Fresh from the critical and box office success surrounding the 2001 remake of Ocean’s 11, Steven Soderbergh returns to direct a sequel called “Ocean’s 12” with The Main Cast such as George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Bernie Mac, Don Cheadle, Elliott Gould, Scott Caan, Casey Affleck, Andy Garcia, Julia Roberts & Carl Reiner.
Ocean’s 12 was released in 2004. (same year second installments such as Shrek 2, Spider-Man 2 & the critically panned Baby Geniuses 2) Unlike its predecessor, it received mixed reviews from critics. Despite mixed reception, the sequel managed to make enough money at the box office.
A follow up called, Ocean’s 13 was released in 2007 as the final entry to The Ocean’s Trilogy due to the death of Bernie Mac. Until, a spin-off was announced with Steven Soderbergh serving as a producer.
Now that Ocean’s 8 is coming out in June 8, I want to share my thoughts on what’s good or bad about Ocean’s 12, in order to spread word of mouth for those who are excited to see the upcoming spin-off starring Sandra Bullock as Danny Ocean’s sister.
Today’s review contains potential SPOILERS. If you’ve never seen the film or Ocean’s 11, read at your own risk.
Rich & Poor
Rich: Cast Members from the first film reprise their roles and they all did a fantastic job for their respective performances.
Fun Fact: The big reason why The Cast reprise their roles for Ocean’s 12, is because they wanted go on a vacation during filming. And I thought most of Adam Sandler’s films set outside of America, was an excuse for him to go on a vacation with his friends & family.
New Cast Members such as Catherine Zeta-Jones, Robbie Coltrane, Eddie Izzard & Vincent Cassel all did a good job for their performances.
Steven Soderbergh returns to the director’s chair and he did a solid job directing. He confirmed that Ocean’s 12 is his personal favorite film he directed from The Ocean’s Trilogy.
Funny Moments managed to give me a few laughs including Rusty Ryan’s habit of eating onscreen. Every time Brad is in a movie, he would often eat between takes. You think Tom Hanks has a habit to go to the toilet or Natalie Portman crying in almost every movie she’s in? Brad is one of the actors which has a habit that becomes a trademark.
Rusty Ryan has a personal back story involving a love interest named Isabel Lahiri. He’s forced to leav her because of his criminal record and Isabel works as a detective. It makes sense that Rusty doesn’t want to jeopardize his friendship with Danny.
When Julia Roberts’ character Tess, pretending to be her actress and acting like she’s pregnant. Julia was actually pregnant in real life during filming. Talk about meta humor if you ask me.
Practical Effects were heavily used to orchestrate The Heist.
Topher Grace, Bruce Willis & Albert Finney make cameo appearances.
Bruce Willis mentioned SpongeBob SquarePants. Coincidentally, The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie came out the same year as Ocean’s 12.
The part when Night Fox is dodging lasers to retrieve the egg, references Catherine Zeta-Jones’s infamous dodging the lasers scene from Entrapment. Gotta love in-jokes.
During The End Credits, a text pops up as, “And Introducing Tess as Julia Roberts.”
Poor: Cinematography mostly suffered from a case of Shaky Cam.
Bernie Mac & Carl Reiner’s characters Frank & Saul, didn’t appear that much. It’s called Ocean’s 11 for a reason people!
The film ends with a blurry freeze frame. I find it unnecessary as I tend to make fun of freeze frames by pretending act like a narrator in a television crime drama. What’s the point of ending a final shot with a blurry freeze frame?
There’s a nonsensical scene with the Chinese boy jumping on the bed for no reason. To quote Nostalgia Critic & Nostalgia Chick, it’s a “Big Lipped Alligator Moment.” (B.L.A.M. for short) It means a pointless scene came out of nowhere and it doesn’t connect to the story without any explanation whatsoever.
A Plot Twist/Plot Hole reveals that Danny & his crew already stole the egg when they first arrived in Amsterdam. So why did they stay for the next few days instead of delivering it to Benedict. I’m Double Down this flaw because it made The Heist entirely convoluted. It’s a if a group of pirates a treasure chest in a deserted island. What did they do? They’ve decided to slack off, rather then going home! Harry & Marv from Home Alone are by far professional that Danny & his crew!
The Final Verdict: C, FOR CONTRIVED!
Ocean’s 12 is a convoluted disappointment as the weakest entry to The Ocean’s Trilogy. Let me get this straight, Danny Ocean & his crew pulled of a successful heist last time, they’ve easily managed to steal the egg and decided five stay in Amsterdam. I cannot believe Danny Ocean & his crew were incompetent for not leaving after retrieving the egg. If you want to watch this film to gear up for Ocean’s 8, go ahead and give it a watch.
Nickthemoviecritic.com 