Throwback Thursday Review: 'Ocean's Eleven' (2001)

Sorry that this review's coming a little late, but last Thursday evening I prioritized writing my Hereditary review because I felt compelled to share my thoughts immediately. Anyways, I'd never seen Steven Soderbergh's Ocean's trilogy prior to a few days ago so I went ahead and watched them all before going to see Ocean's Eight yesterday. I won't be reviewing Ocean's Twelve and Thirteen for the time being because I have a lot of reviews to prepare/publish this week before going out of town. This includes publishing Throwback Thursday Reviews of Jurassic Park and The Incredibles in addition to reviewing new releases Ocean's Eight, Hotel Artemis, Tag (2018), and Incredibles 2 and prepping a Throwback Thursday Review for The Lost World: Jurassic Park before I leave. As a result, my review of Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom will be coming a little later than normal since I won't likely see the film till perhaps next Friday.

'Ocean's Eleven' Review

Ocean's Eleven trails con artist Danny Ocean shortly after he's been let out of jail and put on parole. Ocean assembles a team of ten other accomplices with plans to steal from three Las Vegas casinos simultaneously.

Ocean's Eleven was directed by Steven Soderbergh, featured a screenplay written by Ted Griffin, and functioned as a full-fledged reboot which went on to become a bankable trilogy of capers. With the help of a star-studded cast, Soderbergh assured direction ensures Ocean's Eleven was a heist film dressed to the nines and has got plenty of style to spare from start-to-finish. Soderbergh even served as his own cinematographer under the pseudonym of Peter Andrews (he does this fairly often) so the cinematography is sleek and stimulating under his watchful eye. When combined with the surefire editing and a jazzy score by David Holmes, the film's bravado is absolutely unrivaled.

I also appreciated how the film was fairly unpredictable and kept me on my toes as I tried to guess how the crew would get themselves out of some hairy situations. The twists and turns along the way managed to be quite surprising and satisfying, and I particularly liked that there was an ulterior motive to the heist beyond stealing tons of money. It's always nice when a heist film is really about something greater and a relatable motivation is a solid start to that. 

Other entertaining elements include the heist itself, some sharp dialogue, and the camaraderie amongst the crew. I've also got to say how impressive it is that the script managed to balance the ensemble despite having an abundance of characters. Some get more focus that others, but that's simply the nature of show business. 

Regardless of all that, the all star cast will charm your socks off. George Clooney imbues Ocean with a suave debonair and calm, collected composure while Brad Pitt's Rusty is a reliable right hand man. Filling out the rest of the crew, Matt Damon, Bernie Mac, Don Cheadle, Elliott Gould, Don Cheadle, Eddie Jemison, Carl Reiner, Shaobo Qin, Casey Affleck, and Scott Caan are exemplary matches to their respective roles as up-and-coming pickpocket Linus, smooth talking croupier Frank, eccentric munitions expert Basher, flamboyant tycoon Reuben, awkward tech genius Livingston, grouchy old con-man Saul, soft-spoken Chinese acrobat Yen, and two hard headed brothers Virgil and Turk. 

On the flip-side, Andy Garcia goes all in for his cold-hearted portrayal of Terry Benedict and stands out as a formidable foe. Meanwhile, Julia Roberts has little screen time, but makes her mark as a fitting femme fatale of sorts. 

While not all that substantive, Ocean's Eleven is slick, stylish, and an all-around good time. It's been seventeen years, but Ocean's Eleven seems to still be the gold standard for this franchise and the heist genre in general.

Film Assessment: A-

'Logan Lucky' Review

[This review was originally written in August 2017 and is now being published to coincide with the digital home media release. For an explanation of this, visit my Fall 2017 Important Update post.] 

Logan Lucky pits audiences out in West Virginia, where tough times have convinced Jimmy Logan to team-up with his one-armed brother, his speed-demon sister, and a detained demolitions expert in order to break into the Charlotte Motor Speedway during a NASCAR race and pull off the gutsiest hillbilly heist of a lifetime. 

Despite announcing his retirement from directing four years ago, Steven Soderbergh races back into feature filmmaking with Logan Lucky. Unconventionally, Soderbergh decided to independently distribute the film because he wanted to ensure his vision made it into cinemas with no studio meddling. Another quirky fun-fact is that Soderbergh likes to handle the cinematography and editing himself under false pseudonyms (Peter Andrews and Marry Ann Bernard). I bring this up not only because it's interesting and informative, but because the film's credited screenwriter is Rebecca Blunt (who has no prior credits and is believed to be another pseudonym for either Soderbergh or his wife).

Steven Soderbergh had a tricky task ahead of him in trying to balance the dramatic heist elements with the comedic sensibilities, but across the board Soderbergh ensures Logan Lucky remains entertaining and inoffensive with a jovial tone and smart screenplay. This film could have easily veered into offensive areas by ridiculing rednecks, but Rebecca Blunt paints an authentic portrayal of the America's Deep-South instead. The characters are constructed in such a way that they don't come off as caricatures since the film takes great care to put everything into proper perspective. The situations these character find themselves in are real, so the characters are relatable to-a-degree.

One especially intriguing element to Logan Lucky is how it provides viewers a general sense of the heist, but enough information is withheld so the film never reaches a point of predictability. There are moments that seemingly meander, because the audience is kept in the dark at times, but the pay-off allows for plenty of pleasant surprises along the way. Oh, and the script is surprisingly sharp with tons of zany one-liners and hysterical moments all throughout.

Channing Tatum keeps it all together in his most venerable performance yet as the genuine family man Jimmy Logan. Alongside Tatum, Adam Driver imbues Jimmy's brother Clyde with a reserved nature and Riley Keough flexes her resilience as their sister Mellie. The one actor who took me completely off-guard was Farrah Mackenzie as Jimmy's daughter, Sadie. Mackenzie demonstrates a knack for playing out the sweetness and innocence associated with children, but takes it a step further by leaving a sizable impression for every moment she's onscreen.

Daniel Craig's the one who steals the show though as the outrageously eccentric Joe Bang. I'm really only familiar with watching Daniel Craig in the recent Bond flicks, so it was loads of fun to see such a drastic departure from the straight-laced, straight-faced gentleman spy. Bang's brothers are portrayed by Jack Quaid and Brian Gleeson, who are an absolute hoot as well. You'll also likely recognize much of the supporting talent sprinkled throughout the cast, but I won't ruin their inclusion here.

Steven Soderbergh's return to cinematic storytelling is immensely entertaining and easily of of the year's more unique entries. Logan Lucky doesn't totally transcend the heist genre, but it's a refreshing change of pace well-worth watching due to its fixed direction, some eccentric performances, and off-kilter humor.

Film Assessment: B+