The stars of Ocean’s 11 exude so much charm that it oozes off the screen and mixes with the spilled Diet Cokes and five-day-old Gummi Bears to form liquid pools of charisma on the floor of the theater. A brief rundown of the cast includes George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Julia Roberts, Don Cheadle, Carl Reiner, Elliot Gould, Andy Garcia and Bernie Mac.
That’s a whole lot of talent to split a limited number of screen minutes, and in the end, it’s Clooney’s job to carry the plot forward in the breast pocket of one of the immaculate tuxedos he sports during the course of the movie. It’s to the rest of the cast’s credit that they were able to step aside and let Clooney do that.
The likeability of the stars is what makes a movie like this work. The original film used the natural chumminess of the original Rat Pack to set a sense of place and style, with mixed results. Here director Steven Soderbergh lets the considerable chemistry of his cast do most of the heavy lifting, and it works like a charm. This movie exists in a nearby dimension to our own, where beautiful people lead exciting lives filled with witty dialogue and everyone looks like they just stepped off the pages of a Hugo Boss advertisement. I ‘m moving to that dimension at the next opportunity myself.
The plot centers around a likeable rogue named Danny Ocean (Clooney), who is out to steal $160 million and the heart of his ex-wife (Roberts) from casino-owner Harry Benedict (Garcia) – not necessarily in that order.
So he assembles a team, cases the joint, makes his move and supplies a few twists towards the end. It’s all been done before, but seldom as well or with a more verstile cast. Soderbergh is slumming here. Compared to his work in Out of Sight, The Limey or Traffic, Ocean’s Eleven is a clear lightweight, but it’s an enjoyable lightweight and a perfect way to kill an evening at the movies.
It’s worth your $8.50 and you’ll be glad to see all these great talents working together, and after it’s over, you’ll be ready for these great talents to try something great again.
October 30th, 2003 at 3:58 pm
I believe this version is great! I think Brad Pitt is so dreamy. ” Did someone call for a doctor?”