Ocean's 8

Tonight I got to see “Ocean’s 8,” released 11 days ago, at work and I will let everyone know what I thought about it.

Recreating the story of Steven Soderbergh’s “Ocean’s” trilogy but lacking their smooth style, “Hunger Games” director Gary Ross creates this all-female remake that is nonetheless enjoyable thanks to the amazing performances from its female cast. Joseph Walsh said in his review, “Ocean’s 8 shows Hollywood’s glass-ceiling is cracking, but begs the question – could this have been better achieved with an original story?”

Danny Ocean has passed. Here comes Danny’s younger, equally sinister sister Debbie, played by Sandra Bullock. After being framed by her evil ex-boyfriend, art dealer Claude Becker, played by Richard Armitage, she’s just been released after a five-year sentence in prison. Not too long after her release, she reunites with her friend Lou, played by Cate Blanchett, and forms a female team of thieves – played by singer Rihanna, Mindy Kaling, rapper Awkwafina, the hot Sarah Paulson and Helena Bonham Carter – to work on a well-planned robbery. The plan is to steal an antique Cartier necklace worth $150 million during New York’s most famous event, the Met Gala, from the beautiful neck of actress Daphne Kluger, played by Anne Hathaway.

The film’s greatest success is on the fourth wall-breaking one-liners evaluating the treatment of women in Hollywood. Walsh said, “Nothing goes unscathed, including celebrity culture and the portrayal of women in the media – journalists get a minor roasting, bloggers worse. This critique crescendos with a scene where Lou suggests a male hustler who could join the team.” Debbie rejects her with: “I don’t want a him. A him gets noticed, a her gets ignored, and, for once, we want to be ignored.” It’s a strong line, cleverly said.

The film’s East Coast setting is also a great decision. Bullock and team take the subway and plan their robbery in an abandoned pool hall. Walsh noted, “This echoes the film's message that unlike their male counterparts that swaggered around the neon lights and up-market hotels of Las Vegas in tuxes, these women’s antics are sidelined to the margins, and they have to hustle twice as hard for what is a given for men (criminal or not).”

Sadly, the formation and scheming of the film proves to be damaging to its moral. Walsh said, “The heist scenes are functional, lacking the pizzazz and slick high-jinks of Soderbergh’s original.” Disappointingly, the film’s pacing shatters when James Corden comes in the film as a clumsy insurance investigator. This then goes even worse because of having a revenge plot involving Claude, discouraging the message of female power.

“Ocean’s 8” does have a strong suit when it comes to Anne Hathaway, who steals the film as the grouchy but annoyingly liking Kluger. Her character is described as having “eyes like Bambi” and “the best neck in the business,” and you can’t help but make the reference to the meta-joke of “Ocean’s Twelve,” where Julia Roberts’ character disguised as Julia Roberts. Walsh said, “Hathaway is clearly having fun alluding to her own career, and there’s even a touch of her Selina Kyle from Nolan’s The Dark Knight Rises in here. Hathaway makes her point with grace and elegance: she’s more than a pretty neck.”

However, the film’s message is only as good as the way it’s told. Walsh complained, “The so-so heist and hop-scotch plotting lacks polish. There's also that nagging question – why not give a cast of this calibre a film that allows them to shine without the male baggage?” Maybe that’s just the increase of noticing the industry seeing the misogyny and gender-swap reboots are the best we can see for right now, but more exciting is to think the films this cast will be making next, together or alone.

Now, as much as the complaints are when it comes to telling the message of noticing how strong women are, this film is actually a lot of fun. I found myself enjoying this film when I was watching it, and if you liked the “Ocean’s” trilogy, then you might enjoy this one. However, if you want to wait until this comes out on DVD to rent it, then that’s fine. I think it wouldn’t hurt to go the theater to watch it, but the decision is yours.

Thank you for joining in on my review tonight, stay tuned next Friday for the continuation of “Coen’s Brothers Month.”