2018’s Ocean’s 8, directed
by Gary Ross.
Starring Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett, Anne Hathaway,
Helena Bonham-Carter, Rihanna, Sarah Paulson, Mindy Kaling, Awkafina, Richard
Armitage, Elliot Gould, and James Corden.
What is it about?
Ocean’s 8 takes place
in the same world as the Ocean’s trilogy,
and here we meet legendary thief Danny Ocean’s sister, Debbie Ocean (played by
Sandra Bullock). First seen being released from a 5 year stint in prison,
Bullock executes a plan to steal a diamond necklace from an affluent celebrity
(Anne Hathaway). With her old friend (Cate Blanchett) in tow, they round up a
disgraced fashion designer (Helena Bonham-Carter), event planner (Sarah
Paulson), jeweller (Mindy Kaling), pick pocket (Awkafina), and hacker (Rihanna)
to put the heist in motion. With security tight and Bullock motivated to the
point of recklessness, will the group get their bounty?
Why is it worth seeing?
The Oceans
universe has always been about the crookedly charming criminals who hatch
elaborate schemes to get rich at the expense of those that can afford to lose
it. While hardly saintly, their non violent schemes had a code of honour among
thieves based around the idea of “shaking Frank Sinatra’s hand”. Essentially it
was more about the bonding of the dashing outliers through complicated
mechanics- they had a good time, and we had a good time watching them. Ocean’s 8 copies these themes in a
estrogen centred package, of the seemingly effortless but complicated job, but
leaves out the chemistry and pleasant vibes, leaving something behind that can
feel cold and unsatisfying.
It’s difficult to not compare 8 to the previous 3 films in the canon (Ocean’s 11, 12, and 13).
This is obviously literally a spiritual sister to the films, in copying 2016’s Ghostbusters sexuality shift for a
franchise. At the centre of the previous 3 films, was leading man, George
Clooney. How does Bullock compare, as the Bonnie to his Clyde? Bullock does
bring the effortless charm and breezy expectation of the complicated heist
going as planned, but she introduces a new theme that Clooney’s gentle soul
never really touched on: anger. It manifests itself in Bullock’s flexible
morals, shown through her stealing from, well, anyone. As mentioned above, the
gang from the trilogy were hardly choir boys- but they weren’t stealing from guests
in hotels, or threatening to shank people. They just had too much class for petty
crime.
Same thing for another motive that is clear from the get go:
revenge. Again, morals operate in shades of nuance, and Clooney’s character exposed
his ex-girlfriend’s relationship with a swindler to win her back in 11, and ruined a casino operator after
they lied and conned a friend in 13- but
I would argue the key difference is you could make the argument about there
being a sense of justice and fairness, versus just revenge.
And what of the chemistry between Bullock and her right hand
(wo)man, Cate Blanchett? Again, it has echoes of Clooney’s and Brad Pitt’s
rapport- but it doesn’t touch the levels of unspoken communication the 2 had. Instead,
director Ross shows Bullock and Blanchett in flashback, indicating the 2 have
known each other for years- something the original trilogy showed through non
verbal communication. As well, are we sure Bullock should be the central
protagonist of the film instead of Blanchett? A quick glance at their
filmographies (and Oscar wins/nominations) suggest otherwise.
What about the chemistry of the ad hoc group? Again, there
are individual flashes of brilliance from the team, from Bonham-Carter’s irish
lilt to Awkafina’s street wise quirkiness and Rihanna’s musical voice- but as a
group they have a long way to go to approach some of the dynamics in the
original trilogy. A character even reveals their desire to be a part of this
gang at one point- but we don’t feel what exactly fraternity they’ll find with
this crew. And in terms of either having the group end on a note approaching
the original film (group that quietly dissipates and goes their own way) or its
sequel (group that parties long into the night), the film splits the difference
and shows each individual character’s fate, something oddly unsatisfying- and
that goes double for Bullock’s conclusion.
Finally, Gary Ross’ direction could be described as
“workmanlike”. It’s competent and gets the job done, but it really highlights
Steven Soderbergh’s talents in terms of composing and editing scenes to give
them a kinetic flourish, or sense of inter connectedness. The film could also
could benefit from borrowing a few laughs from the originals.
After all that, it’s easy to wonder if there are any
recommendable qualities to the film. Once the painful getting the group
together sequence is established, the mechanics of the heist do suck you in,
and its plotting (other than the finale) can be difficult to predict. And the cast
is too individually talented to not be interested in what they pull next. It
will keep you invested until the end.
Posessing a heist that is exciting and plenty of star power,
but lagging due to motives that are difficult to identify with and a lack of
chemistry between the stars, combined with a lack of directorial flourish. Ocean’s 8 learns the language required
for the heist, but photocopies the soul of what made the original trilogy so
great, leaving behind something too faint to remember.
