Ocean's eleven are an entertaining bunch... (DEFINITELY SPOILAGE... )

Rating: 9/10 (22 February 2002)

... as, for that matter, are guys like Elliot Gould's decadent mentor and Andy Garcia's ruthless casino boss. Every (male) member of the cast comes together to contribute tellingly to a very entertaining movie. Okay, there are flaws; Don Cheadle's Cockney accent is needless and inconsistent, and the character of Tess Ocean takes a backseat to the boys schemes, but these minor quibbles don't prevent enjoyment in watching an audacious job so slickly executed. For both the central conceit and the movie itself could have proved to be nothing more than a daring folly committed by people with ideas above their station. Thankfully, in both cases everything goes off without a hitch, and the result is a fun watch.
There is little to be said about the two considered 'leads' of the movie.
Both Clooney and Pitt are rarely dull in their on screen endeavours, and this is no exception, it's just that the effect is doubled by having both in the cast at once. Matt Damon is great to watch in a different role from his often brash characters. Cheadle is OK, but if anything is the weak link in the team (he is definitely not helped by his odd patois.) It is nice to see Roberts here, but did she really need to be in this? I don't think so. Her presence only clutters up an already complicated roster and is ultimately an unnecessary distraction to both lead characters and audience.
Garcia shows just what a class act he is, and Reiner is nothing less than amazing in such exalted company. Director Soderbergh makes control of the film look like second nature, which probably means that every single shot was painstaking and laborious. Even though I personally was one of the few who failed to be charmed by "Out of Sight", it was clear from watching THAT effort that the helmer was enormously talented. With films such as "Erin Brockovitch" and now "Ocean's 11", he adds yet more credence to that theory.
At times the film almost becomes TOO cool. This at first seems like an absurd criticism to level at the film, but the brains behind the operation are so self assured and confident that they will succeed, there is never any doubt about the outcome. "This is Hollywood", you cry, "and therefore it is obvious they will win in the end". That may be so, but most movies make concessions to dramatic tension, this one doesn't really bother.
This is best illustrated by Clooney/Ocean's capitulation towards the end.
The character gets caught for very specific reasons that are revealed before the film draws to a close, and it is made obvious that this needn't have happened unless it was planned by the crook, since the other 10 get away scott free. It is this cheeky jab in the face of authority that makes you feel like nothing could go wrong for the gang, except if they wanted it to; and it doesn't.
This development also brings up the only other minor flaw that I can think of. I am prepared to accept the notion that Ocean (oops, poet and don't know it!) is willing to endure prison in order to win back his 'lost love', and I can even understand why Tess leaves Benedict after seeing him prepared to ditch her for his money. Why, however, does Tess not being with Benedict suddenly in one swoop resolve all her differences with Ocean? Why? Because this is Hollywood, that's why; and it's a plot element that needed a little more attention in order to be convincing, but because it is so near the end, this problem gets neglected in the rush to conclude.
I've only mentioned two major flaws, and it's a stretch to even ATTEMPT to come up with any more, because by and large the job done is so professional. The cast and crew obviously put a lot of effort, craft and fun into making this, so you should reward them for their efforts by checking it out. See it.