New Rat Pack is back

The question is not whether Ocean’s Twelve is better than Ocean’s Eleven. The question is, or at least should be, "Why did they bother?"

With a gross of $180 million, 2001’s Ocean’s Eleven might have been as likely as any other highly successful film to spawn a sequel. Yet when director Steven Soderbergh and George Clooney (who also shared an executive-producer credit) set out to remake the famed, if hardly classic, Rat Pack caper/comedy, it seemed as if they were more concerned with injecting their own brand of cool than starting a franchise.

Now here’s the good news: As sequels go, Ocean’s Twelve is not half bad. Although it’s not as cohesive as Ocean’s Eleven, it’s a lot of fun in its own way. I found the first movie effortlessly entertaining, but could never shake the left-out feeling that I was watching the cool kids in high school get into trouble.

The new film takes place three years after the Bellagio casino heist. Danny Ocean (Clooney) and Tess (Julia Roberts) have just bought their dream house and everyone else is pretty much living their lives and trying to stay clean. Then Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia), the owner of the Bellagio, tracks down the gang and demands his money back, plus interest. When the crew reassembles to figure out what to do, they decide the only solution is to get back into the stealing game.

The first stop is Amsterdam, where Danny and his pals plan to lift a priceless document. But when they pull off the rather ingenious heist, it turns out a master thief who seems to have it in for Danny has beaten them to the punch. Once Danny tracks down his antagonist (Vincent Cassel), he makes him an offer: They will both attempt to steal the same object. If Danny wins, he will pay Benedict what they owe him.

If you believe the news reports surrounding the making of the film, everyone had a blast. Soderbergh brought back the same cast from the first movie and added a few more stars, including Catherine Zeta-Jones.

The locations are absolutely gorgeous (Amsterdam, Paris, Rome) and when the caper finally does shift into fourth gear, it’s quite exhilarating.

However, fans of Soderbergh’s better work might be somewhat disappointed since he seems to be on cruise control in his career and, what’s more, doesn’t seem to mind. From 1998 to 2000, he made four excellent films (including Traffic and Erin Brockovich), but hasn’t equaled them since.

So if you’re looking for one of film’s more adventurous directors to return to form, Ocean’s Twelve might be a big disappointment. But if you have fun watching a bunch of wealthy, talented actors goof it up in some of the most beautiful cities in the world, you could do worse.

Ocean’s Twelve
PG-13
Starts tomorrow at area theaters
Three reels out of four

Recommended rental

Collateral
R
Available Tuesday

Moviegoers who never totally bought Tom Cruise’s choirboy act will enjoy this film. Cruise plays Vincent, a ruthless hit man who makes good-natured L.A. cabbie Max (Jamie Foxx) drive him around to his various "appointments" one fateful evening. Director Michael Mann takes us into a Los Angeles few people see as this unlikely duo tours the darker side of the city. Cruise is menacing but engaging, and Foxx is never less than mesmerizing as a man who has let life pass him by. The movie has a slightly implausible ending, but by then you’re hooked.