Ocean's Twelve film review

certificate_12A

OCEAN'S TWELVE

Ocean's Twelve is clearly more enjoyable to be in than it is to watch. That's not to say it isn't amusing, but it's obvious the cast are having the last laugh. With good reason. They are all getting paid vast sums of money for partying. No wonder they all swan around with smug grins. The sequel to the lackluster Ocean's Eleven was obviously seen by all involved as an opportunity to resume their indulgent romp. Too often though the jokes are so inside they never make it as far as the audience.

The appeal of the original Ocean's Eleven is watching the tightly knit members of the Brat Pack larking about in the service of a caper movie. Director Steven Soderbergh rarely captured that camaraderie with his 2001 remake, but now, with the reassembled cast's familiarity with their characters and each other, he's better developed that easy charm. In particular Brad Pitt and George Clooney enjoy a nice rapport.

The frustration with Ocean's Twelve is that with such a wealth of talent both in front of and behind the screen, the result is so inconsequential. It is obviously not meant to be anything more than silly nonsense, but even so it's hard not to think of it as a missed opportunity.

All the usual suspects are back, which sadly means the return of Don Cheadle and his impossibly bad cockney accent. One hint that it might in fact be an example of an inside joke (for Cheadle's sake, it better be) comes when his character Basher tells Tess (Julia Roberts), "The accent is crucial. It's the first thing people notice." The reason he's talking about accents to Tess is because of yet another gag, one that confirms Ocean's Twelve as a product of self-satisfied, rampant egos. In an attempt to avoid capture, Tess tries to palm herself off as the real life Julia Roberts. The notion of Roberts impersonating Roberts is a little too conceited for its own good.

Presumably looking for an excuse to transport the party to a more exotic locale than Eleven's Las Vegas, Danny Ocean (George Clooney) and his cronies this time find themselves in Europe where they've gone to try and rustle up the $160 million plus interest they need to pay off Terry Benedict, the vengeful victim of their last heist .