Not gonna lie, I’m kind of impressed Carol Burnett hasn’t been in more films. Or at the very least, that she hasn’t done more work with Alan Alda. They play off each other so well, especially during that night scene on the boat.

The film itself is fun if a little slight. I feel like Alda is much better with his actors than with the camera, but he still puts together a solid amount of character work and good performances from the cast.

Every time this movie got close to saying something interesting and sincere, it swerves away right back into a true mess. “Outcome” acts as if it has genuine insight into cancel culture and modern celebrity, but it all feels hollow and irritating. Unfortunately, the great Martin Scorsese giving a legitimately wonderful performance early on does little to save the overall film. Unfunny dialogue, an ugly visual style, and a particularly unpleasant side character played by the director himself make this otherwise super short movie feel like a slog.

After watching Austin's half-hour YouTube video on his experience making this movie, I really feel for him and his struggles. However, I can clearly tell that he didn't have any ambitions beyond "Let's make a movie just so we can become names." Not completely bereft of redeeming qualities, but still feels like a shorthand version of "Upstream Color."

I can only imagine what it must have been like for audiences to witness the Battle for Helm's Deep on the big screen when this was released in theaters. Also worth noting, Sam's monologue near the end is a beautiful, poignant speech needed in the post-9/11 world. There is indeed still some good in this crazy world, and is worth fighting for.