Skip to main content

Ocean's 8 is a Worthy Successor to the Heist Franchise: Review

Image
By
See the source image

Film Review: Ocean's 8

It occurred to me watching Ocean's 8 that it has been a while since Sandra Bullock has had a big summer release. Not that she ever went anywhere, but it's nice to have her back. As Debbie Ocean, she is terrific as the calm and collected leader of the group of thieves (cool goes without saying, in an Ocean's movie). Debbie has been recently released from prison and although she's still beautiful and glamorous, Bullock plays her slightly faded, with a subtle but persistent sadness in her eyes. She really needs this heist to work, if only to prove something to herself. Luckily, Ocean's 8 is destined to be a hit.

 The film is a continuation of Steven Soderberg's Ocean's movies. That trilogy featured two very good movies and one great one and was based on a mediocre Rat Pack vehicle from 1960 (on the Sinatra scale of cool, Ocean's 8 is more Nancy than Frank). Soderberg's influence can be clearly felt on this film, but, unfortunately, only in spurts. Gary Ross, who directed 8, takes a mostly conventional approach to the movie's visual look, evoking Soderberg's stylistic flourishes only during certain key sequences. The screenplay, by Ross and Olivia Milch, is fast-paced and full of great lines. The heist itself, which involves stealing a $150 million diamond necklace from the neck of a famous actress during the Met Gala, is less complicated than the heists from the earlier films. Still, it is as satisfying as it can be, given that important information is withheld from the audience until it's all over, a tradition carried over from its predecessors. 

 With a smaller ensemble than the one from the Soderberg films (8 versus 11), this movie spends more time with each of the members. This is great, as it gives wonderful little moments to Rihanna, Sarah Paulson, Awkafina, and Mindy Kaling, whose transition into movies will be exciting to watch. Helena Bonham Carter is also fun, and Cate Blanchett's dynamic with Bullock recalls that of Brad Pitt and George Clooney. The best performance in the film belongs to Anne Hathaway, who plays the bratty movie star wearing the necklace. Hathaway has amazing control over her physicality and her breath; every turn of her head is something unexpected and clever. The film also has enough cameos to rival any Muppet movie, ranging from the expected given its Met Gala setting (Anna Wintour, Alexander Wang, Katie Holmes) to the bizarre but welcome (Dakota Fanning, Marlo Thomas). Two members of the earlier Ocean's team pop up for cameos, but I won't spoil them.

 Above all else, Ocean's 8 is just really fun to watch. Great actresses delivering great lines in great costumes. What more could you possibly want from a summer popcorn movie? 

 Ocean's 8 is in theatres June 8. 
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Leave a comment!

Popular posts from this blog

Who is The Black Hood on Riverdale? Here are 5 Possible Suspects

By
There's a killer on the loose in Riverdale , the setting of the CW's dark adaptation of the Archie Comics, now in its second season. He's called the Black Hood, a reference to the vigilante superhero comic book of the same name published by Archie Comics. So far, he has shot Fred Andrews (Luke Perry), murdered Ms. Grundy (Sarah Habel) with a cello bow, and shot at Midge and Moose ( Emilija Baranac and Cody Kearsley), all while wearing his executioner's hood-style hood, which is how he got his name. His letter to the Coopers in the third episode of the season reveals he is targeting victims that he sees as criminals or hypocrites and the fourth episode revealed he got the idea from Betty's (Lili Reinhart) speech from the end of last season, where she pleaded that "Riverdale must do better." It's looking like figuring out the Black Hood's identity will be the big mystery of season two, so I have put together a list of possible suspects. Note: Th...
Post a Comment
Read more

A Great Show Rushes to its End: "Mom" Finale Review

By
It's never easy to end a TV show, especially a long-running, beloved show like Mom . "My Kinda People and the Big To-Do," the last episode of Mom that aired May 13 on CBS, was a good episode. It was maybe even a great episode. But was it a satisfying series conclusion? No, not really. But we're getting ahead of ourselves. Before we talk about what didn't happen in the episode, let's talk about what did happen.  The episode begins at an AA meeting, as many episodes have. The ladies - Bonnie, Tammy, Jill, Marjorie, & Wendy - all share. They're all happy and in good places in their lives, much to the annoyance of newcomer Shannon (played by Melanie Lynskey, independent film mainstay whose sitcom credits include Chuck Lorre's Two and a Half Men ). Bonnie wants to help Shannon, as she had been helped by others when she too was new to the program, and even chases Shannon in the rain when she leaves the meeting. Later in the episode, we see Shannon...
Post a Comment
Read more

Ranking the Five Best On Screen Portrayals of Hercule Poirot

By
Before Kenneth Brnagh dons the iconic mustache in the highly-anticpated new adaptation of Murder on the Orient Express (in theatres November 10th), I thought I would take a look back at some of the most famous portryals of Hercule Poirot. Agatha Christie's signature creation, Poirot is peculiar. meticulous, and at times, bombastic and arrogant, but he always solves the case in the end, with the help of his little grey cells. Countless actors have portrayed the Belgian detective on stage, screen, or radio, including Charles Laughton, Austin Trevor, Orson Welles, and Ian Holm. But this list focuses on TV or film adaptations just becuase those are the ones I have seen. 5. Alfred Molina (2001) Molina played Poirot in the 2001 TV movie version of Murder on the Orient Express . He's a terrific actor, generally, but his Poirot is not distinctive or memorable in any way. The accent is not great, the mustache is not great, and he is not eccentric enough to get away with bei...
Post a Comment
Read more