00s Movie Review - Ocean's Thirteen

Director: Steven Sodenbergh
Genre: Comedy/ Crime
Runtime: 122 minutes
Year: 2007
Starring: George Clooney, Brad Pitt, matt Damon, Al Pacino, Ellen Barkin, Bernie Mac, Casey Affleck, Scott Caan, Elliott Gould, Shaobo Qin, Don Cheadle, Andy Garcia, Carl Reiner

Description: Danny Ocean (George Clooney) rounds up the boys for a third heist after casino owner Willy Bank (Al Pacino) double-crosses on of the original eleven: Rueben Tishkoff (Elliott Gould).

Review: The story in a nutshell: Danny Ocean and his ream get together to assist their buddy Rueben Tishkoff, who has been double-crossed by casino boss Willi Banks. As a result, Rueben has collapsed, is in bed with heart problems and Danny is furious. Time for revenge. The plan is to bankrupt Banks’ casino before it officially opens its doors. Let the swindle and sabotage begin…
After a flying start “Ocean’s Thirteen” collapses after thirty minutes. The different storylines aren’t all that interesting, characters come and go, and certain things remain unexplained. But they are back in Las Vegas, like in the first movie. And the actual execution of the plan feels like old times. And this part was really fun, enjoyable and exciting.  
Does the third film add something to the series? Not really. The second one also didn’t, but I do prefer this over “Ocean’s Twelve”. But “Ocean’s Eleven” was the best of the three and they should have just stuck with that one.

Rating: 3/ 5

00s Movie Review - Ocean's Twelve

Director: Steven Sodenbergh
Genre: Action/ Crime/ Comedy/ Thriller
Runtime: 120 minutes
Year: 2004
Starring: George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Andy Garcia, Bernie Mac, Scott Caan, Casey Affleck, Julia Roberts, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Carl Reiner, Shaobo Qin, Elliot Giuld, Vincent Cassel, Bruce Willis, Don Cheadle, Albert Finney

Description: Danny Ocean (George Clooney) once again teams up with experts so he can pull off three major European heists.

Review: Steven Sodenbergh’s “Ocean Twelve” demonstrates the difference between actors and movie stars: the film clearly lacks content, but is filled with beautiful images and gorgeous people. Loads of star power in this film, but rarely do they show their acting skills.
Where “Ocean’s Eleven” has a clear vision and plot, “Ocean’s Twelve” doesn’t really seem to care about the plot. Because it’s really of no importance at all. Danny Ocean and his companions are yet again trying to pull off three major heists. This time in three European countries: The Netherlands, Italy and France.
The other story that we follow is that of an elusive thief called Night Fox. He is in everything the cliché of the flamboyant jewel thief: a rich French baron who was trained by the best thief of all time, he steals purely for fun and leaves a small stone fox statue at the places he robs.
I really enjoyed the first film, but “Ocean’s Twelve” really dragged and was even boring at times. I did like the added humor, especially when Tess Ocean (played by Julia Roberts) had to pretend to be Julia Roberts. And with all those amazing stars in the film, it’s sad that actos like Don Cheadle and Elliot Gould don’t get the screen time they deserve. Because they are true scene stealers.
Overall, “Ocean’s Twelve” was just another cash grab.

Rating: 2,5/ 5

00s Movie Review - Ocean's Eleven

Director: Steven Sodenbergh
Genre: Crime/ Thriller/ Comedy
Runtime: 122 minutes
Year: 2001
Starring: George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Andy Garcia, Bernie Mac, Elliott Gould, Julia Roberts, Scott Caan, Casey Affleck, Don Cheadle, Carl Reiner, Shaobo Qin, Holly Marie Combs, Barry Watson, Joshua Jackson, Topher Grace, Shane West

Description: Danny Ocean (George Clooney) and his ten accomplices plan to rob three Las Vegas casinos simultaneously.

Review: Danny Ocean just got out of jail and he’s already planning his next heist: the simultaneous robbing of three major casinos in Las Vegas. To carry out this daring plan, he assembles ten experts that, after extensive preparation, seems perfectly capable of getting the job done. However, it is questionable whether it will be that easy in reality, because casino owner Terry Benedict is smart and has cameras everywhere.
“Ocean’s Eleven” is a remake of the 1960 film of the same name. although in this case the term remake is very broad. Because Steven Sodenbergh’s version has some common ground with its predecessor it is essentially a completely different film. It starred Franks Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr. among many others, and had the right atmosphere. But it lacked atmosphere and action. With Sodenbergh’s take on it, that’s different.
Their mission seems impossible at first, since the safe is very hard to access without being seen. But somehow the protagonists know how to find a surprising wat to bypass all security measures. Of course things go wrong, which add to the excitement of the film. The film has a lot of tension. The slick camera work and high star quality make for a great film. But it’s not perfect. The characters are largely one-dimensional. But don’t let this stop you from watching the film.
“Ocean’s Eleven” is almost two hours of entertainment.

Rating: 3,5/ 5