Magic Mike (B or 3/4 stars)
Yes. Yes, I saw 'Magic Mike' (Steven Soderbergh's male stripper movie), haha. But, hey ... I critique all kinds of films. I even saw Burlesque (and enjoyed it in all of its badness). 'Magic Mike' goes to show why some young men are drawn to stripping: sex and $$. It also shows the downside, which includes exhaustion, depression, self-loathing, & drugs. The plot shows us the rise of Adam (I Am Number Four's Alex Pettyfer) in the stripping business. A ne'er-do-well 19 yr. old, he comes to Tampa to live with his sister, Brooke (relative unknown Cody Horn), & meets "Magic" Mike (Channing Tatum) on a construction/roofing job.
Adam tags along with the good-natured, attractive 30 yr. old to the nightclub where he strips & dances for tips. The club's owner, Dallas (Matthew McConaughey), sees something in Adam & decides to give him a shot. After a shaky (yet hysterical) start, Adam is soon making female audiences scream & swoon. Meanwhile, his 'big brother' Mike, is becoming disillusioned about his life (the stagnation of stripping, the downsides that come from it, the lack of $$ needed for his true dream in life - to make one-of-a-kind furniture), especially when he realizes a relationship with Brooke is impossible as long as he continues to perform on the stage.
You know, based on the trailers, one would think that 'Magic Mike' could be mainstream popcorn trash. You know the kind: a Showgirls/Basic Instinct/Coyote Ugly hybrid of salacious fun. But that's not really the case. If anything, 'MM' reminded me of Boogie Nights; which gave audiences a look inside the world of porn. So yeah, 'MM' is not so much a male stripping extravaganza as it is about a man gaining the courage to leave one way of life to take another direction. The ending of the film may feel a bit underplayed/abrupt. But I was okay with it because the ending is optimistic without really being conclusive or sugar sweet.
The stripper choreography in 'Magic Mike' is fun, lively, & engaging; showing why these clubs are as popular as they are. You know, the story in 'Magic Mike' is pretty standard/meager. But Soderbergh enhances the story with some panache: creative camerawork, slick editing, choices of music, etc.. The club scenes are - of course - wildly entertaining (if a tad tame, no "Fassbender" here, haha), & some of the backstage preparing/training scenes are great.
Channing Tatum is at complete ease in this role; and he should - this story is mostly based on his stripper past. When onstage, he's electrifying; performing acrobatic tricks & dance maneuvers that I never knew he was capable of. And yet, he also impressed me with some dramatic chops, comic flair (which we saw in 21 Jump Street), as well as an ease of screen presence. You want to like him ... always. And that's an important factor in being a movie star. Alex Pettyfer is solid as Adam; the last look on his face shows you all you need to know about him & where his character is going. Cody Horn (Adam's concerned sister & Mike's potential love interest) has an unrehearsed way of delivering her lines. It's an effective choice/style of acting. And Matthew McConaughey looks like he's having the time of his life as the aging, greedy, snake-like strip owner who is desperate to expand his empire {look out for a very funny mirror scene with Pettyfer}.
'Magic Mike' blends riotous strip scenes with low-key humor & some melodrama. It feels self-assured; thanks to Soderbergh. If I have a complaint, it's that the movie really tells a very standard story about 2 men, their talents, their dreams, their rises, & their falls (one man has an uptick at the end, the other descends). So the movie fizzles out a bit, because the story is too simplistic, and there isn't anything unique about where the story CAN go. But the confetti (good-looking guys stripping) masks a lot of that standard screenwriting. Quality film, good dialogue, etc.. I just expected a little more fun & a sharper narrative.
Adam tags along with the good-natured, attractive 30 yr. old to the nightclub where he strips & dances for tips. The club's owner, Dallas (Matthew McConaughey), sees something in Adam & decides to give him a shot. After a shaky (yet hysterical) start, Adam is soon making female audiences scream & swoon. Meanwhile, his 'big brother' Mike, is becoming disillusioned about his life (the stagnation of stripping, the downsides that come from it, the lack of $$ needed for his true dream in life - to make one-of-a-kind furniture), especially when he realizes a relationship with Brooke is impossible as long as he continues to perform on the stage.
You know, based on the trailers, one would think that 'Magic Mike' could be mainstream popcorn trash. You know the kind: a Showgirls/Basic Instinct/Coyote Ugly hybrid of salacious fun. But that's not really the case. If anything, 'MM' reminded me of Boogie Nights; which gave audiences a look inside the world of porn. So yeah, 'MM' is not so much a male stripping extravaganza as it is about a man gaining the courage to leave one way of life to take another direction. The ending of the film may feel a bit underplayed/abrupt. But I was okay with it because the ending is optimistic without really being conclusive or sugar sweet.
The stripper choreography in 'Magic Mike' is fun, lively, & engaging; showing why these clubs are as popular as they are. You know, the story in 'Magic Mike' is pretty standard/meager. But Soderbergh enhances the story with some panache: creative camerawork, slick editing, choices of music, etc.. The club scenes are - of course - wildly entertaining (if a tad tame, no "Fassbender" here, haha), & some of the backstage preparing/training scenes are great.
Channing Tatum is at complete ease in this role; and he should - this story is mostly based on his stripper past. When onstage, he's electrifying; performing acrobatic tricks & dance maneuvers that I never knew he was capable of. And yet, he also impressed me with some dramatic chops, comic flair (which we saw in 21 Jump Street), as well as an ease of screen presence. You want to like him ... always. And that's an important factor in being a movie star. Alex Pettyfer is solid as Adam; the last look on his face shows you all you need to know about him & where his character is going. Cody Horn (Adam's concerned sister & Mike's potential love interest) has an unrehearsed way of delivering her lines. It's an effective choice/style of acting. And Matthew McConaughey looks like he's having the time of his life as the aging, greedy, snake-like strip owner who is desperate to expand his empire {look out for a very funny mirror scene with Pettyfer}.
'Magic Mike' blends riotous strip scenes with low-key humor & some melodrama. It feels self-assured; thanks to Soderbergh. If I have a complaint, it's that the movie really tells a very standard story about 2 men, their talents, their dreams, their rises, & their falls (one man has an uptick at the end, the other descends). So the movie fizzles out a bit, because the story is too simplistic, and there isn't anything unique about where the story CAN go. But the confetti (good-looking guys stripping) masks a lot of that standard screenwriting. Quality film, good dialogue, etc.. I just expected a little more fun & a sharper narrative.