Ocean's 8 Review: 5 Ups And 4 Downs
2. It's Visually Uninteresting
Considering the undeniable visual flair and style of the Ocean's trilogy (provided by director Steven Soderbergh), it's rather disappointing to see such an unambitious showing by director Gary Ross with this film.
Soderbergh was able to do some great things with his Ocean's movies, combining both sharp visuals, editing, and style to really make those movies pop. Gary Ross, on the other hand, doesn't really do very much to add to the formula, instead electing for a mostly standard-looking film. It's never bad or dull looking, it's just...fine. A huge lack of vibrancy and style led to a movie that lacked the necessary flash to go along with the exciting heist.
There are moments every so often where Ross attempts to channel that same Soderbergh style, whether he fragments the screen to show off each character (like on the movie's promotional posters) or does a small bit of unique editing, but it ultimately fails to add any real style. It's not until the Gala section that the movie makes any notable use of color or character positioning in the frame, and by then, it feels like too little, too late.
Hopefully, if Ross is brought back, he has more inspired shot selection and framing so the movie's more engaging on a visual front.