Even if you don’t drink, you need to read this review with a tumbler of scotch in your hand. Let that ice clink in the glass as you give your computer monitor a knowing look that says “even though I use Windows XP, I know what I’m doing…”
Now you need a horn line playing a cool lick. Straighten the lapels on your coat there, sport. Cock your head and come along for the ride. Now you’re ready for Ocean’s 11.
George Clooney plays the title cat, Danny Ocean, and man, has he got a vibe. While in prison he wears a goatee, but once in the sunlight that gone fashion statement is, well, gone. He walks out of the clink wearing a freshly pressed tuxedo and a smirk. Ain’t nothing gonna ruffle his feathers.
And if you can stand some action, it’s about to begin.
Danny has a plan, but he’s going to need some guys. What Danny does best, see, is pull heists, and though his last one landed him in jail and lost him his wife Tess (Julia Roberts), fish gotta swim and birds gotta fly.
But if you’re going to risk it all, you need to do something big, and what Danny has in mind is big, something that’s never been done before. Knock over three Vegas casinos, all owned by the mobbed-up Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia), the arch-enemy of several on the team for a variety of reasons.
Luckily, Danny has a plan. Good luck trying to follow it all. By the time Ocean’s 11 has unfolded, the only thing you’ll be absolutely sure of is how much fun it was.
With writer Ted Griffin, director Steven Soderbergh (Traffic) has taken a film more known than actually seen and re-made it with new smarts, style and strangely enough, substance.
Griffin has plotted out a clever caper, very modern in its sensibilities. But to call back the original, expert directorial chameleon Soderbergh uses a lot of techniques from the sixties. Shooting the film himself, the only thing that would tie it to his earlier work is its being good. The movie ambles a bit, but then so does Danny Ocean. Being cool means you never hurry, even when you should.
Since really it’s all about cool, Soderbergh and Griffin let you in on the joke from the get-go. Danny Ocean goes where he will when he will. Security guards don’t even question when he takes blueprints to casino vaults.
Running right alongside in the cool race is Rusty (Brad Pitt). The first guy that Ocean approaches, Rusty has fallen from big cons into little ones, idling his days teaching Hollywood’s up and comers how to play cards. (And in one of the best jokes of the film, many young WB and Fox stars play themselves. Pitt must have loved inhabiting a world in which everyone ignores him to chase Topher Grace.)
The two stars graciously share the screen, playing with a relaxed air that’s nice to see. By avoiding movie star turns, they cement their status as such. Their kindness extends to the rest of the cast.
Originally intended to be an “all-star” jam, the grouping here has varying star wattage. Matt Damon gets to be amusing without the self-conscious winking that plagued him in his films with Kevin Smith. Teaming with Scott Caan, Casey Affleck (Ben’s younger brother) gives a performance that will be remembered. Heck, they all will be.
Maybe the best part of the thespic generosity is the chance for two older guys to shine. Years ago, Clooney got a break on a sitcom called E/R (not to be confused with er, really) starring Elliott Gould. And now he has the chance to revisit that early connection with Gould as Reuben Tishkoff, the man bank-rolling the whole caper. Under Gould’s delivery, every line has a shot at a good laugh. Also proving that the old guys still have it, Carl Reiner delivers in the best role he has had in years. Do not be surprised if Oscar talk rises around it.
The only possible loser here is Roberts, in the not thankless but barely visible role as Tess Ocean. From all reports, she signed on just to have fun, but since Tess is a girl who isn’t having any, it’s hard to see. Still, (sorry, ladies) this movie is not about dames.
It’s about cons, it’s about cool, and it’s about time that somebody actually remembered how to do that right.
