It’s probably safe to say that I am not the target audience for Magic Mike, 2012’s smash hit that shocked box office watchers last summer when it grossed nearly $40 million in its first weekend and over $100 million domestically by the end of its run.
In its opening weekend, 73% of its audience was female. Hence me not being the target audience. And while I know so many of you will be shocked by this, I have also never been involved in the world of male stripping.
Magic Mike contributed to an excellent 2012 for star Channing Tatum. Last year provided three blockbusters for him: this, The Vow, and 21 Jump Street. Tatum was the flavor of 2012, just as Ryan Gosling was the flavor of 2011. Mr. Tatum will try to replicate that success in 2013, with the G.I. Joe sequel and this summer’s White House Down with Jamie Foxx.
Steven Soderbergh is, frankly, the reason I chose to spend two hours with Magic Mike. The director is known for making unpredictable choices and working at a breakneck pace. In the last six years alone, he’s directed eight features: Che, The Girlfriend Experience, The Informant!, Contagion, Haywire, Side Effects, the upcoming HBO Liberace biopic Behind the Candelabra, and this. He’s directed two of my favorite pictures of the last twenty years: 1998’s Out of Sight and 2000’s Traffic. He’s also responsible for the Ocean’s Eleven trilogy that made boatloads of money and gave a nice excuse for megastars like Clooney, Pitt, and Damon to hang out.
I realize that watching Magic Mike because of Mr. Soderbergh is not the reason most audience members saw it. That honor belongs to Mr. Tatum. Over the past two years, it’s been Gosling and Tatum that have worked their way into the hearts of female movie fans. From my perspective, I’m happy to report the two share something in common: they are both very good actors.
Magic Mike is loosely based on Tatum’s real-life experiences as a male stripper. In the film, he plays the title character, an ambitious entrepreneur who makes most of his money working at Xquisite Strip Club in Tampa. We meet the quirky cast of coworkers from the club, including the owner Dallas, in a terrific performance from Matthew McConaughey. Mike also discovers a new star for the club Adam (Alex Pettyfer), who he mentors with mixed results. Mike also falls for Adam’s sister Brooke (Cody Horn).
The screenplay, from Reid Carolin, is often pretty standard stuff. The romance between Mike and Brooke feels a little underwritten and the business about Adam getting involved with drugs is something we’ve seen in dozens of movies. This doesn’t add anything new to that dynamic.
However, Magic Mike succeeds due to a fine performance from Tatum. I suspect Mr. Tatum will have a career similar to Matt Damon. Tatum is good at comedy (21 Jump Street), action, and drama, something that can be said for Damon as well. Tatum is also an excellent dancer… I’m not sure if Jason Bourne would look right busting a move to Ginuwine’s “Pony”, as Channing does here.
It also succeeds because Soderbergh is a great director who gets the most out of this material, even if the screenplay isn’t too original. The subject matter is pretty original though and credit goes to Tatum for using his life experiences and turning it into a blockbuster film.
On a final note, isn’t it wonderful to see McConaughey blossom into such a fantastic actor? He deserved the Oscar buzz he got for this performance, even if he didn’t end up nominated.
So while Magic Mike wasn’t made for me, I was pleasantly surprised by it.
Todd’s Rating: *** (out of four)
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