Ocean's Twelve
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Movie Reviews of Ocean's Twelve
Movie Review: Clooney et al. forced to work as world class thieves
Summary: 4 Stars
I was drawn to "Oceans Eleven" by my love of Las Vegas, only with Vegas now too hot for Daniel Ocean to do a sequel, I had to settle for subsidiary motivation on being something of a minor George Clooney fan. As the advance material on TV says, the victim Mr. Benedict wants back his 0.16 billion with interest, giving the gang 2 weeks to get it before he takes it out of their hides (apparently, when you're that rich, murder for hire is but a trivial expense account item). Clooney and his crew are forced to become expatriates to do any real stealing, so they're off to Amsterdam and a romp over the European Union in general. They soon discover, however, that Europe is not big enough for TWO such bella donnas, so Ocean begins his competition and cooperation with "Night Fox", revered by the European authorities as as much of a master in robbery as Rembrandt is to painting, on account of his mentoring and his own accomplishments. I'm thinking that his presence is what makes the Eleven into Twelve. The plot moves to Italy, with the focus being on the Romanoffs' Coronation Fabergé egg, a target that would give N.F. the compassion to pay off Ocean et al.'s debts from his endless bank accounts, should they get it. But after this, the plot begins to splinter into many shattered parts, and I couldn't keep up with it. Benedict has some sort of hand in the whole thing, in combination with Night Fox, and before long, you feel you're in the middle of something like Dickens' "Great Expectations". The camera work and the action are quite good though, on what looks like an anamorphic 2.35:1 presentation, and just letting the scenes flow over you is not a bad experience. The compulsion towards plot and ultimate meaning were lacking, however, so I'm handing it 4.1 stars.Movie Review: Not as bad as it could have been
Summary: 4 Stars
With big budget, star-studded casts like the one in Ocean's Twelve, there is always the danger of having them look too smug and self-indulgent instead of having fun along with the audience. Ocean's Eleven managed to straddle this line quite well, resulting in an entertaining popcorn movie. Director Steven Soderbergh kept his cast in check, never letting them go too far over-the-top and shooting it with a style that was always interesting to watch. The big question for the sequel is if he could pull of the same feat without repeating himself too much.
If the first film was about Danny's redemption by reconciling with Tess, then Ocean's Twelve is about Rusty's (Pitt) redemption by reconciling with his past love, Isabel Lahiri (Zeta-Jones), a determined Interpol agent. It elevates the movie ever so slightly above the standard heist story by giving everything that happens a somewhat poignant spin.
Once again Soderbergh keeps the pace brisk and breezy, making the two-hour running time fly by. Like its predecessor, Ocean's Twelve is beautifully shot with atmospheric lighting, an eclectically groovy soundtrack from British DJ David Holmes (that evokes a `60s Euro-lounge vibe) and tight editing that makes it stylistically consistent with the first movie. Soderbergh is an excellent visual storyteller and this is evident in several scenes that he depicts without any dialogue, instead resorting to music married to visuals that conveys exactly what's going on. He understands the kind of movie he's making and doesn't try to be too cute or wink knowingly at the audience, instead focusing at the task at hand: making a confident, entertaining movie. Granted, Ocean's Twelve is no Traffic (2000) but you could do a lot worse with two hours of your time.
Movie Review: Ocean's Twelve
Summary: 4 Stars
The Eleven are back with a few extras in Steven Soderbergh's s "Ocean's Twelve". The Eleven from the first film find themselves tracked down by a very irate Terry Benedict (Garcia). He wants his money back ($160 million to be exact), and if that means the Eleven have to come out of "retirement" to do it, then so be it. They have two weeks before he enacts his revenge. That is enough to get the gang back together to plan a couple of heists to return Benedict's money to him. As the capers progress, they find that another thief, by the name of the Night Fox, is out to prove that he is better than them. Of course, this throws a wrench into their plans, and they must make a deal with him if they want any hope of getting the money they so desperately need. Also on their trail is Europol agent Isabel Lahiri (Zeta-Jones), who has a history with Rusty (Pitt) that may prove his downfall.
"Ocean's Twelve" is almost everything its predacessor was. Plot is secondary to the interaction of all the big names who seem to be having the time of their lives making this fun film. And it is a fun film to watch. Pitt, Zeta-Jones, Clooney, Damon, and Roberts are the "stars" of the film, hogging the majority of the screen time. Also, there are some surprise cameos that work very well. Some of the best jokes come at Julia Roberts' expense, and she is a trooper for going along with a story point that some viewers might not truly appreciate. I Think it works.
All in all, "Ocean's Twelve" is an enjoyable film that falls just short of its predacessor. It is an entertaining heist movie that works really well. And of course, the end gives them the opportunity to have thirteen the next time around.
Movie Review: A cinematic shaggy-dog story.
Summary: 4 Stars
After the tightly plotted, detailed heist depicted in "Ocean's Eleven," I can see how some people would be disappointed in the loosey-goosey, improvisational style of its sequel, "Ocean's Twelve." It's as if Steven Soderbergh, George Clooney, Brad Pitt and the others, fed up with actually having had to WORK on the first film, just decided to take a European vacation and improvise a story from their home movies. However, I found the good spirits and jokiness of "Ocean's Twelve" hard to resist. The plot has Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia) tracking down Danny Ocean (Clooney) and his cohorts, demanding repayment of the $160 million (plus interest) they stole from his casinos. This means they have to plot new heists, and fast. However, they find their efforts at thievery thwarted at every turn by a mysterious figure known as the Black Fox (Vincent Cassel). Also complicating their efforts is Isabel (Catherine Zeta-Jones), the ex-girlfriend of Rusty (Pitt), who also inconveniently happens to be an Interpol agent. The film has plot twists galore, including one in which Danny's wife Tess (Julia Roberts) is forced to impersonate a certain well-known actress who shall remain nameless here. In-jokes abound, celebrity cameos come thick and fast, and if you think Soderbergh and Co. wouldn't dare leave room for another sequel, guess again. It's hard to make great claims for "Ocean's Twelve," but the critics who've put it on their Ten Worst lists are obviously (as Harry Truman put it) five-ulcer men on three-ulcer pay. I found "Ocean's Twelve" to be an airy, delightful soap bubble of a movie, at least as enjoyable as the original, if not more so.Movie Review: At least they like traveling
Summary: 4 Stars
An action film but without any action. The action on the screen is some type of anti-action. It is there to lure you into not seeing nor looking for details and logical connections. And it works. The main action is in the editing of the film. Very short sequences jumping from one place to another across the world and from one time to another back and fro, even in fake black and white. You are so busy trying to follow the line, to recognize the characters and place them where they are supposed to be that you don't see that nothing happens and what does happen is not shown nor explained. Ah the beautiful coronation egg : what happened to it ? Where was it stolen ? By whom ? The only thing we are about sure is that the egg in Rome was a fake and everyone was fooled, except maybe the gang itself who was, we learn that later, playing the game of the real thief who seemed to have been setting up all that hullabaloo just to recuperate his daughter. Sentimental ending and a big check for the real thief who was burglarised, covered by his insurance and yet wanted his money back with interests. That one was not a casino manager for nothing : stealing people is his job after all, and quite respected at that. But remember Julia Roberts only has the nose of Julia Roberts, certainly not the ears, nor the way she should walk, nor the way she should dress, etc. In other words she is a real fake. Bruce Willis seems to be more like himself, though maybe he should lose a few pounds.
Dr Jacques COULARDEAU