#22: Ocean’s Eleven
Upon arriving home from the hospital after the recent birth of our first child, I found my paternity leave immediately filled with new choices, choices which I had never heretofore considered. What brand of diaper wipes and rash cream is best for my baby girl? Which bottle has the best combination of ergonomic balance and efficient feeding capacity? What is the best position for feeding, burping, and napping? Which swaddle will prevent her incredibly active arms from springing free too easily?
If I kept going, I could name a few dozen more brand-new questions just like these. Within that list, one particular question stood out as relevant to my writing in particular: what films, T.V. shows, and books will best fill my time as I attempt to stay awake during late night feedings or overly tired midday skin-to-skin naps? I immediately got to work on a list, perusing through our streaming services, and without delay, Steven Soderbergh’s Ocean’s trilogy jumped to the top of my list. Recently streaming on Netflix, the stylish, celebrity-filled heist films go down easy, but precisely because they are made with such high-quality ingredients. They aren’t cheap, sugary sodas, designed to please a palette with simply but ultimately empty dopamine hits—you’ve got those aplenty in films like Now You See Me, installments in the Fast and Furious series, and so forth. No, Soderbergh’s work, particularly in the first Ocean’s film, is smooth like a good Old Fashioned: the right amount of sweet to coat each rich, complex, and ultimately delightful swig.
Much has been written on the film in the 24 years since its release, and there’s little I’d have to say that is particularly unique, but a few things struck me upon this rewatch:
-First, Soderbergh’s ability to direct celebrities and shoot real, bonafide movie stars is nearly unparalleled: Clooney and Pitt have hardly ever looked better, and the humor they share as the primary leads of the heist belies a lasting friendship that is shown instead of told, which leads to the second point…
-Second, Soderbergh’s screenplay is flawless and executed flawlessly: the jokes are well-timed and smart, the characters compelling, varied, and fun, and the heist details are explored with the perfect amount of winking self-seriousness.
-Third, the pace and length of the film have aged perfectly: in an era of over long, exposition-laden, CGI fest filmmaking, returning to this one felt like a breath of fresh air. It comes in under two hours, every shot and line of dialogue contributes to the story in some way, and for being a film that is primarily people talking in rooms, it feels propulsive through and through. The music only helps this: it remains one of the better soundtracks of the 20th century.
As comedies go, it’s top-notch. As ensemble casts go, it’s perfectly executed. As heist movies go, it may be the best of all time. It would be like stealing not to include it on this list.
Other recommendations if you like Ocean’s Eleven: Logan Lucky, The Italian Job, Wolfs, The Informant!