The Outsider

The Outsider is a 2002 Western television film starring Tim Daly and Naomi Watts. The film is based on Penelope Williamson's novel. It was first aired on Showtime on November 10, 2002. Plot summary The Outsider takes place in Montana in the late 19th century. At the beginning of the movie, Ben Yoder (Brett Tucker) is preparing to leave his house on a rainy day. His young son, Benjo (Thomas Curtis) wants to go with him, but Ben tells him to stay home, "to protect your mother"—his wife, Rebecca (Naomi Watts). As Yoder is pulling a rescued sheep from the river, he happens upon two men cutting a fence where the rest of the flock are stabled, henchmen of ruthless cattle baron Fergus Hunter (John Noble). An argument ensues between Yoder and the henchmen about whether or not the land is "open range" or "legally homesteaded". Using the rope still tied around his waist from rescuing the stray sheep, Yoder winds up being dragged several feet by his horse, until he finally manages to cut himself free with a small knife. He angrily insists to Fergus Hunter to get off his land; "I won't sell." Hunter retorts, "No, I guess not...but your widow will." With tears in his eyes, Ben Yoder drops his knife, refusing to fight back against the men he knows are going to kill him. A few hours later, Rebecca and Benjo find him hanging from a large tree; this has an incredibly traumatizing effect on the little boy. At the Yoder homestead, the religious community they belong to—a group resembling the Amish that refer to themselves as the "Plain People"—are gathered. The town doctor, Lucas Henry (David Carradine), offers Mrs. Yoder a pill of some sort, but one of the men, Noah Weaver (Keith Carradine) responds coldly, "She does not need your pills, doctor. She will pray." Meanwhile, members of Rebecca's family—including her father, who leads the church—are frustrated that the sheriff and his men refuse to do anything about Ben Yoder's murder, other than have Hunter's men fix the fence they originally cut.