Earlier this month it was announced that Francis Ford Coppola has put together a Director’s Cut of his debut feature, the Roger Corman-produced Dementia 13, and now comes word that the legendary filmmaker has revisited another of his former films in 1983’s coming of age drama The Outsiders for an extended version titled The Outsiders The Complete Novel.
“The Outsiders The Complete Novel came about after meeting students over the years who repeatedly asked me why certain scenes from S.E. Hinton’s wonderful book were missing from the theatrical version,” said Coppola. “These questions reminded about my inspiration for the film—in 1980, a contingent of 12- to 14-year-old students wrote and asked me to make it. I listened to those young fans back then, and I continue to listen to young people now and believe in their opinions, so this complete film version of the novel is for them.”
The Outsiders The Complete Novel features new music, as well as several scenes cut from the theatrical version which were reconstructed from original camera negatives. Here’s a trailer showing off the new 4K restoration…
THE OUTSIDERS takes place in ’60s Oklahoma, centring on two rival teen gangs: The ‘Greasers’, a class term that refers to the young men on the East Side, the poor side of town, and the ‘Socs’, short for Socials, who are the “West-side rich kids”. Ponyboy (C. Thomas Howell), a tender-hearted and kind teenager’s life is changed forever one night when a scuffle with his friend Johnny (Ralph Macchio) inadvertently leads to the death of a rival gang member, and the boys are forced to go into hiding to avoid arrest. Soon Ponyboy and Johnny, along with Dallas (Matt Dillon) and their other Greaser buddies, must contend with the consequences of their violent lives. While some Greasers try to achieve redemption, others meet tragic ends.
The 5-disc 4K UHD Collector’s Edition will include both restored features – The Outsiders The Complete Novel and The Outsiders, plus a whole host of additional elements and special features including:
- 2x UHD
- 2xBD
- Carmine Coppola CD soundtrack
- 64-page booklet with never-before-seen original content
- 5 art cards
- 2 posters created by Tony Stella
- ‘Stay Gold’ pin badge
- NEW Restoration Story with Zoetrope Head of Archives and Restorations James Mockoski and Colourist Gregg Garvin
- NEW Interview with Cinematographer Stephen Burum
- NEW Deleted Scenes
- NEW Francis Ford Coppola Introduction
- NEW Outsider Looking In – Looking at key scenes of a cult classic with Francis Ford Coppola
- NEW Old House New Home featurette
- NEW trailer
- Audio Commentary with Francis Ford Coppola
- Audio Commentary with Matt Dillon, C. Thomas Howell, Diane Lane, Rob Lowe, Ralph Macchio and Patrick Swayze.
- Staying Gold: A look Back at “The Outsiders”
- S.E. Hinton on Location in Tulsa
- The Casting of “The Outsiders”
- NBC’s News Today from 1983 “The Outsiders Started by School Petition”, and
- Deleted and Extended Scenes
- 7 Cast Members (Lowe, Swayze, Howell, Dillon, Macchio, Garret and Lane) read extracts from the novel
- Trailer from 1983
The Outsiders The Complete Novel will release in UK cinemas on October 15th before arriving on 4K, Blu-ray, DVD and Digital from November 8th.
Originally published August 29, 2021. Updated May 16, 2022.
