Logan Lucky Review

Back To Basics For Soderbergh

Released : August 25th 2017

Certificate : 12A

Director : Steven Soderbergh

Cast : Channing Tatum, Adam Driver, Daniel Craig, Riley Keough

Plot : Two veteran brothers living in West Virginia, who are locally known to be cursed, fall on hard times. They decided to rob the Charlotte Motor Speedway in North Carolina.

SPOILER WARNING – Review contains allusions to the ending of the film.

After stating four years ago upon the release of Side Effects that he would be retiring from film-making due to the ‘horrific’ way the industry treats directors, Soderbergh returns with another heist comedy. Other complaints that the director had about the industry revolved around how commercially driven the industry has become and how this effected creative freedom. Knowing these facts when watching the film, changes the experience. The way two outsiders try to take on the big corporation, elements of the ending, and the overall quirky creative nature of the film, all makes sense given the directors stated attitudes.

The review tag line which has been most widely circulated is ‘its Coen’s meets Oceans’, and atmospherically it is clear to see why. If a direct film comparison could be made, it would be Barton Fink, due to the way both films are statements about the issues of film making, although Barton Fink does so much more explicitly. Logan Lucky does it as follows. The film isn’t very marketable on paper, the protagonists are unusual and outsiders, the humour isn’t mainstream and is often subtle, and the ending of the film has a definite statement about large corporations and their morality. These features make total sense when you consider Soderbergh complaints about the industry, that it’s become too mainstream, money obsessed, and lacking creativity. So, it appears he made a film that addressed these issues in a very subtle way. To push back in a small way against the film industry, he refuses to use conventional heroic handsome main characters, he doesn’t stay to the ‘accepted’ style of modern comedy, and he ends the film with a middle finger to corporations.

On top of this, the film is distributed by Soderbergh own private company (ensuring creative freedom) and the writer behind the film is a Rebecca Blunt, who is widely believed to be a pseudonym. Enough on the underlying messages of the film, does it function as an entertaining comedy heist. Absolutely. Whoever wrote the film, the script is brilliant. Combining character driven humour and situational comedy and topping it off with a huge amount of deep South American caricatures. Making this a clever and quirky comedy. This style won’t suit all mainstream audiences, as it isn’t as obvious and loud as other comedies out now, such as The Hitman’s Bodyguard. However, there’s definitely enough good laughs here for it to find an audience (or even become a cult hit). As for flaws in the script, the dramatic and emotional tones that come in towards the end aren’t very impactful. Also the overall structure and path of the film isn’t surprising and does stick very much to the Oceans formula.

As for the cast, all actors are relishing the roles very much. Many of the characters are larger than life, and many are clear caricatures. Due to the writing, Adam Driver and Daniel Craig will be the roles remembered from this film, as they are simply given more humour dialogue than Channing Tatum. Having said that, both Driver and Craig are brilliant in this film, being able to be believably portray their eccentric mannerisms and ticks which helps the humour land. These features make this one of the most quotable films recently, for all the right reasons. Seth MacFarlane accent and character can be forgiven. There is also the welcome addition of supporting roles from Hilary Swank and Sebastian Stan.

There’s plenty to really love here. While the film does follow the old Oceans formula very much, it is self-aware in this manner, with a standout line from a reporter in the film being ‘their calling it Oceans 7/11’. With great characters and great laughs this film will have you smiling on the way out of the theatre. Hopefully the success of this film will convince Soderbergh to put off that retirement a little longer.

Verdict : Despite Kermode saying the film is just high quality throw away fun, there are signs here that suggest a deeper meaning about the film industry. A great return for Soderbergh.

Verdict : 4/5

Quote : ‘Did you just say cauliflower to me?’