Five Reasons to See Logan Lucky

Lisa and I took a break yesterday and saw Logan Lucky. Afterward, we read reviews and talked about the film.

On the whole, I’ll say it was worth seeing, though I didn’t like it as much as I wanted to like it. I think it has some specific flaws, and I don’t think it really ever quite decides what it wants to be. I mean, sure, it’s Oceans 7/11, but … well … for me, it didn’t quite reach the pedals there. It was closer to Oceans (Double Knot) 7, but I digress.

If I let myself get unwound I can build up a healthy argument for how it could have been better/different (yes, I’m a writer, why do you ask?).

Still, I think you should see it. Why is that, you ask?

Well, here you go:

Reason 1) Daniel Craig: Yeah, he’s clearly having fun here, and it’s rare to see an actor who is really having fun.
Reason 2) Silliness: Yeah, the plot is stupid. And yeah, the people are stupid, too…at least the males are (I mean, essentially even the “smart” guys here are a few watts short of a full charge, but it works okay). But on the whole the film is entertaining scene-to-scene. A perfectly fine way to spend a couple hours even if you might forget it in a few months (except for Craig, anyway).
Reason 3) Channing Tatum’s Heist Model: Talk about your on-the-cheap planning tool. Humorous. Ultimately, the movie has several chuckles to it.
Reason 4) The Indie Track: Steven Soderbergh essentially made this himself. It’s a good enough effort and, being an indie publisher, I like supporting indie kinds of things.
Reason 5) Daniel Craig: Okay, I know he was #1, but I labeled this as Five Reasons, and really there’s only four. But Craig is so fun that it’s worth giving him a second slot. Craig is to Logan Lucky as Clooney is to Oceans. He’s fully committed to the character, and plays it as much with a wink to himself as anything else. He integrates into the seams of the film and manages to be the pulse of the thing. He’s super competent in the one place he needs to be competent, and (unlike most of the characters), he pulls off a rough hillbilly “cool under pressure” in the moments where he’s out of his water.

So, yeah, if you’re debating, I say go ahead. If nothing else, it goes great with popcorn.

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