First Netflix Action Movie of 2021 Falls Short
At the beginning of 2021, the streaming platform Netflix said they would release at least one new movie per week on their platform. One of the first movies to be released was Outside the Wire, starring Anthony Mackie and Damson Idris.
Outside the Wire takes place in Ukraine in the midst of war. Lieutenant Harp (Idris), a disgraced drone pilot, is forced to face his decisions after he’s paired with Captain Leo (Mackie), a bio-engineered soldier. The premise of the movie is that only Harp and one superior know that Leo is not human, while the two soldiers make their way through “the gauntlet” for information against their enemy. This enemy happens to be a Russian, named Koval, who wants the codes for nuclear weapons to destroy the U.S.
The beginning of the movie started well. There was a lot of build up, and the moment when the main character, Harp, realizes who and what his captain is sets up suspense for the pair to see action. But the realities of being a robot, or bio-engineered soldier, aren’t outlined that well. At multiple points in the movie Leo points to the fact that he “feels more” than humans do. He even goes as far as to claim that maybe humans don’t feel enough. But it’s never shown exactly how different Leo is, placing emphasis on how he’s supposed to be the same as a normal man.
One thing I thought they did well was the portrayal of Captain Leo and his abilities. He’s persuasive and leads Harp and others into intense standoffs and dangerous situations. The plot thickens when Leo reveals to Harp that they weren’t randomly partnered and that Leo chose him specifically. After this is revealed, it’s easy to see Leo’s character twisting reality for Harp, making it hard for him to say no. I think the “better than human” aspect of Leo’s character was done well. It also played into his main function, inspiring peace and trust. Leo convinces Harp to go rogue and cut out his tracker, and they go after Koval and the codes themselves. This seems to clash with the storyline as it has already been presented. Harp was stoic and strong when it came to procedure. Having already been in trouble, Harp knew he could not fail or disobey orders again. Yet, with little effort, Leo convinces him to go along with him.
This leads to the plot twist in the movie, which was not entirely unexpected, but it still made sense. Spoiler alert for anyone who wants to watch the movie themselves. After a failed attack on Koval, Leo reveals that the tracker pulled from his back was actually a fail-safe, keeping him from disobeying orders unless in extreme situations. Leo tricked Harp into giving him what he wanted: freedom. The two men fail to kill Koval but Leo manages to get the codes he needs. But Harp doesn’t catch up fast enough mentally and is dumped, realizing Leo was working for Koval too late.
With little explanation, it’s just accepted that Leo was working for the Russians the entire time and he too wants to destroy the U.S. with nuclear weapons. This is somewhat confusing considering how in depth Leo’s character goes while explaining why he looks the way he does and what his function is. Leo is supposed to inspire negotiation; his face is meant to be safe and trustworthy internationally. He is an American soldier and a peacemaker, but all of a sudden, it’s thrown out and he’s now determined to take control of the nuclear weapons himself. Harp eventually makes it back to command to tell his superiors, explaining that he is the reason they can’t track or control Leo anymore.
Leo heads for the nuclear weapons as he prepares to send them off himself, as Harp volunteers to go after him and try to stop him. Harp does catch up, and using high-tech rounds he takes Leo down long enough for them to talk before the weapons are disarmed. Leo again goes off on a tirade about the deeper meaning of his existence. He explains that he is “the face of never-ending war” and that he has to destroy the U.S. to keep them from making more bio-engineered soldiers, like him.
The ending was mostly just confusing. There was no mention or even hint through most of the movie that Leo was against his superiors the entire time. He even demonstrated his negotiation and people skills multiple times, seemingly to help his own men. It being Leo who was the real threat all along explains the events in the movie just fine, but it wasn’t what the movie was about. It would have been better suited if there was allusion somewhere along the way, or if we saw why Leo wanted to stop the creation of more like him. The initial premise was explained, but once it became about Leo and the codes and not the Russian Koval against the U.S. the movie fell flat.
Overall, Outside the Wire was a fun watch, but it felt like they couldn’t keep a theme. Emphasis was put on Captain Leo’s abilities, but we didn’t get to see all that many of them, as the movie was focused on Harp. The deeper meaning behind the movie is also somewhat confusing and not well portrayed, as you don’t really have a sense of what’s going to happen until it happens. The bio-engineered character was a captivating concept and could have gone a lot further, but you don’t get to see all that much of what Leo is actually doing or what he was doing before Harp. After finishing the film, it really came down to who could blow up who first. The ending note was meant to be thought provoking, and it was, just not so much in relation to the movie. But with a star-studded cast, this movie stands out. I also think they left room if they wanted to do another movie or show adaptation, Netflix could expand on a lot and I would watch it.
