Review: Magic Mike XXL
Friday, July 3, 2015 at 7:30PM
This review was originally published in Nathaniel's column at Towleroad. It is reprinted here with in the Director's Cut version. i.e. it's longer this time...
When Magic Mike opened three years ago it was something of a risky proposition. Male stars exploiting their bodies for a young male star’s dream project loosely based on his own stripping career which he felt no shame about? Who would have guessed? Cut to three years later: Magic Mike and Friends (minus The Kid and Dallas “alright alright alright”) have returned to movie theaters with much teasing and blockbuster fanfare to a relatively new pop cultural context they helped create: male objectification is increasingly the norm. Just ask Chris Pratt, the ascendant superstar of the moment (Guardians of the Galaxy, Jurassic World) who has acknowledged that his new body was key to his ascendance and that he’s all for it… the objectification.
This wondrous new world of happily exposed man-flesh makes Magic Mike XXL feel curiously demure. Usually sequels go for more-more-more but XXL (the title is a misnomer) downsizes even as the stages get larger. There’s less plot since it’s essentially a road trip movie but most curiously there’s much less nudity even if the women this time around seem a lot more eager to see it.
This withholding is smart and funny at the beginning of the film in a sensational opening dance number starring Mike alone in his workroom. [More...]
Channing Tatum is terrific as usual and anyone still surprised by that… sashay away. Mike shakes his own helmet-clad head. He can’t believe that he still has the sexually suggestive Magic moves in him — and the urge to perform them, too.
But this same withholding wears thin as the finale approaches. The new coyness is a bit puzzling since nearly the same exact team assembled for the sequel and the stars seem to have worked even harder on perfecting their physiques. Perhaps Matthew McConaughey’s Oscar-worthy exhibitionism was the key to how randy and uninhibited the first film felt? (XXL explains his absence and makes crudely funny use of it, but it's still felt.) Though Steven Soderbergh famously retired from feature film directing with Magic Mike (what a film to go out on!) and moved to television, his stamp is still all over the sequel. He’s the cinematographer, editor, and executive producer but he’s turned the director’s chair over to his former first assistant Gregory Jacobs. Though the original is a superior film this one is prettier as a result.
Without the nudity, it’s a good thing Gregory and Steven have other tricks to keep our eyes glued to the screen. The best decision is to amplify the comedy and Magic Mike XXL is hilarious in just the ways you'd expect like dumb lug conversations between strippers and Tatum’s romantic comedy skills. But it's also funny in ways that take you off guard, like an inside joke for the gays when the boys visit a gay bar and Matt Bomer is the one whose most clumsy at vogueing. There's also an entirely random but highly enjoyable pit stop with a radiant sexy Andie MacDowell who completely steals the movie for a spell while she makes off with the heart or at least the loins of Big Dick Richie himself, y’all.
The filmmakers have also paid attention to careers post-2012 and Matt Bomer and Joe Mangianello both have highly welcome expanded roles: Bomer’s Ken doll is dreamier and more annoying spiritual this time, shorn of the dangerous swinging drugginess he has last time around, and he's put to better use as a singing stripper; For his part Mangianello nearly steals the movie out from under Tatum (mmmm ‘under Tatum’) with, first, XXL‘s only display of casual nudity, second, that big scene with MacDowell, and last but not least the film’s most riotous sequence set in a mini-mart.
That hot but languorous summer feeling of the first film carries over and while that works wonders for its shambling road movie comedy, the slow and flazéda approach is difficult to enjoy in the stripping climax, which should be the most exuberant part. Though XXL starts out like a road movie, you could argue that it turns into an old Judy Garland/Mickey Rooney style “let’s put on a show” musical in its last act… if Garland and Rooney wore sparkly speedos (sorry for the image) and were a whole lot less professional about their big numbers.
The climax is seriously lacking. Between lame long stripping routines we keep taking inexplicable breaks for Jada Pinkett Smith. A whole lot of Jada Pinkett Smith. Worse still, she’s already given this exact girl power emcee performance in the middle of the movie in an extended road trip stop along the way to the convention. Tons of screen time for Jada Pinkett Smith is not something anybody clamoring for more Magic Mike would have asked for or expected or won’t feel slightly cheated by. Faring a lot better is Amber Heard (former lesbian, now Mrs. Johnny Depp) who plays a female stripper who “isn’t going through a boy phase” but finds herself drawn to Mike anyway.
Despite a bunch of trouble in the final act, I wouldn’t dream of telling anyone not to see the picture. It’s charming sexy fun for roughly 2/3rds of the running time which is more than a lot of summer blockbusters can claim. In one of the film’s cutest moments, Mike does a silly spin for Zoe after introducing himself as simply “Magic” and the thing is this: he really is. And so is his singular franchise.
In what other movie could a face-humping move like this one gif'ed above actually double as a sweet romantic comedy character beat for two lonely people, and yet it does. If you don’t believe me see the picture!
As with the first film, which dropped us into a lengthy funny sandbar party on the Fourth of July, the national holiday plays a key role again. When the light display begins, the camera wisely knows we don’t even need to look at it. Cut to a closeup of Channing Tatum’s movie star mug, eyes all lit up. Baby, he’s a firework.
Reader Comments (26)
Amber Heard is not a "former lesbian". She's bisexual.
Have you always had a problem with Jada?
Comedy, really? Inane, boring conversations that went on and on and on. Atrocious unfunny writing that the actors couldn't sell. Only the dancing bits were exciting.
I agree that they were very demure. It's a movie about strippers and everybody's kept their shirts on for most of the time. I see more shirtless men just walking down the street in my neighborhood.
Jada Pinkett Smith was phenomenal in Collateral...
This is the first negative reaction to Jada's performance I've read, but I do seem to recall you not being much of a fan of hers - have you ever liked her in anything? When the movie first entered production I feel like there was a lot of talk about it being looser and more fun, which in my mind read "more nudity" (guess that says more about me than anything else) so it sucks to hear that they didn't push the envelope more. Still, a lot of people seem to dig it so I'm willing to give it a shot.
"Former lesbian"... lol. Um, people can be bisexual and get married.
I was SO disappointed.
XXL, my ass. They had the chance to really go balls out full on cheesy man meat stripping banana bonanza and this is what they came out with? The first one showed WAY more which shocked the hell out of me because this film was supposed to be the grand, less serious sequel.
It also seemed super-rushed. Clunky dialogue, inexplicable editing (the camera leaves Matt Bomer during his "Heaven" scene for an absurd amount of time to get reaction shots) and yes, ridiculously demure. There's not even a proper Bomer butt/thong shot. I WAS ROBBED.
It wasn't all bad though. Amber Heard >>>>>>> Cody Horn. Plus, i feel the exact opposite about Jada Pinkett Smith. She totally made up for the absence of Dallas in my mind. She was a great emcee. I found myself smiling along with the women in the crowd when she took control. Joe Manganiello's mini-mart scene was utterly delightful and it was nice to see the rest of the guys get fleshed out and have their time in the spotlight.
I can see that they tried for diversity this go round which was great but I still think Donald Glover's opening number brought the film to a complete halt. That scene added NOTHING to the film.
So how do they explain McConaughey's, Horn's, and Pettyfer's absences? Good or extremely contrived? They were all integral to the first one. After all the time spent on Horn in the first one, I'd hate for her to be reduced to just another girl that Mike bones. I don't mind being spoiled, since I won't be seeing this one in theaters.
"Though Steven Soderbergh famously retired from feature film directing with Magic Mike"
I think his last film as director to date is Side Effects, unless one counts Behind the Candelabra which premiered in theaters in some countries.
Jada Pinkett-Smith was the best performance in the film. This is the first negative reaction I've read.
I'll still see it because Channing is my boo, but the brilliance of the first film is that nobody knew it was going to be the massive blockbuster that it was. You can't duplicate surprise success.
just goes to show you how subjective these things are. Jada's performance you got in a nutshell in about 3 minutes and then it just kept reepeating. I had no idea people were liking her in it but I did not.
but as to whether or not i've liked her in anything. hmmm. i'm trying to remember what she's been in? nothing is coming to mind. I know i've seen her in things.
Vann --- SPOILERS. Dallas got an offer to do a show in Japan I think it was and he took the Kid with him. Cody Horn (cant remember her character's name) and Mike stayed together after the first films for a few years until shortly before this one begins when he wants to get married and she leaves him. /SPOILERS.
Jada's really good, too, in Spike Lee's Bamboozled.
And she was in the two Matrix sequels...
And in Scream 2 she's the girl who gets killed in front of a live audience at the premiere of Stab! --- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fnTckzsYgg0
She was also in Set It Off.
In addition to all of the above, I think she's great in Menace II Society. An underrated actress. "She just plays variations of herself!" Like 90% of actors, then...
Jada brought fierceness to season 1 of Gotham.
I was shocked at how bad the Amber Heard character was. Shocked. Their first beach scene was interminable, badly lit, mumbly, charmless. And what kind of a monster just starts eating from the center of a whole cake? In someone else's home, no less! Somehow even more of a wet blanket than his love interest in the first one, and that's a tough standard to live down to.
MINOR SPOILERS
I had fun with the movie, but it was odd that their big decision was to become High Concept strippers, who do prop-heavy routines that would be almost inscrutable if you hadn't been following their life story for 90 minutes.
Favorite Jada performance: "Demon Knight".
I loved "Magic Mike XXL." It was dumb fun. The last 15 minutes is worth the price of admission alone, and I had a big grin all through the final dance numbers. It's also great to see Andie McDowell.
Thanks for seeing this Nathaniel so I don't have to. USA
"Tons of screen time for Jada Pinkett Smith is not something anybody clamoring for more Magic Mike would have asked for or expected or won’t feel slightly cheated by. "
Amen!
I have to have a certain amount of screen time. My husband is Will Smith. It's like Nicole getting lead roles because she will do anything, and is at CAA and her revenues are primarily commercials. Some things in life are not fair. MM2 should have had weiner and hole but America is not ready. Don't mess with me because I know secrets.
I've always liked Amber Heard and felt she was always a hair away from a real breakout, alas... Maybe Danish Girl will be her ticket. But I think she may be in the same category as January Jones and find success in a TV drama.
Jada rocked it in Collateral and Set It Off. Haters gonna hate.
Jada -- Please, comment more often. You're a keeper.
"But it's also funny in ways that take you off guard, like an inside joke for the gays when the boys visit a gay bar and Matt Bomer is the one whose most clumsy at vogueing."
You might be giving the movie a smidge too much credit. It could also just be that Bomer's not that great of a dancer.
This movie was so disappointing, and I didn't love the first one even though it had its charms. So I agree with many of the points already brought up here:
- sure, we saw more of their routines this time, but they were strangely goofy (what was up with that stupid candy themed one?) and demure (why are the guys now all too good to be in a thong for more than a few seconds, if at all?)
- yes to the bizarre editing, especially during Bomer's "Heaven" moment; sometimes the routines were shot really well, sometimes the close-ups and angle choices were so bizarre that you couldn't tell what was really going on
- another sourpuss romantic interest for Tatum? Sure, conflict is fine and it led to some good banter between the two but geez, they can't come up with a female lead that actually smiles and shows some pizazz once in a while?
- the fact that every strip routine had to involve a female participant, they barely made it down to their thongs, there's apparently no gay male strippers anywhere (ha!) and the actors' boring, gray banker suits on the red carpet makes me think these guys weren't nearly as game or as good-humored about playing strippers as they'd like us to think and that they took themselves way too seriously
Random note: I know how weird this sounds, but the shot of Tatum from behind while he's peeing on the beach was strangely beautiful. I could understand why she'd want a photograph of it.
Ugh, Donald Glover. No.