Ocean's 8's Is An Entertaining yet Forgettable Caper Flick Made Watchable Due To Its Cast

      Whereas 2016 Ghostbusters respectfully tried and failed to reboot its series for a new generation of audiences with the same storyline remaining intact with the key twist of the film being the swapping of the main characters gender, Ocean's 8 follows in that films footsteps and hopes to get further in terms of being successful. The reaction to Ghostbusters switching the genders of the main characters while ignoring the ones from the previous films sparked an intense backlash, that led to many criticizing the reboot before and after its release. While the film did reasonably well at the box office, it failed to make back it's production cost and the series is being rebooted in 2020 with a reboot tying it closer to the legacy of the first two Ghostbusters films. With the Oceans franchise, the team behind Ocean's 8 chose to go down the same path as the new Ghostbusters and reboot the heist team with a stellar all female cast, that includes the likes of Oscar Winners Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett, Helena Bonham Carter, Anne Hathaway along with music superstars such as Rhianna. Like Ghostbusters, the story for Ocean's 8 remains the same with a major heist taking place with the main difference being the genders of the main characters are switched from male to female (They connect Sandra Bullock character to George Clooney's in Oceans Eleven by making her Danny's brother with Danny being deceased in this film). Ocean's 8 like the new Ghostbusters, strives to bring fresh air to both series that essentially burnt out with the previous films before them. Whereas 2016's Ghostbusters had the first two successful films before it, Ocean's 8 comes off what felt like an open and shut heist trilogy, that clearly peaked at the first Oceans. Does Ocean's 8 succeed in rebooting the popular heist franchise and getting the series off the ground once again? Yes and no, Ocean's 8 is entertaining as a heist film but it's too similar to the past movies and feels like the plot is recycled with a female cast to make it truly feel brand new. As a film, it's entertaining and fun for the specific audience it aims for. As a reboot to the series, it doesn't have the charm nor spontaneous feel that came with the previous films, particularly the first Oceans movie.

      Oceans 8's plot centers around deceased Danny Ocean of the first three Ocean's movies (A plot twist that does more harm to the overall film than good.) sister (Played by Sandra Bullock) being released from prison with a plan to perform a huge heist with her partner-in-crime (Played by Cate Blanchett) and an all-female crew at New York's yearly Met Gala, while also working in a little revenge in the process. Ocean's 8 despite pulling a gender swap on the main cast, attempts to stick close to the first three movies in terms of possessing both a similar style and story structure. The problem with the films plot is although the movie as a whole is entertaining, it doesn't break any new ground with the franchise nor takes it in a new direction storywise other than the fact that the main cast are now females. Instead of robbing money from a Casino, the plot centers around taking a necklace that's worth $150 million dollars. Despite that switch up, the film lacks the heart of the first three films and the moments of chemistry George Clooney's team had in between setting up each mission where the audience got to really know the members of Danny Ocean's crew. It's not a question of whether Ocean's 8 carries style with it (Clearly it does), but it lacks substance to make it truly memorable on its own. What helps the film succeed overall, is the strong female cast that showcase chemistry together. Bullock proves to be a worthy replacement for George Clooney's lead with Cate Blanchett being a strong partner in crime. Despite the fact that the filmmakers chose to go a different route with the franchise here, one can't help but feel disappointment at the fact that they killed off Danny Ocean in the film as audiences will never get to see a cameo from George Clooney in the franchise nor him and his sister teaming up to pull off a heist together. The filmmakers missed a huge opportunity to have Clooney's character congratulate Debbie on pulling off her successful heist. The problem is not that Ocean's 8 isn't a fun experience, its that it is so but settles for being just average overall with the only main highlight being its talented cast.

      As far as casting goes, the female heist team of Ocean's 8 performs strongly and maintains the chemistry that made the first three Oceans films a hit with audiences. Sandra Bullock does a very good job playing Debbie Ocean, making her feel like she's related to Danny Ocean with her style of being ultra-smooth and smart. She plays a woman, whose well-confident that her team is going to pull off the ultimate heist and would unquestionably make her brother proud. Cate Blanchett does a good job playing the Brad Pitt to Debbie's character Lou, with the two having chemistry that makes them work well off each other. Anne Hathaway shines in her supporting role as diva actress Daphne Kluger with her character coming across as being goofier than the others until the twist that arrives later with her character. Helena Bonham Carter shines as fashion designer Rose Weil with strong performances from Rihanna as Nine Ball, Mindy Kaling as Amita, and a surprise return performance from Oceans trilogy, Elliot Gould as Reuben. Richard Armitage does the best job he can to make a memorable performance out of his minimalized role as being the films main antagonist Claude Beckerm, but the writing he's given doesn't give his character much of an opportunity to shine nor make the audience truly despise him for what he did to Debbie. Whereas the films writing falls flat with a truly memorable plot, the cast of Ocean's 8 arrives to pick up the pieces and does a great job of working together as a terrific ensemble. They work through the scripts shortcomings to make the film as entertaining as possible, and seem to all be having a great time acting in the film. Regardless of the movies faults, it shines in the acting department with its ensemble cast.

      In terms of directing and screenwriting, Gary Ross does a solid job of trying to maintain a similar style and approach to the story that Stephen Soderbergh brought with the previous three Oceans films. Ross keeps the film flashy and utilizes some of Soderbergh's trademark shots such as intercutting different sequences together in one shot with a steady pace with the films editing. Despite Ross doing his best to imitate Soderbergh's style while keeping a grip on the cast and story, Ross isn't as skilled at Stephen in terms of building up suspense and making the exit twist as thrilling of a pay off as it should be. Ross helps bring charm to the film with his cast but the story as a whole misses the thrills, the excitement, and ultimately the heart of Danny's Ocean's trilogy. The screenplay by Ross and co-writer Olivia Milch, is serviceable though leans very closely on the previous films for comfort. Killing off Danny Ocean was a huge mistake as it casted a shadow over the rest of the movie from the moment it was revealed. The film also suffers from the lack of a true antagonist in the story as there's no one besides Richard Armitage, that comes remotely close to being the parallel to Andy Garcia's character in the Ocean's trilogy. Without the lack of a villain, there is no real threat the team faces in regards to pulling off their heist, which leads to a lack of suspense with their heist. With Danny's team going up against Garcia's character in the original, the audience felt the tension as Andy's character Terry Benedict slowly caught onto the heist being performed at his Casino. The script feels like it was designed to bring together all the main characters with an attractive cast, but doesn't feel like it gives them much else to do beyond sharing key scenes together.

      As a heist film, Ocean's 8 despite its scripts shortcomings is a decent flick that's fun and entertaining to watch in general. Audiences watching it still find enjoyment with the main characters with sprinkles of what could've been a great heist movie if the plot was further expanded on. Between this movie and Ghostbusters 2016, this film gets a little further in terms of being more successful in rebranding the franchise despite Ocean's 8 having some of the same problems as that film. Both movies feel like they lean on the previous films way too much to get their stories going with the only main differences being the changes of the main characters with the gender swap being the main gimmick. Both Ghostbusters 2016 and Ocean's 8, are much better movies than what their given reputation wise, but they both ultimately fail to move their franchises out further past their comfort zones. It felt like Ross and the writers were too afraid to take risks in the story department, and chose to keep things simple and play it safe while utilizing the main cast to cover up the scripts shortcomings. As far as the rankings of the Ocean's series go, Ocean's Eleven is the strongest film followed by this film, Thirteen, and Twelve. The film is saved and ultimately made by its ensemble cast, who feel perfect for their parts, they're just lacking Soderbergh's touch to make the whole experience truly special. The film should best be viewed as a fun spin-off, that could've been better had the script been more polished though it still comes with some reasonably solid twists, decent laughs depending on the audience watching it, and a cast that's just allowed to be women and act like how women would in performing a heist. Its a shame they weren't given a more plausible story cause the script has moments where it demonstrates smarts and cleverness.

Final Verdict: For fans of the Ocean's franchise, Ocean's 8 is worth seeing as its reasonably fun and entertaining, it just lacks a story to really make it standout.