Steven Soderbergh’s Magic Mike was one of the most pleasant surprises of 2012, with a muscle-centric marketing campaign that no doubt sold tickets but failed to notify audiences that this film was actually the work of a master director at the top of his game.
Stylistically impressive, tonally sophisticated beyond its straightforward narrative with a breezy charm to boot, Magic Mike made it possible to have zero stake in the world of strippers or the attractiveness of the cast and walk away with a satisfying filmgoing experience—not to mention mystified as to why Oscar buzz around Matthew McConaughey didn’t start with his mesmerizing turn as Dallas. Sold to the public as an excuse for male eye candy, yet actually a layered tale of the darker side of enacting a hypermasculine power fantasy, fans of high- and lowbrow entertainment could have their beefcake and eat it too.
But if Magic Mike’s commitment to excellence and genuine pedigree left you feeling disappointed in its relative lack of crowd service, Magic Mike XXL is your movie. It is everything that you likely expected from Magic Mike: Over-the-top dance sequences, broad humor and a shift in focus from men’s power to women’s pleasure are at the core of this sequel. There are no stakes to this journey, only women who have not yet been entertained by a van full of “male entertainers” traveling through the South in search of all who need their exuberance. In a strange way, Magic Mike XXL, draws more from drag queen classic To Wong Foo Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar than from its own predecessor. And once again, it’s still better than you might expect.
We begin with Mike (Channing Tatum) hard at work running the custom furniture business that was his passion in the first film. While he succeeded in following his dream, it is far less glamorous, and he clearly misses his old life. After a brief reunion with his stripper buddies (minus Dallas), Mike walks away from his business to join the gang on a last hurrah road trip to a stripper convention (yes, that’s what it’s called) before going their separate ways. Along the way, they encounter friends old and new as they charm, strip and dance their way to glory.
Helmed by longtime Soderbergh collaborator Gregory Jacobs, Magic Mike XXL only doesn’t work when it attempts to copy the first film’s style and tone. Long, naturalistic, lingering shots worked for Soderbergh because this wasn’t a glamorous tale as much as it was about the appeal and limitations of living a fantasy. Jacobs’ attempt to capture this style is uneven, never feeling comfortable next to over-the-top stripteases in unlikely locations. There is no moral, no cautionary tale; this is, plain and simple, the story of sex-
positive studs who just want to help women smile and have a good time. In the first film, they danced for the power trip and easy access to money, drugs and women. Here, the first group number is voguing and death-
dropping at a drag night as a show of cohesion and goodwill.
Normally when a sequel abandons the message of a film wholesale as much as XXL, the results can be disastrous (think Terminator 3, Rambo: First Blood Part II). Not so with XXL, though the differences could not be more stark. Think of this less as a sequel and more of a gluttonous dessert after a challenging meal and you’ll have a great time.
Playing this week
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Mad Max: Fury Road Max
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Spy
Ted 2
Terminator: Genisys
Regal Stonefield 14 and IMAX
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