Let’s call it the curse of the 2007 trilogy. Ocean’s 13, while by no means a bad movie, is just not the way you want to end your series. It is funny, though not as funny as the others, it is entertaining, though not as entertaining as the others, and though it’s a decent movie it will be defined by all the things it’s not as opposed to what it actually delivers. Ocean’s is like the son who never made anything amazing of himself. He looks around, at family gatherings, his brother to the left a doctor, the one to his right a lawyer, while he’s just a manager at a paper company. It’s not that he’s so bad, he’s not off killing people (Spider-Man 3) or making tiresome jokes throughout dinner (Shrek 3) he’s just a quiet guy who’s never quite going to measure up. He’s cursed, just like the quest to figure out whether I’ve just used a really long metaphor or an endless analogy.
The plot of Ocean’s: They’re back at the casino. Gone are the Italian and French influences, back in play are the subtle mob ties. Al Pacino is the villain, though sadly he never says “hoo-aah” (not even once). The cast is still nice and ensembley, and nothing is specifically wrong with any one member. Even Don Cheadle’s accent doesn’t seem as egregiously fake.
With the plot out of the way it’s time to focus on what works. The story moves along quickly, it gets you from point to point in an efficient manner. The guys are as cool as ever and their evident like for one another comes through yet again. Quick aside style comedy is still the norm, and the movie again interjects the same “it can’t be done” feel which is all at once fun and slightly silly. This time around Damon, Pitt, and Clooney have most of the work, with Pitt pulling off his Rusty role the best of the bunch. Casey Affleck is also really good as a revolutionary; you’ll just have to see it to figure what I’m talking about there.
What doesn’t work is the overall logic level and the lack of consistent funny. As for logic, I know, I know, this is an Ocean’s film and I shouldn’t search for logic. But the problems are dumb ones that could have been fixed by changing a few numbers or a line of dialogue. They’re logic problems for no good reason; they don’t advance the plot or the comedy. As for the laughs, they’re present, but not laced throughout as in the first two. On that note, I really liked the second film, so if you hated it maybe you’ll get more out of this one because I think it’s much closer to the feel of the first version.
Should you see this? Yes. It’s entertaining; it’s short, and for the most part worthwhile. Ocean’s 13 fares better than Shrek or Spidey, but not as well as the previous two Ocean’s. It’s worth seeing only in the sense of needing to complete your trilogy knowledge. If you like movies you’ll like this, but it’s not a mandatory opening weekend appointment, and in historical context it comes up a bit short. Here’s hoping there’s another illegitimate brother hiding out somewhere, ready to spring in ten years or so.
