Ocean's Twelve (December 9/04)

If not for a really bizarre, completely unexpected twist midway through Ocean's Twelve, there's little doubt that it would've come off just as poorly as the original. And for a while there, the film undeniably does feel like a carbon copy of Ocean's Eleven - complete with introductory sequences for each of the characters. This time around, Danny Ocean (George Clooney) and his cohorts must pull off another job after Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia) blackmails the crew into stealing a rare and extremely valuable Faberge egg. Ocean's Twelve features the return of Steven Soderbergh in the director's chair - along with, of course, virtually every performer that was in the original - and he's clearly paying homage to the French new wave films of the '60s, as well as various old-school Hollywood thrillers such as Bullitt and The Thomas Crown Affair. As a result, Ocean's Twelve is peppered with a variety of unusual stylistic touches that effectively reflect the free-wheeling vibe of George Nolfi's screenplay. And while one has to admire the complete left-turn the story takes about midway through, everything leading up to that point is woefully dull. Just like the original, the various performers aren't really allowed to establish genuine characters; rather, they're all working off their established personas. As a result, it's impossible to shake the feeling that these are chess pieces being moved around a board more than anything else. Still, the upside is that the banter feels authentic and is undoubtedly one of the more enjoyable aspects of the film. Among the newcomers, only Vincent Cassel - playing an enigmatic master thief nicknamed The Night Fox - makes any kind of an impact, though it would've been nice if he'd been given more to do.