Tonight there was a test screening of Ocean's 11 in Pasadena. I hadn't planned on writing in, but I couldn't resist inserting my two cents.
I thought the film was fantastic - and surprisingly finished considering the four months that will lapse before it's release. The film has an overwhelming feeling of cool that I haven't seen in movies of late. The film and its characters don't try to be cool, they just are. They dress well, speak cleverly and get the job done with a breeziness that makes you feel that these characters exist in this world and really dress, act and talk this way.
As everyone and their dog knows that film stars George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Andy Garcia, Matt Damon, Don Cheadle, Carl Reiner, Scott Caan, Casey Affleck and Julia Roberts. There are also a slew of cameos and smaller parts. This is wall to wall movie star eye candy.
The film is called Ocean's 11 - but it could be called Brad Pitt's party because he just dominates the movie. If you thought he was cool in Fight Club - just wait. I really admire a big movie star like George Clooney who's willing to let other actors take center stage - it shows a real love for the quality of the film and not his own ego.
Other stand out performances are Scott Caan and Casey Affleck as the two mormon brothers and Carl Reiner as the old guy they get out of retirement for the job.
In fact everyone in the film is really great which makes the fact that Julia Roberts is a bit miscast stand out. She does her best and delivers her lines well, but she doesn't quite seem to fit in right with the high class, high maintainance gal she's supposed to be playing.
But really, this is only a minor complaint (along with the shameful underuse of Don Cheadle and Matt Damon). I really loved the fact that the film isn't filled with arbitrary back story and subplots. The film and filmmakers operate much like the heist and the characters themselves, they don't bullshit, they're professional and everything that happens is necessary to the story. Lest you think that the film is boring, I guarantee you it is quite funny, clever, surprising, entertaining and all those other silly superlatives they quote from critics.
I wish I had more interesting things to say about the film but really I thought it was pretty perfect. Soderbergh will have his biggest hit yet and everyone will get richer on this one.
