The Outsiders is a film I never really understood.
When it comes to the best 80s films, everyone typically picks The Outsiders as one of them. While I've been very familiar with Ralph Macchio in The Karate Kid movies, as well as Cobra Kai, one of the best shows on Netflix, I never got to see another one of his most famous movies, The Outsiders.
I watched it as a middle schooler because every school had their kid reading this book and then watching the movie, and I remembered enjoying it. But it has literally been fourteen years since then, and I decided to check it out for the first time in years. And I have to admit…it was the experience I didn't realize I needed.
I Knew The Movie Was Good, But Watching it As An Adult Gave Me A Different Experience
It's not like this is a film that I hated as a kid and grew to love as an adult. I always knew the movie was good. I don't have bad memories of sitting in class, rolling my eyes. There's a reason that the book, by S.E. Hinton, has become required reading, and then, therefore, the movie required viewing. The film is genuinely good, and the author is literally credited with creating the YA genre.
But watching it as an adult, fourteen years later, and living a whole life since the small times of me being a tween…I don't think I ever truly appreciated how good this film was.
We live in a time of blockbusters and sequels. The 2025 movie schedule is filled to the brim with them, and due to that, we never really get to see that many well-told original movies anymore. It's one of the biggest gripes I had with the box office.
In turn, that also translates to adaptations of original stories. They don't get the marketing they deserve, and half the time, they only end up getting the praise years after its release, or when it's finally available to stream.
The Outsiders is one of those movies where, if it were released today, I'm not sure how well it would do at the box office. It's a moving coming-of-age story that hits harder than ever before because we've gone through experiences that are so similar in many different ways. It makes me wonder why we're required to read this in middle school rather than high school, where we can better comprehend the themes.
Even so, this film had an impact on me, and there are two reasons why – the cast and the story.
The Cast Is Incredibly Talented, Something I Never Appreciated
It's taken years of watching movies to reach this point, but I rarely truly appreciate an entire ensemble cast. Every single one of them. C. Thomas Howell, Ralph Macchio, Matt Dillon, Patrick Swayze, Rob Lowe – everyone did such a fantastic job.
There have been many moments in the past when certain cast members didn't seem to fit, or the entire cast lacked chemistry. But watching this film makes me really feel the story. Because these characters don't feel like cast members, they feel like family. They feel real.
That's the kind of cast that we rarely see, where the cast members genuinely feel so raw and authentic. You can tell from a mile away that these cast members were close on set and that this story meant a lot to them. And that made the viewing experience that much better.
I Can't Help But Love The Story More Now As Well
The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton is one of the most notable novels of the last few decades, mainly due to its exceptional writing and widespread discussion in schools. But what really makes this film so good is that it's a story anyone can connect to, even if you have no connection to gangs, youth subculture, or any of that.
All of that is just in the background. What The Outsiders is really about is grief, struggling to find your place in the world, about sacrifice, and so much more. Those are themes that you cannot appreciate until you are an adult, because you have experienced many of them at this point in your life.
Watching this film felt like I was on a different level of appreciation, because I never experienced it as a kid, and now I think twenty times more connected to this film than ever before.
It's The Kind Of Movie I Think We All Need To Watch Nowadays
The Outsiders is a movie everyone has seen. However, now is the best time to watch it again. The world sometimes feels like it's up in the air, and we really have no idea what we're doing or how to change, adapt, and grow as the times fly by. However, what The Outsiders does a good job of conveying is that we all face the same issues, regardless of our background, and that there are things worth sacrificing for.
It's a heart-wrenching story, but one that many people my age would enjoy now and appreciate greatly. Thankfully, The Outsiders is a movie that's available to stream for free, so it's not difficult to find. If you're looking for something to do on a Saturday afternoon, check this film out again.
You won't regret it.
