The Outrun follows all the familiar tropes of an addiction story, but that doesn’t meet it’s not worth your time. Saoirse Ronan puts on a masterclass of acting in what is essentially her one-woman show. She has a commanding presence throughout the film that keeps the audience engaged even as it drags through familiar territory.

The Outrun was directed by Nora Fingscheidt and based on the memoir of Amy Liptrot with whom she co-wrote the screenplay. The fall, rise, and subsequent stumbles of Rona are shot beautifully against a gorgeous Scottish island backdrop, making The Outrun a delight throughout its two-hour runtime.

Non-Linear Storytelling

The Outrun begins with a battered Saoirse Ronan speaking with a nurse before quickly time-jumping to her living life on Orkney Island sober but not fully happy. The film constantly jumps between moments of Ronan in recovery and her time as an alcoholic. These strong juxtaposing life events are shot and edited beautifully giving the viewer a sense of chaos and serenity all at once. The scenes of drunken nights are edited with quick cuts that disorient the viewer and eventually give way to long still shots of sobriety. It’s an expertly executed camera trick that justifies the film’s non-linear narrative.

It’s a wise choice for the story to be laid out in this non-linear format. By doing so we get to see all the angles of recovery typically seen in an addiction film but through a new lens. The pacing, alongside Saoirse Ronan’s performance, is the true standout here and what elevates this film from other addiction stories.

Serenity vs Excitement

Few films dealing with addiction are able to capture one of the hardest parts of sobriety. The absolute boredom that comes with this new lifestyle. The Outrun does a great job in the first half portraying this through the lens of Rona. She spends her days taking care of sheep, smoking cigarettes, and listening to club music on full blast. She is doing everything she can to feel the spark she felt when drinking. Trying to recapture the chaotic blissful moments that come from a belly of liquor.

These serene boring moments are contrasted sharply with the fun partying flashbacks of her earlier days. Rona is in love, spending her days working her dream job and her nights patronizing every bar in town. Her drunken nights turn to passionate sex and groggy mornings. It’s all shot exceptionally well and truly highlights the fun being had by a young woman with no cares in the world.

The Outrun and The Downfall

It soon becomes clear through flashbacks to everyone but Rona that she has a problem. What the audience initially sees as exciting youthful fun turns into chaotic emotional turns. Rona’s moments of elation quickly turn to unfounded bouts of drama and fits of rage. It’s all typical addiction movie fodder but the nonlinear format gives the genre a breath of fresh air.

Seeing Rona’s story out of order, we get a chance to live in the boredom of her sobriety. Rather than building to a climactic moment of clarity, we see her life pre and post-recovery concurrently. Most addiction films treat recovery treatment as a hard struggle with a beaming glorious light at the end of the tunnel. But often it’s after the hard work, when one is lonely and bored, that the real struggle begins.

Romancing the Bottle

Living life sober and clear-headed means spending a lot of time thinking about the past. After days, weeks, and months without a drink, the longing for extreme feelings becomes almost unbearable. Saoirse Ronan provides a voiceover for most of the film where she waxes poetic about ornithology and alcohol. Rona has a brilliant mind and is able to eloquently contrast the pros and cons of drinking. The problem is that even though she knows all about alcohol and addiction, she’s powerless to overcome it.

The constant struggle to live sober and avoid boredom is on full display. What once were energetic nights that occasionally ended in black eyes are bloody hands now replaced with long moments of solitude. The Outrun is careful to not romance drinking, but Saoirse Ronan’s Rona can’t help but fondly remember the days and nights of being drunk. Even when we know the extent of her addiction and the troubles it’s caused, the film forces the audience to view the alternative. A boring and lonely life of sobriety.

Familiar Waters

The Outrun is above all a story of addiction. Even with its non-linear story it still falls victim to many tropes of the genre. There is the catalyst event that causes Rona to get sober. The inevitable relapse to cap off the second act. And even a wise old man whose decade-plus of sober living inspires Rona. But the non-linear story and acting from Saoirse Ronan propel this movie above the dozens of addiction flicks that have come before.

The Outrun isn’t a perfect movie, but it perfectly captures the struggle of alcohol addiction. Not just the violent crazy times, but also the fun ones. Not just the struggle to make it through a treatment program but the difficulty to stay clean after. And the realization that life will never be the same as it was. Life for Rona may never be as fun or wild as it was. But a different life doesn’t always have to be a worse one. It just takes some getting used to.