Ocean’s Twelve finally makes its arrival on 4K Ultra HD in a separate steelbook, digitally, and together with The Ocean’s Trilogy.
The 4K remasters of Ocean’s Eleven, Ocean’s Twelve, and Ocean’s Thirteen were completed at Warner Bros. Discovery’s Motion Picture Imaging (MPI) with the participation of director Steven Soderbergh. The restored 5.1 digital audio mix was overseen by original re-recording sound mixer and sound editor Larry Blake.
If not for Warner Bros. sending producer Jerry Weintraub a draft of Honor Among Thieves by George Nolfi, who knows what would have happened here. Nolfi’s script was similar to the Ocean’s tone. He would end up combining elements of both to deliver a European caper. Ultimately, the film has more of a 1960s aesthetic. The other thing is the film separates characters rather than having them work together more frequent. This is not to say that they do not spend any time together because the film does have those scenes.
On one level, an international film should work. Unfortunately, it is not my favorite of the trilogy. Filmmaker Steven Soderbergh is also on record that it is his favorite of the three films. His goal was a film on the level of Alfred Hitchcock’s To Catch a Thief. It’s got some elements that are funny and the jokes more or less write themselves. But still, anything that can go wrong will go wrong. For instance, they have to raise a house so that Basher Tarr (Don Cheadle) can fire into the window.
Nolfi’s script introduces Baron François Toulour/The Night Fox (Vincent Cassel). Europol detective Isabel Lahiri (Catherine Zeta-Jones) is not only chasing after The Night Fox but his mentor, LeMarc (Albert Finney). It is not until late in the film when she learns that LeMarc is her father. That her father was a mysterious master thief just adds another layer to her job. Rusty Ryan (Brad Pitt) takes a love interest in Lahiri much like Danny Ocean (George Clooney) and Tess Ocean (Julia Roberts) in the first film. The Oceans are already married again by the time we see them in the sequel. Anyway, Terry Benedict (Andy García) wants his money back with interest and locates Ocean and his entire crew.
Linus Caldwell (Matt Damon) has a bigger part to play in the film. It’s a nice change of pace for Damon, who was between Jason Bourne movies. He adds comic relief here in a way that was missing from the first movie. Speaking of comic relief, Tess has an opportunity to impersonate actress Julia Roberts. Having an uncredited Bruce Willis in the scene adds another layer of meta humor because Willis dials a phone and the real Julia answers–Julia suggested Bruce as someone that she runs into at the hotel. It’s so funny how some of Ocean’s gang are coaching Tess in how Julia talks in real life. This may just be the biggest creative decision in the film by far. It’s also a gag that has to go 100% right or it would just fall apart completely. And yet, it works.
Twist after twist after twist is just not enough to save Ocean’s Twelve. Sure, the actors are having fun but the audience needs to be having as much fun, too. In short, I like the parts that I like but I do not like the parts that I do not like.
Bonus Features
- Commentary by Steven Soderbergh and George Nolfi
- Ready, Jet Set, Go: The Making of Ocean’s Twelve
- HBO First Look: Twelve Is the New Eleven: The Making of Ocean’s Twelve
- Deleted Scenes
DIRECTOR: Steven Soderbergh
SCREENWRITER: George Nolfi
CAST: George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Andy García, Don Cheadle, Bernie Mac, and Julia Roberts, Casey Affleck, Scott Caan, Vincent Cassel, Eddie Jemison, with Carl Reiner and Elliott Gould
Warner Bros. released Ocean’s Twelve in theaters on December 10, 2004. Grade: 3.5/5
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