{"id":13027,"date":"2021-01-28T16:20:17","date_gmt":"2021-01-28T21:20:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/?p=13027"},"modified":"2026-06-29T17:30:57","modified_gmt":"2026-06-29T21:30:57","slug":"oceans-eleven-2001","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/?p=13027","title":{"rendered":"Ocean’s Eleven-2001"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ocean’s Eleven-2001<\/strong><\/p>\n

Director Steven Soderbergh<\/strong><\/p>\n

Starring George Clooney<\/strong><\/p>\n

Scott’s Review #1,105<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Reviewed January 28, 2021<\/p>\n

Grade: A-<\/strong><\/p>\n

Steven Soderbergh was awarded the Best Director Academy Award for his exceptional direction in Traffic (2000), one of my all-time favorite films.<\/p>\n

He follows up that gem with a slick, commercial film that is stylish and looks cool.<\/p>\n

It’s fast-paced, with quick editing, and is set in the dangerously appealing world of casinos, as a group of sophisticated thieves attempts to steal $160 million from a casino owner with whom they have a vendetta.<\/p>\n

I expected a film of this type to be generic and by-the-numbers, but instead it’s unpredictable and unexpected.<\/p>\n

Ocean’s Eleven (2001) is the first (and best) installment of the popular Ocean’s franchise and a remake of the 1960 Rat Pack film of the same name.<\/p>\n

George Clooney was in his film prime and led the pack of A-list stars like Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, and Matt Damon in a packed and brimming two-hour entertainment fest.<\/p>\n

A nice touch is inviting two stars from the original, Henry Silva and Angie Dickinson, to appear as themselves.<\/p>\n

Clooney leads the charge and embraces his status as a leading man with charm, polish, and style. He plays a handsome Danny Ocean, a man with a plan.<\/p>\n

Less than one day into his parole from a New Jersey penitentiary, the thief is already traveling to California to plot his next move with his partner in crime, Rusty (Brad Pitt).<\/p>\n

It’s tinged with revenge.<\/p>\n

They abide by three rules: Don’t hurt anybody, don’t steal from anyone who doesn’t deserve it, and play the game like you’ve got nothing to lose.<\/p>\n

Danny orchestrates his charges to pull off the most sophisticated, elaborate casino heist in history. And it will take place in glitzy Las Vegas on the night of a boxing match.<\/p>\n

Providing the rules makes me think fondly of a similar proclamation in David Fincher’s 1999 film Fight Club, where Danny and the gang immediately feel sympathetic to me.<\/p>\n

After all, they don’t intend to hurt anyone, and the money stolen will be from folks who are dastardly and might even deserve to be penniless.<\/p>\n

Didn’t Jigsaw from the Saw films only kill those who harmed other people? Suddenly, their motives are clear and justified, making them the good guys.<\/p>\n

As a bonus, the “victim” of the heist is the unlikable Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia), who owns three casinos and is worth billions.<\/p>\n

Making the bad guys the heroes and Benedict the bad guy is clever and situates the players properly, so the audience knows who to root for.<\/p>\n

As if the film doesn’t have enough treats, some drama is thrown in. Danny’s ex-wife, Tess (Julia Roberts), is Benedict’s girlfriend. Is she loyal to Danny or Benedict, or might she be playing both sides?<\/p>\n

Loyalties are tested and questioned, and the intricate bank heist sequence is titillating and an edge-of-your-seat thrill ride.<\/p>\n

The Las Vegas backdrop, with the casino’s bright lights, bells, and other elements, cements Ocean’s Eleven as one of the best in its genre.<\/p>\n

It’s also tough not to root for Clooney, Pitt, and Damon in or out of character.<\/p>\n

Ted Griffin writes the screenplay and adds some nice characters, more than one-note bank robbers or thieves.<\/p>\n

Along with Soderbergh’s direction, which adds the nice atmospheric trimmings like the razzle-dazzle casino scenes, they make a great pair.<\/p>\n

I love how Danny and Rusty recruit a team with specialized skills like mechanics, pickpockets, and an electronics and surveillance specialist. There’s even an acrobat!<\/p>\n

This seems like an ode to the 1960s television series Mission: Impossible, as the team is carefully selected for their skills.<\/p>\n

A highly entertaining popcorn film just perfect for a summer night, Ocean’s Eleven (2001) is sure to satisfy. The intention is to sit back and enjoy what is offered, and all the elements come together perfectly.<\/p>\n

The culminating main event boxing match and subsequent twist catapult the film from pure entertainment to something more nuanced and exciting.<\/p>\n

The film was a success at the box office and with critics, leading to two Soderbergh-directed sequels and a spin-off with an all-female lead cast, released in 2018.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ocean’s Eleven-2001 Director Steven Soderbergh Starring George Clooney Scott’s Review #1,105 Reviewed January 28, 2021 Grade: A- Steven Soderbergh was awarded the Best Director Academy Award for his exceptional direction in Traffic (2000), one of my all-time favorite films. He follows up that gem with a slick, commercial film that is stylish and looks cool. … Continue reading Ocean’s Eleven-2001<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[99,11605,49,11611,11847,11848],"tags":[1701,810,2174,1533,2176,2175,1992,999,2173,5634,11854,11850,11851,1788,2028,11849,11852,11853,2147,2149,2177],"class_list":["post-13027","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-2001-films","category-action","category-comedies","category-guy-films","category-heist","category-vegas","tag-andy-garcia","tag-angie-dickinson","tag-bernie-mac","tag-brad-pitt","tag-carl-reiner","tag-casey-affleck","tag-don-cheadle","tag-elliott-gould","tag-george-clooney","tag-gregory-jacobs","tag-henry-silva","tag-holly-marie-combs","tag-joshua-jackson","tag-julia-roberts","tag-matt-damon","tag-scott-caan","tag-shane-west","tag-siegfried-roy","tag-steven-soderbergh","tag-topher-grace","tag-wayne-newton"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13027","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=13027"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13027\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23639,"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13027\/revisions\/23639"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=13027"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=13027"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=13027"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}