Magic Mike XXL

Starring: Channing Tatum, Joe Manganiello, Matt Bomer, Amber Heard, Kevin Nash, Adam Rodriguez, Gabriel Iglesias, Jada Pinkett Smith, Donald Glover, Andie MacDowell, Elizabeth Banks, Michael Strahan
Directed by: Gregory Jacobs
Rating: R
Genre: Comedy, Drama
2015

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Mike (Channing Tatum) reunites with his friends for one last crazy blow out.

Review:

Tim: The original Magic Mike worked because director Steven Soderbergh ensured it was more than just a male stripper movie. It was about something more. That was an achievement, and I even said in my review for that film that it could have been awful without that focus. So, they decide to do a sequel and they decide to go the route of making this a movie about male strippers. That's about it. And, no surprise, this movie is quite bad. Without this movie being about something real, it all falls apart. The story is there just to create scenarios (most of which are implausible) for the characters to strip. The whole thing is a mind-numbing affair.

Losing Matthew McConaughey was a big blow. He's such a strong actor and his absence was felt here. It was further proof that this movie was going to be a disaster- McConaughey wisely steered clear of it. Losing Alex Pettyfer hurt as well. I didn't miss Olivia Munn, but Cody Horn missing was another bummer. A big part of this film's drop is quality is that so much of the original cast is missing.

Those who do return don't have the best parts. Tatum doesn't really get to act much because all the focus is on stripping. He was fine here, but didn't do anything that felt like it was more than just getting a paycheck. Joe Manganiello is always fun because of the energy he brings. Besides the stripping scene in the gas station (which is as ridiculous as it sounds, but at least it was funny) he doesn't make all that much of an impact. He's there for the visuals. Amber Heard was fine, but her role was fairly one-dimensional and not all that effective. It was weird seeing Jada Pinkett Smith here, especially because her performance felt forced and too over-the-top. I never believed her in the role. I liked seeing Donald Glover because I'm a community fan, but he had very little to do. Both Andie MacDowell and Elizabeth Banks seem like odd additions because they have such minor, unimportant roles. It was pretty funny to see Michael Strahan here. As a whole, the cast is disappointing. The script is weak, which negatively impacts all their performances.

As mentioned, the story is almost nonexistent. The guys decide to take a road trip to attend a stripping convention. I'm still not clear on the point of this- it's not a competition as far as I can tell. It's not like there is anything to overcome. There's no sense of achievement in the film, other than to make it to the stripping convention. There's some weak attempt at drama when the guys decide to shutter their old routines and adopt new ones. There's really no drama though- we all know it's going to work out in the end. The whole thing was just very poor. While I very much disliked the movie (it was very difficult to sit through), I did try to look at it through the lens of what it was trying to be. It certainly felt like everyone involved threw their hands up and said- "We'll never get close to what we did in the first film, so let's just make a male stripper movie and get paid." If that was the intent, they pulled it off. It doesn't translate into a good movie, though. It translates into a mediocre, boring affair.

Magic Mike XXL was probably doomed from the start. The first film attempted to be something more. It was far from a great film, but the attempt was appreciated. This movie sets its sights significantly lower, which was disappointing. There's no way to put a positive spin on this- this movie is an abject failure.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating- 5.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Magic Mike