When Ocean's Eleven came out, part of the charm while watching was thinking "I can almost believe this would work." Yes we were asked to take some leaps of faith, but if we were willing to buy into the world the film created, then everything seemed to make sense. Unfortunately, Ocean's Thirteen asks us to believe in things that we simply cannot accept, and the film suffers for it. Yet even with its flaws, this third Ocean's outing is just breezy enough to recommend to fans of the original. It's nothing new, but it has its moments.The film starts by largely writing off the second installment (with one surprising exception that pays off at the end). Julia Roberts and Catherine Zeta-Jones are both out, and this time it's pretty much just the boys. When Reuben (Elliot Gould) is hospitalized after an altercation with gambling tycoon Willie Bank (Al Pacino), the gang get back together for revenge. This time, instead of trying to rob the casino, they set out to make it so everyone on the floor opening day will simultaneously win, bankrupting Bank. In order to achieve this, they end up working with an old nemesis, Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia).
By not forming an elaborate heist, the film suffers from a lack of purpose or suspense. We know pretty much from the beginning exactly how they're going to achieve their plan, so there's no mystery about it. Because of this, the film has to throw some random curve balls in their way to keep us interested, including an impromptu diamond theft. And while it's a bit hard to swallow the idea that they're going to rig every game in the casino, it's downright impossible to accept the way they go about making everyone in the casino quit their game while winning. Yet in spite of the failing of the plot, we begin to realize that we really aren't here for the plot anymore-we're here for the characters.
Everyone gets their moments to shine, something Ocean's Twelve sorely lacked. Especially funny was a subplot involving the Malloy brothers (Casey Affleck and Scott Caan) and a worker's revolution in Mexico. Surprisingly, it feels like Clooney, Pitt, and Damon have less screen time in this installment, allowing for the secondary characters to play a bigger part. And it was nice to see the film try and humanize the Terry Benedict character after making him into a villain the first two outings (although admittedly, he's still a bit of a weasel). Al Pacino goes in the exact opposite direction you'd expect him to with the central villain, downplaying his menacing side and never going over the top.
Really, there is no need for this movie, it never achieves the level of pure fun the original had. Yet I still found myself smiling at times, and I left the film feeling good about it, even if I knew it would vanish from my memory within a few hours. But if you like that kind of mindless entertainment mixed with some good laughs and familiar characters, you'll probably not regret catching Ocean's Thirteen.
