Ocean's Eleven is undoubtedly one of the greatest remakes of all time; Steven Soderbergh applies his visual flourishes to a smart, stylish and witty heist caper starring an abundance of A-list talents that is entertaining from start to finish. Then came the inevitable sequel, that upped the star power but suffered from a convoluted plot, some lazy writing and an increasing sense of smugness that reached its peak with the now-infamous 'Julia Roberts playing Tess Ocean pretending to be Julia Roberts' scene. Given the quality of the first movie and the myriad of glamorous locations involved (including Amsterdam, Monte Carlo, Paris and Rome), its hardly surprising that Soderbergh had little trouble convincing new recruits to join the cast. Returning stars George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Don Cheadle, Julia Roberts, Andy Garcia and company were joined by Catherine Zeta-Jones, Vincent Cassel, Eddie Izzard and Robbie Coltrane, along with cameos from Bruce Willis and Albert Finney. Although Soderbergh directs with his usual stylistic verve, the half-baked and over-complicated script results in a vastly inferior sequel that favors self-indulgence over the light-hearted fun that made the original movie so great.
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