Not always does the biggest dog win. Nor does a pack of wild dogs always win against two loyal junkyard dogs as portrayed in The Outfit by seven (7 X 2) time nominated Best/Supporting actor Robert Duvall who plays Earl Macklin, a recently released from prison bank robber, and his good old bank robbing buddy Joe Don Baker who plays Jack Cody. The film opens up with a cold blooded assassination executed by two professional hit men on a man who we only know is a gardener and who has a love for dogs. Eventually we discover that the murdered victim is Robert Duvall's brother who also led a life of crime in robbing banks but was trying to hide and live out his remaining days with his wife on a remote farm toiling in the soil.Earl Macklin and Jack Cody also fall victims to the hit men but both of these two junkyard dogs survive a number of failed attempts of murder by the hit men. Gradually Earl and Jack discover that the reason they are being targeted for death is they previously robbed a bank whose cash belonged to the mob who were laundering their cash through that bank.Vengeance is a dish best served cold and these two junkyard dogs are two cold sons of b(r)itches that don't take lightly when Earl's brother is executed gangland style, and then the mob tries and tries again to take them out even after Earl thinks he has made a deal with mob leader Mailer, played by the veteran actor Robert Ryan. Of course I cannot forget about the strong performances of two of the leading ladies in this action/crime film. Karen Black who plays Bett Harrow initially picks Earl up at the prison immediately after his release and theirs is a love/hate relationship. Bett truly loves Earl and Earl also loves Bett, but the hate aspect is emphasized around the guns. Bett wants Earl to give up his guns as she hates that Earl won't give them up. Earl meanwhile has made it very clear to Bett that he hates when ever she attempts to even touch one of his guns. Thus the love/hate in their intense romantic relationship. The other supporting actress in this action/crime film is Sheree North who plays a temptress hottie who tries to first manipulate Jack into her bed so she can falsely claim she was raped but only to ignite her husband into a fit of rage where he would be killed at the hands of Jack and/or Earl. These two junkyard dogs don't fall for this felines in heat plan to have her husband killed, but the subsequent action scenes are great. I really enjoyed the interaction between Earl, Jack and Bett, and in my humble opinion, their performances were stronger as a whole than the more acclaimed actors/actresses who starred in the Academy Award winning film the 1967 Bonnie & Clyde.I give The Outfit a strong 8 out of 10 rating. This film holds up very well over the past 44 years. It is well worth a watch and I will be watching it again sometime.

"The Outfit" is a lesser example of the old "hitman goes rogue and tries to take down crime organization" set-up that has been made in countless better movies, such as "Point Blank", "Le Samourai", "Il Dio", "Get Carter". It has some really good actors: Robert Duvall is the good guy, Joe Don Baker is his pal, Karen Black is his squeeze and Robert Ryan is his enemy. But it's not as involving as the above, either because the screenplay isn't up to it, or the direction isn't. It doesn't grab you the way it should with actors like that and a screenplay by Donald E. Westlake, which is a shame.It's not a classic, but it is worth checking out.

They may have changed his name to Macklin, but he's Parker all the way (Parker of Donald Westlake's crime novels). And Robert Duvall plays him as a real son-of-a-"b"; cold as ice, calculating and wielding the massive cojones to go against the mob for revenge. He's like a shark, unwavering in his determination. He's not the face I conjure for this character, but hell if he doesn't pull it off. Overall, THE OUTFIT is a rock-solid crime movie. Love the bass groove score, the gorgeous Joanna Cassidy, and the presence of Joe Don Baker, who makes an ace wingman. He's twice offered a pass on Parker's scheme, but he still stays with the plan. I really like him in this movie. And what really surprised me is the smile on my face as the end credits rolled. It's not every day (ever) you see that kind of ending on such a hard-boiled tough bastard movie. 8/10

The movie starts with a contract killing. Why this occurred is as of yet unknown. Then the movie switches to a guy getting out of prison (Robert Duvall). You soon learn that the murdered man was his brother and the two unknowingly got on the wrong side of organized crime when they pulled a bank robbery years earlier--and the bank turned out to be owned by mob! Now that he's out on the streets, the plan is to kill him next. However, Duvall has a crazy idea--instead of running, he and his friend (Joe Don Baker) will go on the offensive! It's them against the whole freaking mob! Naturally, they ruffle a few feathers along the way!! Can these two maniacs get away with it? It's a bit surreal watching this film, as Robert Duvall doesn't exactly look like the action hero (or anti-hero) type. But I think that makes the film more exciting--seeing a bald middle-aged man behaving this way. While not a great film, it is better than it could have been thanks to decent direction and performances. So is it a must-see? No. But it's better than just a simple time-passer--and well worth a look if you like crime films or just want to see Duvall and Baker kick come butt! By the way, fans of Robert Ryan (like myself) take note--he is in this film and plays a real unlikeable old jerk. I liked this--nothing particularly redeeming about this elderly man--old and mean through and through. No one could play nasty quite like Ryan!