DVD Review: Ocean’s Twelve

By Patrick Luce Apr 9, 2005, 4:58 GMT

Ocean's Twelve comes to DVD on April 12 in the US and May 27 in the UK

While not as good as the original, the sequel maintains the style and charm that made Ocean’s Eleven a movie that is enjoyable to watch no matter how many times you have seen it. Twelve keeps everything that worked for Eleven and brings it to a broader setting and bigger plot.

Steven Soderbergh returns as director and once again uses the unique filming angles and storytelling that made him a star. He handles the large cast well and ensures that each character has enough screen time to keep them in check with the other stars. This handling of the cast makes Twelve work as an ensemble piece almost as good as the original.

The movie opens, three years after the first film, with Andy Garcia returning as casino owner Terry Benedict. He hunts down each member of “Ocean’s Eleven,” and gives them a two-week deadline to return the money they stole plus interest.

This opening gives some funny moments right from the start as we get to see how each member has spent their fortune in the short amount of time. Garcia is also funny as he delivers his ultimatum to members interrupting their new life. His scenes leave me wishing for Godfather IV where we get to see Garcia running the legendary crime family.

Once reassembled, the gang decide the only way to raise the money needed is to head to Europe and pull a major score there. The gang arrives in Amsterdam to find that another thief, named the Nightfox, is actually manipulating them. Working with Benedict and breaking “Rule 1,” he has challenged them to an even more difficult crime to prove who is the best thief in the world.

Forced to play the game, the gang quickly begins to bring their plan to life while trying to avoid being captured by Catherine Zeta-Jones – who plays a police detective named Isabel Lahiri. Pitt, however, finds himself caught in a special trap due to his past relationship with Jones - which mirrors the similar plot between Clooney and Roberts in Ocean’s Eleven.

Jones proves to be a clever opponent for Clooney’s and Pitt’s schemes arresting several members of the gang along the way and even managing to stop Ocean’s first “plan.” Her back-story with Pitt is played in flashback scenes and her own ties to crime are explored through her crime scene detection skills and quick pickpocket abilities. She adds trouble for the gang when she manages to relieve Pitt of his cell phone – which for some reason has every criminal’s phone number programmed on it and the gang’s entire plan somehow mapped out.

Brad Pitt, George Clooney and the gang return for another job in 'Ocean's Twelve'

The problem with the sequel is that the story doesn’t work as well as the first one and it doesn’t come off as original. By the end of the movie, you feel like the cast all had a great time making the film, but that they forgot they were supposed to be entertaining us.<!--page-->

The setting is too broad and the plot has too many different points to keep you interested or informed about what is happening. The film’s plot also breaks the group down from being a true ensemble film, like the first one, to being more about three of the characters, Damon, Pitt and Clooney. Other great actors, such as Bernie Mac and Cheadle, are reduced to a few scenes and not given enough screen time – especially in the case of Mac. While this also happened in the original film, Ocean’s Eleven never seemed like any of the gang were lesser members.

Also, the storyline of Pitt and Jones is too similar to the Clooney and Roberts story in the first film, and the added part of Jones’ father seems forced just to try and differ the two plots.

The same can be said about the ending of the film and it leaves you just waiting for the twist. It happened in the first film and you find yourself not too concerned about the characters because you know it is going to happen here too.

The DVD’s special features are severally lacking for a movie of this size. The disc only has the theatrical trailer to offer which leads me to believe a special edition/collector’s edition/director’s cut can’t be too far off.

The good news is that the negatives don’t outweigh the positives in the film and it is still a very enjoyable movie to watch. It doesn’t have the same freshness of the original but sequels rarely do. Ocean’s Twelve is still a fun capper movie with great acting and good laughs. The cast interacts well with each other and delivers their characters with the same energy as the first film.

The film comes up lacking when compared to Ocean’s Eleven, but it is still tons better than most sequels with a cast this size and this quality. It didn’t leave me counting the days until Ocean’s Thirteen, but it also didn’t leave me dreading a second sequel.

Overall, I would say that Ocean’s Twelve delivers a good popcorn movie that has laughs and talent. It isn’t as much fun as the first film, but that doesn’t mean you won’t like this one. It does have some truly funny moments, especially towards the end, and some fun twists along the way.

The Ocean's Twelve DVD can be ordered via Amazon. UK readers will have to wait until May 27 but can pre-order via Amazon UK.

You can view a summary of the DVD in our database and media assets on the movie page.