Soderbergh goes Fast and Furious - Logan Lucky (REVIEW)
Written by Jacob Chimilar
Steven Soderbergh is one of those filmmakers who deals in small but impactful films. Side Effects, Contagion, Behind the Candelabra, Magic Mike, Ocean 11 and 13 all are films I very much enjoy so going in I thought this would be something worth spending my time with over the other releases this week. Unfortunately this film just doesn't live up to the greatness he set on the Ocean's films nor does it have the emotional depth of some of his more serious work.
The best part of the film was hands down Daniel Craig as Joe Bang, a larger than life convict who is contracted by the Logan boys to help break into a NASCAR bank vault. Channing Tatum and Adam Driver were enjoyable as the Logan boys. Two guys just looking to get by in life, one a divorcee with a kid he rarely sees but clearly loves and the other a bartender who lost part of his arm during his tour in Iraq. I feel like this was Soderbergh attempting to do his southern, blue collar version of the Ocean's films. What would some salt of the earth West Virginians do to rob a bank? And it just wasn't as entertaining as you would hope from that kind of a set up. It all seems to happen rather matter of fact-ly and there is not a whole lot to get excited over. I found myself an hour into the film and just wriggling in my chair waiting for things to start moving along.
The set up for the heist and the execution are both really cool and interesting, they just never are explained very well, things get set up along the way but it comes off as boring as you are watching it even though you kind of think it will be worth it because in movies everything has to mean something. And things do come back around but none of it really feels all that clever or interesting, it just sort of happen and you go "huh ok" and that is about it. There is a lack of charisma and energy to the film that is needed with the likes of a robbery. Daniel Craig again is so magnetic as Joe and he feels right at home in the idea of the film, its the Logan boys that feel a bit out of place as they just go about the heist in the most nonchalant way. Even that can be great as two seemingly bumbling fools pull of a great heist. Something they tried to do but never took it to the extremes that is needed in films like this.
I think there is a good film in here somewhere. If you watch the trailer below, I think that is more of the way I thought the film was going to go. I personally love heist movies, The Bank Job, Ocean's series, even National Treasure (which watching as a kid was great, now, not so much). This was just so bland that by the end I left feeling nothing. There are a few chuckles but aside from that it really doesn't have a whole lot to offer in terms of entertainment. It's not out right bad, everyone gives solid performances, The direction and cinematography were really well done, it just doesn't have the story or charm to elevate it to something great.
FINAL SCORE
C-
The king of heist films, gives us an average one
