Well apparently Danny Ocean owns a DeLorean.

Rating: 5/10 (16 February 2014)

Although this film was brimming with its own self admiration, and advertising itself like there was no tomorrow, i had this sinking feeling that it was going to be...well...monumentally disappointing. And with the likes of Bill Murray, John Goodman, Matt Damon and Cate Blanchett, I should have no reason whatsoever to feel pessimistic about its release, but it wasn't their names that filled me with dread. It was George Clooney; Mr Auto-Pilot himself. When i seen the trailer i was immediately expecting a Casino to appear. The whole recruiting thing i had seen before, the same soul-less (oh look at me i'm cool) character. So lethargic, nothing new. And i have no qualms with him stepping behind the camera, he has a substantial amount of experience, why not? But when he decides to insert himself directly as the Leader of The Monuments Men, well then a film with potential has just took a severe blow to the gut...with a sledgehammer.
The film felt empty the entire time, the acting, the scenarios that so desperately tried to suck sympathy from you or lure a cheap laugh from you. Yes the story is fascinating, and it should be launched into the limelight and given a film that makes you appreciate what people risked for, now, historical pieces of art or sculptures. It is an incredible canvas to create a masterpiece of a film, but George Clooney doesn't do incredible, he is placid in his acting and uninspiring as a director. Each film he has directed he has starred in. Why isn't (at this point in his career) being behind the camera enough? Why does he have to inject his lackluster persona into the film and leave it docile? Now I am not completely down on Clooney, i enjoyed the Oceans Trilogy, Descendants, Up in the Air and most of all From Dusk Till Dawn, but despite that he just can't help but play the same person and the film has to hold your attention in order for you to disregard his routine performance and enjoy the film as a whole. Unfortunately for this film, he is all over it, i would be hard pressed to recall 5 minutes in the film where Clooney isn't there.
The rest of the cast try to shine, but every time they do....here's Clooney.... and he eclipses them. Try to show emotion, but...wait...there's Clooney again. If he where a musician he would be a one man band. Wants to do it all himself. Cate Blanchett played her part really well and bounced off Matt Damon. Murray and Bob Balaban try their best with the material given, but it quite frankly isn't funny and even if there was something that garnered some chuckles (like Damon's "French") then they do it again, and again and again. One thing that bothered me was that the entire film has a small sub-plot that seemed completely unjustified. Unworthy of the eventual climax. I'll leave it at that.
This could have been a great film, but the sea of potential evaporated and was replaced with an Ocean of Clooney.