 Movie
Reviews
with Evelyn Gough
Oceans Twelve (MA)
Directed by Steven Soderbergh
 George Clooney, Elliott Gould, Brad Pitt and Don Cheadle behind bars at last in Oceans Twelve.
The spirit of the original Oceans' Eleven (and I mean the 60s original, starring the Rat Pack) lives on in Soderbergh's sequel. In other words, this is a self-indulgent vehicle for a bunch of big-name stars who all happen to be mates. Sure, they're all having a good time, but is the audience?
A few years ago, a very acceptable heist film starring a powerhouse cast came out. Loosely based on a crime caper from the 60s called Oceans' Eleven, this remake was a slick action thriller that sucked in the audience and carried them along for the ride. Now they're back - the whole gang plus one - making it Ocean's Twelve.
Three years on, Danny Oceans (George Clooney) and his gang of thieves are living the high life thanks to the $160 million they stole from casino owner Terry Benedict (a very sartorial Andy Garcia). Scattered all around the world, they think they're safe, but guess what?
Some really smart guy with a huge grudge against Ocean and his gang has dobbed them in and now Benedict wants his money back with interest, despite the fact that he's already claimed the insurance. Talk about greedy!
What's more, they've only got two weeks to repay or it's sayonara... Of course they've got about as much chance of borrowing the money as John Elliot, so the only obvious thing to do is head for Europe where they're relatively unknown and embark on a mega-stealing spree.
This plan might have worked but for one small hitch - Rusty Ryan's (Brad Pitt) ex-girlfriend (Catherine Zeta-Jones) showing up.
If you're able and prepared to suspend all disbelief and really concentrate hard, then you might find a worthwhile movie hidden in here somewhere. Personally, I thought it was too smart for its own good and much too convoluted, so you're likely to have trouble following the plot.
Luckily, George, Brad and Matt are as cute as ever, unlike Julia Roberts, who looks positively haggard (must be a twins thing), and there are plenty of 'moments'. But unless the scriptwriters focus more on the heist and less on being hip, don't bother hanging out for Oceans' Thirteen.
Rating: 
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