange and violent behavior of the miners who work for the colony's giant mining corporation, the marshal decides to investigate. When he discovers that the general manager of the corporation is supplying the workforce with a dangerous, mind-altering amphetamine, the lawman prepares to battle it out with the villainous manager in a "High Noon"-like showdown. Variety
"...A tight, intriguing old-fashioned drama that gives audiences a hero worth rooting for..." 05/20/1981

New York Times
"...OUTLAND is what most people mean when they talk about good escapist entertainment..." 05/22/1981 p.C8

Home Theater Info 8 of 10
It is a very rare thing indeed when a writer and director can take a well loved genre like the western, take the essence that makes it popular and apply it to a completely different genre. This is what makes the film Outland so special. It is basically the same story as the well beloved western classic High Noon only it is set in a mining colony orbiting a moon of Jupiter...I could not have selected a better cast than is assembled here. Connery gives one of his best performances in his career here. Rather than being type cast as Bond, he grew older and embraced the different roles available to him. He plays the marshal straight from the hip, a modern Gary Cooper but far from an imitation...Director Peter Hyams has had a varied career mostly centered on the futuristic. On his resume are such works as End of Days, The Relic, Timecop and 2010: The Year We Made Contact. This has provided him the opportunity to work with very inventive actors and special effects people. Here in Outland he recreates the old west look and feel in a modern environment. The quarters are crowed, the bar noisy the working conditions almost brutal. You really get the feel that with human beings the more things change the more they stay the same. The pacing of the film is impeccable.