Magic Mike XXL is for the most part what any viewer would expect having seen the first installment. Personally, I tend to have lower expectations for sequels. That being said, these low expectations may have been surpassed.
The movie starts out rather slow, seemingly struggling to pull a plot together. This trend carries on throughout the movie, with multiple scenes drawn out way too long almost creating an awkward feeling for the audience; it urged us all to check the time on our watches. One scene that comes to mind is on the beach when we are introduced to "Dolly Tits" who 'loves couponing and NASCAR'. This scene is so dark that when she predictably reenters the story, there is a struggle to make the connection that this is the same character.
On the other end of the spectrum, there are funny scenes in the movie that translated well to the female audience. I laughed out loud at one of the characters Oprah reference and another's challenge to make that gas station cashier smile. "How much for the Cheetos and water?" he asks. Another quote than can be taken away is "Maybe it's like the glass slipper" when Big Dick Richie is trying to find a woman who is up for the well-endowed challenge.
Casting seems to be the only portion of the movie that is a win. Bringing the main characters from the first film into the next, Kevin Nash as Tarzan, Matt Bomer as Ken and, of course, Channing Tatum as Mike are a solid fit. The only room for improvement is having selected Jada Pinkett Smith as the guest MC and Tatum's prior love-interest. She seems a bit too old for the role, and this helps contribute to the awkward feeling as mentioned before. Amber Heard as Zoe, Tatum's current love interest is a gladly accepted addition to the cast. Her hippie tendencies and love for red velvet cake only enhance her presence with Tatum, even for an audience who will happily take her place with him.
Overall, the film is not a win. Considering what small plot line there is, I expect more than the very little dancing provided on screen. The final scene also features a short finale when speaking of the screen time for Tatum dancing. At 115 minutes, the film could be honestly been 45 minutes shorter. The movie leaves much to be desired. As a female with female proclivities, I was personally disappointed with the lack of on screen male libido. That says A LOT!
More meat, Magic Mike!
No comments:
Post a Comment