| Value for Money | 7.5/10  |
|---|---|
| Overall rating | 6.5/10 |
| Ocean's: The Complete Collection |  | £23.00P&P - Check site |
| Ocean's Trilogy 4-Disc Box Set |  | £14.98Free P&P |
| Ocean's Twelve [HD DVD] | | £9.48Free P&P |
| Ocean's Twelve [2004] | | £4.98P&P - Check site |
Full review by
jayscandal
expert review 
on 26th May 2005
User Rating : 5
Respect :
0
Good Points: - Soderbergh knows how to handle a camera - A change of tone from Ocean's Eleven
Bad Points: - Twelve people know what is happening in this film, the audience is ignored completely. - The 'cool' factor of this film is lacking in comparison to the first.
General comments: Twelve is the new eleven and mediocre is the new good. Ocean's Twelve had a lot to live up to, and in many ways, delivers what it promised to, but its emphatic lack of respect for its audience and the moments in the plot where it becomes too cool for its own good let down what could have been a well executed sequel.
The plot is relatively simple: Danny Ocean (George Clooney) and Rusty Ryan (Brad Pitt) bring together the original eleven to pull off three European heists to pay back their enormous debt to Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia). Despite this basic premise, the direction of Steven Soderbergh and the wall of distraction that is the relationship between cast members complicates matters to attempt to deliver a clever and stylish film. Soderbergh is a refreshing director, like Gus Van Sant, not afraid to try out new methods of camerawork (he is one of the few directors working in cinema not terrified of the zoom function). To communicate the more intense and pressing atmosphere of the European cities, Soderbergh implements a gritty, guerilla film making style, contrasting the calibre and sheer expense of the cast involved. This is successful, despite the risk that it could all have ended up as ugly as Full Frontal.
Ocean's Twelve knows that it's slick, and does everything to bring this point home. Cool cast. Cool soundtrack. Cool. Despite this, the film remains, unfortunately, exactly what it tries to be: cool.
There are, however, some very questionable moments. For example, the Julia Roberts twist, and I'm trying not to give anything away here, raised a chorus of cackles amongst the crowd in the cinema. It's one of those moments where you stare at the screen transfixed, disbelieving. Soderbergh plays it down to a reasonable extent, but there is still a feeling that the script was redrafted solely to compensate for Roberts' pregnancy.
Clooney and Pitt share the same best friend chemistry they did in the first, born out of their close real life relationship (consisting of jogging together and practical jokes on set). Damon returns to his role as the bumbling amateur, playing against type now considering his dominating presence as Jason Bourne. Everyone fills their role in this film, although not in the same way as the first. The film has been criticised for not really using its enormous cast which it did so successfully in the first, but this is missing the point entirely. Whilst everything went right in Ocean's Eleven, very little goes right in Ocean's Twelve: botched heists are aplenty, and there are fleeting moments when it seems possible that everyone will end up in jail.
Here we come to the film's other major flaw. Ocean's Twelve rarely lets the audience into much of what is going on. Clooney and Pitt have an impermeable circle of trust between them and for most of the film the audience embodies Matt Damon's ignorance. This becomes irritating, especially in the last five minutes when everything that is supposed to roll into place doesn't, and we are left with a cold feeling of stupidity.
Ocean's Twelve is smart and very well made, but alienates most of its audience. Soderbergh does a fine job contrasting the first film whilst maintaining the quality and originality of direction that make him a vastly superior director than most, but there are some uncomfortable and questionable moments in this film that prevent it from equalling the standard of the first.
Rating. 3/5
By Joshua Morrall
jayscandal's review and ratings | 636 words
Review by
One Man Army
expert review
on 1st Feb 2005
User Rating : 8
Respect :
0
Ocean's Twelve - According to the advertising, twelve is the new eleven, so it is with great delight that we welcome back George Clooney and his crew for the highly anticipated Oceans 12. For those of you who have been living under a rock, Ocean's 12 is the sequel to the star studded, crime caper, box office smash that was Oceans 11. The good news is the whole gang are back with a few delightful British additions, ranging from the incredibly glamorous Catherine Zeta-Jones to the not-so-easy-on-t ...
One Man Army's full review | 639 words
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