Logan Lucky

photo courtesy of teaser-trailer.com

SPOILER-FREE REVIEW

     Steven Soderbergh wrote, directed, and edited Logan Lucky, a film that puts a rural twist on Ocean’s 11-style heist flicks. It feels like an odd cousin to that movie, full of the usual bank-job smarts but also humble, without the razzle-dazzle. There’s no smooth-talking George Clooney or good-looking Brad Pitt; in Logan Lucky it’s country folk who rule the day.

     The country atmosphere drives every part of the movie: the humor, the set pieces, everything. It’s a world of NASCAR, toddlers-and-tiaras, and West Virginia drawls. Instead of a bank or casino, the assembled team has its sights on a NASCAR raceway, and instead of playboys, the robbers are bartenders and construction workers. Even Daniel Craig, usually in tip-top shape as James Bond, ditches his tailored suit for a prison onesie as the colorful Joe Bang.

photo courtesy of lrmonline.com

     Script-wise, Logan Lucky is just as intelligent as any other heist film. Like Ocean’s 11, it’s a kind of puzzle for the audience: we know they’re going to pull it off, but we don’t know how all the pieces fit together. But at the same time, it’s never pretentious or self-congratulatory like Ocean’s 11; Soderbergh manages to be funny (really funny, actually) and surprising without giving the audience too much of a wink wink at the end. In contrast to the summer’s previous (and also great) heist movie, Baby Driver, Logan Lucky’s not at pains to show how in love with itself it is.

     Soderbergh took a different approach this time around. The action’s quieter, the tone’s quirkier, and the editing allows more space for extended scenes of dialogue. The camera lingers. It’s a refreshing change of pace, both in terms of Soderbergh’s recent work (the Ocean’s trilogy, the two Magic Mike films) and in the recent layout of summer blockbusters.

photo courtesy of cinemavine.com

     Much of the movie’s charm is due the characters, all of whom are likeable in their down-home, homespun-wisdom way. They may not all be thoroughly fleshed out, but the main two characters, at least, are somewhat artfully rendered. As the movie’s marketing reminds us, this is a movie about “the other half,” and the whole enterprise works because they do.

     That the characters work is largely due to an exceptional cast, led by Channing Tatum as Jimmy Logan and Adam Driver (Star Wars’ Kylo Ren) as his brother Clyde Logan. Other notables include Riley Keough (Mellie Logan, the sister of the bunch), Katie Holmes (Bobbie Jo Logan Chapman, which is just a fantastic name for a character), and Academy-Award winner Hilary Swank (Special Agent Sarah Grayson). And as mentioned above, Daniel Craig plays Joe Bang, the aptly named explosives expert. I’m excited to hear that he’ll be returning for one more round as James Bond, but this role makes me more excited for what he might get up to afterwards.

     FINAL VERDICT: Logan Lucky is the kind of summer movie we need: original, memorable, and hilarious.  

photo courtesy of variety.com