Customer Reviews

Ocean's Twelve

5 star:		(31)
4 star:		(45)
3 star:		(77)
2 star:		(70)
1 star:		(90)

 

 

I saw Ocean's Eleven, reluctantly, and fell in love. It opened the door for me to be able to tolerate George Clooney and Brad Pitt (although 12 Monkeys and Fight Club continue to be his best work). That being said, Twelve was NOT Eleven.

This does not make it bad, just different. The difference though being a rather large one. Instead of one tremendously clever caper, we have three blase ones with alot of down time in between. And herein is where I think alot of people torched this film. They wanted to see the exact same genius of the first script and instead got Ocean and crew palling around Europe. This film is by no means a mind buster, but it IS an enjoyable film with some rather entertaining times and the same type of story one would expect the writers to come up with for this crew.

All in all, not the best one out of the group, but I challenge anyone who bashed this film for not being as good as the first one to give me a series of films that consistently IMPROVED upon itself. There have been A LOT of letdown sequels out there, I would not go so far as saying this one was a letdown. Eleven was 5 stars........this one is four, for simply being a fun film as long as you can sit back and not start making Ocean's Eleven comparisons. Sure it bears the namesake, but it is NOT the same film. And honestly, it does a great job showing just how clever Terry Benedict can be as the villain. One of Andy Garcia's best roles, albeit short lived.

I got to apologize for reviewing the film itself instead of the product, but I honestly felt this was being unfairly represented by alot of the reviews. Hope this helps give some counterpoint. And FYI, the disk is great I simply wish it had a little more meat. Not alot in the way of extras

'Ocean's Twelve' has committed many typical mistakes when Hollywood studios fail to come up any new ideas, but still want to make a movie quickly. OK, let me tell you one by one:

A) THE DISJOINTED PLOT (or making an unnecessary sequel). Right, we don't need this. We already have slick, stylish 'Ocean's Eleven' so why make this one? Add to this question, what's the point of this new '12' anyway? George Clooney and other guys came back. Right, and Andy Garcia's (last time) humiliated casino owner came back, who wants his money back. So Ocean and his pals have to pull off another heist in Holland, in order to pay the cash quickly. So far, OK.

BUT. hey, anyone, can you summerize this? The film next introduces another (French) crook Vincent Cassel, and another retired crook, and Catherine Zata Jones's female investigator (from 'Europole', and she happens to know Brad Pitt's character ... how convenient), and many cameos from Hollywood, including Bruce Willis as himself. And Julia Roberts flies to the place when Ocean's men are in trouble, all the way from America. To prove what? I still do not know.

B) EUROPEAN LOCATIONS. And they went out of USA, to travel to such places as Rome and Amsterdam. That means there is no gorgeous, glittering feeling of Las Vegas, the town which no doubt helped create the stylish mood of the original. But anyway, the entire cast must have had fun.

C) SO MANY CAMEOS and references to other films. If you don't have good idea, get cameos. It's easy, you pay just a little (by the standard of Hollywood), the stars work only a day or two, and the audiences will be amused. That's what some people are thinking. So, besides the star of 'Pulp Fiction' you see Eddie Izzard, Robbie Coltrane, Jared Harris, Albert Finney, Jeroen Krabbe, Topher Grace ... should I continue? Plus, there are many film references, none of which are as amusing or intelligent as Tarantino.

Am I too harsh? Maybe or maybe not. But I am sure that what was good in '11' is all missing in '12.' Maybe you still call it a 'dream team' with Matt Damon, Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Don Cheadle, Bernie Mac. But they forgot one thing, and that's imagination. Perhap, just perhap, but Steven Soderbergh lost it, and something else got into his head instead.

This was a nightmare, right? I wasn't really watching the much-anticipated sequel to Ocean's Eleven, was I? How the hell does a director on top of his game like Soderbergh allow a sequel like this to be released? And you would think the actors would care enough about the movie and how the audience would perceive it to prevent a script so poorly formed and screened from making it to production. But, alas, it's greed that put this flick in the can. Definately the worst follow-up to a good film i've seen in a while.

2004`s "Ocean's Twelve" picks up where 2001`s "Ocean's Eleven" left off. When we last saw them, Danny Ocean and his hand-picked gang of professional thieves had successfully heisted multi-million dollar fortunes from three Las Vegas casinos, then headed their separate ways to start life anew as upstanding members of their respective communities. However, they've since learned that the past has a way of catching up with a person no matter how much he may try to hide from it, when Tony Benedict, the Bellagio owner, still stewing over the money that was stolen from him three years earlier, shows up on Ocean`s doorstep demanding restitution. He gives Ocean and his gang two weeks to come up with the $97 million they owe him or face the consequences. Thus, Danny gathers up the gang once again and heads off to Europe, hoping to lift a few priceless art pieces to stave off certain death (though it`s never made entirely clear just how Benedict is proposing to carry out this rather grandiose threat). What Danny doesn't count on is that he will be going up against two worthy adversaries - one a detective and the other a rival thief - who will give him more trouble than he ever bargained for.

"Ocean's Twelve" is a disappointment for a whole host of reasons, most of them rooted in the format and structure of the film. For this second outing, writer George Nolfi and returning director Steven Soderbergh have come up with a ha`penny storyline that lacks the intricacy and elegance of the tale in "Ocean's Eleven." Not only does this caper seem haphazardly planned from beginning to end, but the resolution of it falls miserably flat, providing neither the amazement nor the amusement we expect to find in these kinds of stories. Perhaps the idea of stealing a priceless Faberge Egg just doesn't rank up there in either chutzpah or style with knocking over a whole Las Vegas casino, and so the enterprise is more or less doomed to failure from the start. Or perhaps the filmmakers simply failed to find enough for all these characters to do while they're roaming the streets of Amsterdam, Paris and Rome on what appears to be little more than an extended European vacation for some talented but woefully underused actors. Moreover, there is a side foray involving Julia Roberts trying to pass herself off as Julia Roberts that is inane, incredible, preposterous and embarrassing. The sequence is indicative of the lazy, half-hearted approach the filmmakers have taken towards both their material and their audience.

It's also unpleasant watching the one character with even a smidgen of a moral code crossing over to the dark side at the end of the story - and asking us to get all misty-eyed and choked-up when it happens (at least when Anakin does it, we aren't expected to cheer him on from the sidelines).

The high-priced, big-name actors - George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, Andy Garcia, Matt Damon and Albert Finney - go through the motions, but they seem hopelessly cut adrift by the meandering, substandard screenplay. Actually, only Catherine Zeta-Jones, as the detective and former girlfriend of Brad Pitt, is given anything of genuine substance to work with here. All the rest are just picking up paychecks.

In this type of film, plotting is everything, and the sad truth is that the plotting in "Ocean's Twelve" is pretty damn awful any way you slice it. We`ve already had it sliced 11 and 12 ways with noticeably diminishing results; do they dare go for unlucky 13?

"Ocean's 12" is nearly as much fun as Steven Soderbergh's 2002 film "Ocean's 11". This is, of course the sequel to "Ocean's 11". The main problem with this movie is that it goes on a bit too long. Clockin in at 135 minutes, there are too many things going on and the last act is completely confounding. In a way, this movie reminded me of the recent "Ladykillers" remake, in that it has comically inept criminals doing things that they rally can not do. But "Ocean's 12" is less of a caper comedy like its predesecsor was, and more of an action caper. There are no amazing shootouts or daring car chases/races/or crashes, but there is a large amount of heists, some that are involved in mechanics or outrageous stunts. So, that said, I think that "Ocean's 12", while funny and quite entertaining, could have been shortened by 15 or 20 minutes. I thought that Catherine Zeta Jones' character was not that well established, and the writers (perhaps purposefully) left it to the audience to figure out why she was even there!

It pains me to see people put down such a well done film. I can't understand why people are so caught up in being so overly-critical about everything these days. Wah wah wah, this sucks, wah wah wah, horrible movie, wah wah wah...boo hoo. First off, this movie is great. Regardless of what movie you think they've tried to rip off, regardless of the fact you think the first was better, i don't care and I think you should broaden your small minded thinking.

This movie is very intelligent, the acting in it is unrivaled. The cast couldn't have been better put together and everyone plays their role so well in this movie. I particularly thought that Matt Damon was excellent. And of course, there's the one and only Brad Pitt who was exquisite as usual. Anywho, you can't go wrong with this star-studded cast.

This movie had me entertained one more than one level. It made me laugh, cry, scratch my head, think, and it put all the pieces together for me in the end so I didn't leave the theater throwing barrels. I thought the off-key humor in it was brilliant. The way it all came together in the end was just they way we all like to see it done.

This movie is a great movie. Great acting, smart, funny, great story, keeps you thinking. It's everything and more in what I look for in a good film. If you haven't seen it, listen to my review, see it, and decide for yourself, ignore all these cynical over-analytical critical "let's compare everything to something else and say it is bad because...blah blah blah" type people.

Thank you for your time.

The entire movie may seem contrived and the plot all jumbled up, but that's truly the genius of Soderbergh. All the characters were interesting and there is still enough development in all of them that allowed us to learn more about each one of them, well maybe not the Chinese guy or Frank.

The soundtrack is amazing and the part where Toulour uses his skills to steal the egg was excellent.

I had to watch it twice before I can really appreciate the one liners, subtle plot twists, etc.

I am surprised by the negativity from most of the reviewers, but I think this movie can only really be appreciated by fans of the TV shows 24 or Lost.

This is a fun caper film. The movie works because of the way it uses the cast with attitude, style, and a lot of wisecracking humor. Since there are so many in the cast, it is a real feat to make them all memorable, give them a reasonable amount of screen time and make sure that everyone has some good lines.

The trick in this kind of movie is to keep it similar enough to the first movie to keep the audience of the first one signing on to the new film, but different enough to not bore them. Ocean's 12 has enough twists and turns to make it fun and enough self-knowledge to add some spice. For example, a delicious part of the movie is using the similarity in appearance between Tess Ocean (played by Julia Roberts) and Julia Roberts to some effect in the film, even though her ears and nose and accent make it obvious she is NOT Julia Roberts.

This is not a great film, not even a great caper film. But it is stylish, quick moving, doesn't resort to raunch, and gives its big cast some individual moments to act. Carl Riener's scene sitting in front of the TV when his wife asks him what's wrong comes to mind immediately. Watch his face during that scene. Good work.

Enjoy!

I saw this film expecting some action in it but I can safely say its one of those films that are created just because the Star Cast seems so assuring that people just have to like it.
It seems and tries to be a very polished movie but somehow I didnt like anything about it except the time when the credits roll. Its a big banner film and features some of the biggest names in Hollywood.

My point : So What? THere's absolutely no story in this movie.The ones of you frowning while reading this please note that its nothing but a plot to prove how clever some film makers can be. All in all it falls flat on its face.
The ever so gorgerous,Catherine Zeta Jones in this film looks like she doesnt even belong to it. The time she's playing Miss Clever Detective made me sink in my seat in the theater.

Brad Pitt , sadly in this movie is all about expressions, running around beautiful cities and getting arrested. He eats a few chocolates and snacks here and there. Tries to do his jiggs, wears an awesome suit that fits him like second skin. He hits on girls and tries to play Mr.Cute. He's still tolerable.

Moving on , Geroge Clooney's got older and his cute boy image just wont work as far as this film goes. He bores with his silence cause he has nothing better to do in the film. I expected a lot from this film. Its one of those "Oh look everyone's going for it. It has to be a good film" Sadly this bored me.

I liked the short Asian guy not because he's shorter than me but he wasnt as drowing in pretence as the other characters in this movie were.
Julia Roberts and her acting in this film was anything but consequential. She should have sat out the entire film than introduce us to her new boring self.I absolutely can't stand how fake she is the scene on the swing with Clooney towards the end of the film.
Matt Damon is a saving face. He seems like someone who managed to pull this from a One Starrer to a Two Starrer. Sadly there's not much of the neat guy. I thought the one scene where he quotes the lyrics of the mesmering "Kashmir" was actually quite funny. I noticed how the film maker tries to create the impression that a lot is happening throughout the length of the film. It amuses me how accurate it is in its monotony.

In any case , opinions come and opinions go. I might try to sound like I'm saving my @$$ when Im saying this but a lot of fools and wanna be's all over the cities liked the film. So did the intellects and the outstanding unachieving achievers. Even my girl friend who saw this along with me,liked it.So would you render my opinion as useless? Gimme a Break! This movie is bad news all the way.

"Ocean's Eleven" was a caper of the grandest kind: compelling mission with high stakes, satisfying execution and enough twists to keep you engaged and rooting for them to win. It even had a love story to boot. It was everything you wanted in a big Hollywood movie, with class and style in spades. It also had a cliff-hanging ending that seemed to have a lot of promise. So needless to say, I had high hopes (with caution) for the sequel.

I was disappointed. (WARNING:Major spoilers ahead)

THE GOOD:
First, the movie wasn't a complete wash. The wit remained. There was loads of entertaining one-liners and cheeky banter. Brad Pitt's acting was wonderful, and I think his character seemed to be the only one that remembered what they were the first time around: cool crooks. Even Clooney lost some of his edge, with the whole "Do I look 50" banter. But I digress. OK, the good. Lots of beautiful people. Nice locations. Matt Damon delivered his role well. I dunno. Nice cinematography.

THE BAD:
Terrible pacing. Twenty minutes in I still had no clue what I was watching. To add insult to injury, Benedict was about as menacing as a grandmother yelling "Get me my switch." This is the super-duper bad guy? Someone who thinks poking someone with a cane is supposed to make him ditch his HONEYMOON?! And it got worse from there. So many false starts for no apparent reason. Sitting in the cafe with that guy who was totally incomprehensible did not add one shred of anything to the plot, characterization or enjoyment of the film. And I could rattle off about 5 other pointless or too long scenes that were more suited to skits on a (bad) episode of SNL that in a movie with a forward moving plot. I've read complaints that this movie was just a vanity project to get "the boys" back together, and scenes like this seem to confirm that. Also, how predictable was it that the master thief was CZJ's father. YAAAAWWWNNN! I saw that like an hour before they showed it, and, worse the reveal was cheesy and maudlin.

THE UGLY:
Everyone got arrested?!?!?!?! Huh? What happened to our intelligent, always-one-step-ahead-of-the cops, master crooks? Even if the arrests were staged, where's the fun in seeing everyone in jail? Also, in the first film, the twins bickered and were dim, but were ultimately buddies. I LOVED them. But in 12, their characterization totally changed, and their petty, infantile bickering turned into snarky hatred - considerably less charming. And the Julia Roberts thing was indefensible. It totally broke the suspension of belief and again, contributed nothing. The actors seemed to enjoy it, though. I'm happy for them. But, honestly I could have forgiven (almost) everything if the payoff of the heist would have been worth it. That is why it is with infinite sadness that I must report (I cannot emphasize this point enough) the heist SUCKED! To watch an entire movie with a disastrous, convoluted and banal heist plan (although that hologram thing was cool) only to find out that they had actually robbed some guy on a train (in a pickpocket job that Casey Affleck's character probably could have pulled by himself) days earlier made me want to sue for two hours of my life back.

I really hope the Ocean's 13 redeems this tragic film.