Ocean's Eleven (2008, Blu-ray Disc)

With Ocean's Thirteen coming out this weekend, the wife and decided that it would be nice to watch Ocean's Eleven first, just so we have an idea who the characters are. You can't beat a first movie in a series for character introductions, as sequels never give you a complete picture, just immersing themselves in the action. I figured it would also give us an idea of whether or not we even wanted to see the sequel, because if we didn't like this one, we probably won't like the new one either. Thankfully, I can say that we did greatly enjoy this caper film. It wasn't perfect, but it was still a lot of fun.

Daniel Ocean (George Clooney) has been paroled after four years, and despite indicating (though he never really says it) that he won't re-offend, he immediately goes to Vegas to pick up where he left off. He's got an ingenious plan to rob the underground vault that holds the money for three casinos owned by Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia), a good $150 Million haul. But is he doing it just for the money? He enlists his old friend Rusty Ryan (Brad Pitt) to help, and they form a crew of ten more (hence, the "eleven" in the title) to pull it off. The scheme is elaborate; the stakes are high. And Ocean? He seems fixated on his ex-wife, Tess (Julia Roberts), who's now with Benedict. Will he be too distracted to carry this off?

Ocean's Eleven brings together some of today's biggest stars and puts them together in an entertaining manner. Pitt and Clooney ooze charisma, and the style of the entire movie is extremely smooth. The film has an attitude about itself and its characters that can be engrossing at times. The dialogue is crisp and some of the jokes are hilarious ("Ted Nugent called. He wants his shirt back.") Elliott Gould is deliciously over the top as Reuben Tishkoff, the financier for the heist because Benedict screwed him over on a casino deal. This is definitely a case of style over substance, as there isn't much substance to be had in this movie. But that's ok, as no substance is intended. This is a caper flick with fun characters who we watch interact in a cool manner and a plot that we like to see unwind as it goes along.

Director Steven Soderbergh has a lot to do with this, of course. I've only seen a couple of his movies (I'll pause while you all get your jaws off the floor), but he brings a similar slick attitude toward the film that was in Out of Sight, the only one of his I've seen recently. I've also never seen the original Ocean's Eleven, so I can't really comment on any comparisons. I can say that Soderbergh shoots the film wonderfully, with great angles and camerawork. Vegas comes to life in his vision and I can't think of anything wrong on the directing front.

There is one aspect of the film that was utterly useless, however. That was Julia Roberts. Roberts can be a beautiful woman. I don't know if it was how she was shot, dressed, made up, or whatever, but she did not look good in this film, despite being glitzed up as Benedict's companion. Not only that, she had no chemistry whatsoever with Clooney, which is sad because that relationship is so important to the movie. In addition, there seemed to be no reason that she would even be with Benedict as there didn't seem to be any warmth in their relationship from either side. I also didn't buy her change of attitudes as the film went by. Yes, I get what happened between her and Benedict, but what about her and Ocean? We never get any glimpse of the interior workings of her mind and thus her motivations seem to come out of left field. Roberts is a better actress than that, but she was terrible in this movie.

Thankfully, the rest of the cast make up for it. Don Cheadle is wonderful as the British (was that the accent?) explosives expert that the guys enlist. Matt Damon brings the perfect touch of innocence to his pickpocket Linus Caldwell, and the Malloy brothers (Casey Affleck and Scott Caan) bring much of the comedy to the film. They have some truly hilarious scenes, including the scene where their bickering drives Linus out of the van where Ocean has told him to stay, thus requiring a bit of a rescue from being caught by security. The cast is excellent (except for Roberts) and they really made the movie. Andy Garcia is suitably menacing as Benedict, a powerful, laid-back man who is very confident and is getting increasingly angrier as the heist goes along. Of course, Clooney and Pitt are so awesome in this movie that I can't really describe it, so I won't. They do a wonderful job in the main two roles.

Sure, Ocean's Eleven is unbelievable as hell and the caper goes off without too many hitches (and even the ones that happen aren't too inconvenient). It didn't really matter to me because I was enjoying the character interaction too much. I like caper movies (even ones disguised as war films, like Kelly's Heroes) and this is a great example of one. I do enjoy it when things go wrong and the thieves have to improvise, but this one was ok too. I think it was saved by the charisma of the actors and the dialogue during the heist. Yen (Shaobo Qin), the Chinese contortionist and acrobat) doesn't say much in the film. But his one line when he finally meets up with Ocean and Linus in the vault is priceless.

Ocean's Eleven is not a perfect film, but it's a fun romp that's definitely worth the two hours you put into it. Just sit back and let the "cool" wash over you.

Other Reviews
Ocean's Thirteen