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| Courtesy of Warner Bros. |
Look
back at those films’ release dates and you’ll see Tatum racked up three box
office winners in three months. Now we can add Magic Mike to his list of
accomplishments this year. And based on the amount of salivating women (and
quite a few men) that threw their money at ticket windows last weekend, it could
be one of his biggest hits yet.
Tatum
plays Mike, a guy working several day jobs in hopes of getting his custom furniture
business up and running. But none of those occupations pay as well as what he
does at night: dance at one of Tampa’s most popular male strip clubs. On that
stage, he’s the titular Magic Mike, a superstar who keeps the customers
screaming and handing over their cash.
That
makes the club owner, Dallas (McConaughey), a very happy man. He keeps
promising to show his gratitude by giving Mike a stake in the business, but it
hasn’t happened yet. Mike stopped holding his breath a long time ago. That
doesn’t mean he isn’t still loyal to the club, so when he spots a potential new
recruit in the Kid (Alex Pettyfer) he quickly scoops him up.
Mike
takes the Kid, a 19-year-old college dropout, under his wing and introduces him
to Dallas, the other dancers (played by Joe Manganiello, Matt Bomer, Adam
Rodriguez and Kevin Nash) and the perks of the trade. As you’d imagine, that
includes lots of women, lots of attention and lots of money. It’s a young guy’s
dream, but it doesn’t earn the approval of Brooke (Cody Horn), the Kid’s big
sister.
She’s
also a woman Mike would like to get to know better, but that’s not going to
happen until he decides what he really wants to do with his life. That decision
becomes even more pressing when circumstances force him to realize he can’t be
Magic Mike forever.
Let’s
get all the jokes out of the way. Yes, this flick (loosely based on Tatum’s real-life
experiences in the industry) will likely be forever known as “that male
stripper movie,” even though there’s more to the story. And yes, I was excited
about seeing it – even though I’m as straight as it gets – for several reasons.
Number
one: I will see literally any movie Steven Soderbergh makes. He’s one of our greatest
living directors and he’s currently in the middle of a crazy hot streak (The
Informant, Contagion, the aforementioned Haywire and now Magic Mike). I
hope he continues to delay the retirement he’s been pondering.
Next,
Tatum and McConaughey have earned my moviegoing trust with their recent
choices, particularly since the latter seems to have finally grown tired of
making the same crappy romantic comedy over and over again. At least that’s
what he seems to be saying with The Lincoln Lawyer, Bernie and his upcoming
slate of projects. Both actors are flat-out great here, with Tatum achieving a
career-best performance and McConaughey playing up his public persona in ways
both amusing and surprisingly dark.
Those
interested in the film’s more risqué scenes will be pleased to know that, yes,
there is plenty of skin on display and the routines are well choreographed. There’s
even a bonus for the guys being dragged to the theater against their will: the movie
is an equal opportunity flesh-peddler. The ladies show off just as much skin as
the guys.
A
couple of things bugged me about Magic Mike, particularly the afterschool
special route Reid Carolin’s screenplay takes in the second half. It seems tacked-on
and also makes the movie feel about 25 minutes too long. I also wish they would’ve
found a stronger actress to play Brooke. Horn isn’t terrible, but she’s easily
the flick’s weakest link.
Mock
if you want, but you’ll be missing out on a genuinely entertaining comedic
drama. A good story is a good story, period. It’s even better when that story
is somewhat original, which should be lauded in this less-than-spectacular summer
movie season filled with sequels, remakes and superheroes.
Magic
Mike is rated R for pervasive sexual content, brief graphic nudity, language
and some drug use.
Grade:
B+
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