"Ocean's 13"

Films do not have to surprise us in order to entertain. Sometimes we can enter a darkened cinema armed with the knowledge of the complete plotline of the film we are about to experience (one does not merely “watch” a film) and yet still enjoy the ride even where there are no surprises. Sometimes the surprise is the thing and the journey that manipulates us is the point of the film (as in “The Usual Suspects”, “Memento”, and “The Shawshank Redemption.” Sometimes, however, we enjoy our time with a predictable story because the fun is in the interplay of the actors, the wittiness of the dialogue, and the knowledge that, in the end, we will leave the theater having been completely entertained for our 2 hours and our $8. “Oceans 13” is such a film.

This is the first “Oceans” that I watched in the theater. I saw the first one on dvd, and I was captured by both the storyline and the characters (as well as by the actors who inhabited these characters). Part of the film was setting up minor “character info” cards for each one so that the audience knew of the backgrounds and the motivations. In the end, the movie succeeded due to the chemistry of the 2 leads (can there be leads in an ensemble film). I would enjoy any film that stars Clooney and Pitt because they are such personable actors. Danny and Rusty imbued the first chapter with life and propelled the story forward. Andy Garcia’s Benedict was a wonderfully hissable villain, and the con/heist of the robbery of the Bellagio was a wonderful roller coaster. The most memorable scene for me, however, was the final gathering of the thieves on the walkway in front of the Bellagio’s famous fountains. Slowly, one-by-one, they leave the scene after taking in the sight of their greatest heist ever. I loved that moment because in most heist films, we hardly ever get to see the revelry that follows a successful heist. In the end, “Oceans 11” succeeded because of smart dialogue, a fun script, and a story where no one had to be killed or shot in order to further the characters’ motivations. The unsung hero of the first film, however, was Law Vegas. The filmmakers lost sight of this and many other things in “Oceans 12.” Here, we had Catherine Zeta-Jones ridiculously superfluous character of a police inspector, a plotline set in Europe (Danny Ocean is a Vegas person), and a heist where most of the principles were behind bars. The success of the ensemble in the first film was not replicated to the detriment of the plot and the overall enjoyability of the film. There was too much angst, and the story was a little “mean.” The biggest fraud was the “gotcha” that the filmmakers pulled at the end of the film. I mean, it is one thing to pull the bait and switch on the audience when you have provided clues that they should have followed, but where the filmmakers seemingly pull a plot resolution out of their proverbial rear ends, the film fails as a heist caper. I was extremely let down by “Oceans 12” in spite of the wonderful dialogue and chemistry (once again) among Clooney, Pitt, Damon, Cheadle et al.

So, having watched the first 2 and having been disappointed in the second one, why did I go see this one? In the end, it was because of three plot points alluded to in the trailer. First of all, the story was once again set in Vegas. Secondly, the villain of the piece was to be played by Al Pacino (doing an uncanny Steve Wynn impersonation). Finally, it looked like the ensemble was going to be acting together again, with each cast member having something substantial to do during the heist. So, early on Sunday afternoon, Daisy and I made our way to the AMC River East 21 for a showing of “Oceans 13”. The film was completely predictable, and yet it was a blast. I laughed aloud several times during the show (at least 3x the number of times I laughed during “Shrek the Third”). With this being the third go around for the cast and crew, everyone was comfortable in their roles. Danny was still smarter than everyone else, but this time the story was not “lazy.” The ultimate payoff was satisfactory because the clues were planted for the audience to enjoy. Naturally, there were some bits of implausibility, but the suspension of disbelief was a small price to pay for enjoying the banter among the actors. There were many laughs that were the results of reaction shots of the actors where no words were necessary. My favorite such shots included Danny’s reaction to one of Benedict’s comments, Danny, Linus and Rusty watching television while waiting for their planes, and Rusty and Danny watching TV (a shot alluded to in the trailers). Furthermore, I have no idea how they integrated the shot of the Bank hotel into the Vegas strip, but kudos to the special effects crew. I actually believed that the casino was a part of the strip. There was also a marvelous bit of dialogue from Reuben when he awakens and paraphrases Don Corleone from “The Godfather.” As I was the only person in the theater who laughed at this piece of dialogue, 2 thoughts went through my mind: 1) the modern day movie goer is woefully ignorant concerning the classics and 2) to paraphrase Homer Simpson “everyone is stupid except me.”

There were some weak plot points, however. I found it hard to believe that Pacino’s Bank, a sharp operator, would not be wise to what was going on. A smarter casino owner would have had cameras pointed at all of the Ocean crew the minute they arrived on the scene. Bank was a bit too clueless for my taste. Bank was also too nice. Benedict was a person without morals, but Bank just seemed greedy and clueless. One almost feels sorry for him by the end…almost. The elaborate escape plan with the tunnel borer was also a bit over the top for my taste, and Benedict’s performance (not Garcia’s, but his character’s performance) should not have been believed by Bank. Finally, the minute that the disguised Rusty dropped off the seismograph in Bank’s office, Bank should have had it removed. Once again, Bank was a little too clueless for my taste. In the end, however, the film succeeded because I received exactly what I expected. A fun escape for 2 hours where no one was hurt (except maybe for David Paymer’s hapless hotel reviewer) and a happy ending was the result. Will this film win any awards? No. Is this in my list of top films? Not even close. Did it fulfill expectations? Yes. In the end, that is all that matters.

One more note. I have decided to design a “sliding scale” of sorts for my movie reviews. The movies will be slotted from 0-10, but there will be a movie at each slot and not just a number. For example, 10 would be something on the order of “Citizen Kane” while 0 would be just about any film from Madonna’s filmography.

I have not yet watched “Knocked Up,” but I hear good things. I will try to watch that and the new Fantastic Four film this week.