Saoirse Ronan (Brooklyn, Little Women) is terrific as a recovering addict in this moving adaptation of Amy Liptrot’s 2017 bestseller set in Scotland’s Orkney Islands.
Adapted to the screen by writer-director Nora Fingscheidt (a Silver Bear winner for her debut feature, System Crasher), The Outrun is based on author Amy Liptrot’s own struggles with drugs and alcohol. After living on the edge and spiralling into addiction, Rona (Ronan) leaves London and returns to her childhood home, hoping to recover. Escaping her mother’s well-intentioned interference, she takes a job as a bird observer on a tiny remote island. But she can’t outrun the past, which threatens to overwhelm her – until Rona finally connects with the natural world in all its windblown, elemental glory. Ronan’s outstanding performance beautifully portrays her character’s fragility and grit as she journeys from destruction to serenity.