A-List actors celebrate their own hipness

Rating: Null/10 (26 October 2003)

I didn't have much fun watching this movie. As heist movies go, "The Italian Job" is a much better film, but of course lacks the "star power" of George Clooney, Brad Pitt, and Julia, who looked really bad in most of her scenes here.
Clooney is the centerpiece here, so if you like him you'll probably like the movie. I thought the pacing was terrible, the plot contrived, and the jokes forced. The "Ted Nugent called" line, which some reviewers found incredibly funny, sounded like the lame jokes that these "stars" tell each other between takes. All in all, the whole film comes off really smug, as if the actors and director spent the whole shoot congratulating themselves on how cool they all are.
Granted, the point of the original 1960 Rat Pack film was much the same, but Clooney ain't no Frank Sinatra, baby. What this film shows me is how lame these people really are when they don't have a good script or character to hide behind. Take my advice: avoid this film and rent the new "Italian Job" instead; it's a lot more fun.