LOGAN LUCKY REVIEW

*MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS*

After the release of his dramatic thriller, Side Effects, in 2013, director Steven Soderbergh announced he was retiring from making feature films. During his retirement, he was the main creative force behind the TV Series, The Knick, which he directed, executive produced, shot and edited himself. However, he soon cut his retirement short and has released his first feature film in four years. However, is 'Logan Lucky' a return to form or a sign that he should continue his retirement?
Logan Lucky is a comedy-caper film about the heist of a large number of bills from the 'secure' vault at a North Carolina speedway during a major NASCAR event. The people hoping to succeed in stealing the large amounts of money are the Logan brothers, Jimmy (Channing Tatum) and Clyde (Adam Driver). However, they can't do the heist alone so they come up with a plan to break out explosions expert Joe Bang (Daniel Craig) out of prison. Also helping are their sister, Mellie (Riley Keogh) and Joe's dim-witted brothers, Fish (Jack Quaid) and Sam (Brian Gleeson).
The tone of Logan's Lucky is similar to that of Soderbergh's well-known Ocean's trilogy starring George Clooney, Brad Pitt and Matt Damon. Fans of the Ocean's films will not be disappointed and, even those who haven't seen them will find something to enjoy here. The chemistry between the characters is believable, thanks to the actors' performances. It's a fast-paced heist film and one of the most entertaining films we've had this summer, in my opinion. While the characters in Ocean's Eleven stole money for their own selfish gains, Jimmy has a more personal reason for stealing the money. He loses his job in the opening of the film and his ex-wife announces she's going to be moving away with their daughter. Distraught, Jimmy plans to hire a lawyer with the money he steals from the vault. The majority of Logan Lucky focuses on Jimmy's determination to get the money, however, the ending surprised me a lot. Despite successfully stealing a large amount of money, Jimmy decides to return the majority of it which makes him a more respectable and likable character.
Both Tatum and Driver give solid performances as the the titular brothers, especially Tatum. I've never really thought much of Tatum as an actor, however, he recently impressed me in Side Effects (which he worked on with Soderbergh) and he has proven his ability to handle comedic roles in 21 Jump Street. Despite his plans to break into a vault and steal money, he's not a bad person and is shown as a loving father and caring brother. Driver recently shot to fame as the villain, Kylo Ren, in Star Wars: The Force Awakens in 2015 and gives another strong performance as the one-handed bartender, Claude. Despite both Tatum and Driver giving solid performances, it's Daniel Craig's performance as the eccentric Joe Bang that stands out. For the past eleven years, Craig has been best known for his role as the famous spy, James Bond. It's clear here that he had a lot of fun playing a over-the-top character like Joe and his performance adds to the entertainment of the film.
Actors such as Katie Holmes, who plays Jimmy's ex-wife and the mother of their daughter, Katherine Waterston and Hilary Swank are, unfortunately, underused. These three actresses give solid performances in their limited scenes, however, I would've liked to have seen more of them, especially Waterston's character, who is a nurse and is seen as a potential love interest for Jimmy, unfortunately, she's not seen again until towards the end of the film. Seth Macfarlane's scenes as a an arrogant British business-man could easily have been cut from the film as he came across as more irritating than funny but that's probably because I'm not a huge fan of the actor.
The scenes involving the break-out of Joe Bang and the character's attempt to break inside the vault are where the film is at its funniest. At first, the Logan brothers expected Joe to use a stick of dynamite, instead, he opts for an improvised explosive device that includes packet of gummy bear sweets mixed with bleach. After noticing the brother's confusion, he proceeds to explain the science behind his IED by using chalk to write on a wall. Another funny scenes involves Clyde's prosthetic arm gets sucked up by a vacuum tube.  It's because of these scenes and others why Logan Lucky succeeds as comedy.
A lot of debate has been made about the screenwriter whose name is Rebecca Blunt as a lot of people to believe this to be a pseudonym for Soderbergh. Whether it really was him who wrote it or not (I've seen a few people suggesting it might be his wife, Jules Asner), he/she has written a thoroughly entertaining and fast-paced screenplay.
In answer to my earlier question, Logan Lucky is a return to form for Soderbergh. His previous film, Side Effects, was a dark thriller filled with twists and turns, however, Logan Lucky is a highly-entertaining heist-based comedy. Soderbergh further proves why he's one of the most versatile directors. I certainly hope that he doesn't announce he's retiring anytime soon as I would love to see more films directed by him.
For those looking for a high-octane fun film that is smartly assembled without putting on any airs, I highly recommend that you give Logan Lucky a watch. It's not Soderbergh's best film, in my opinion, I enjoyed Side Effects and his 2011 thriller, Contagion, more, however, it's certainly one of his most entertaining. Although I wasn't the biggest fan of Ocean's Eleven or Ocean's Twelve, I enjoyed Logan Lucky a lot more than I thought I would. I was pleasantly surprised at Craig's natural ability to portray such an eccentric character.
7/10