Ocean's Twelve

Plot synopsis:
At the beginning of Ocean's Twelve, the eleven members of Ocean's Eleven are living their lives separately off the fortunes of their Vegas casino heist in the first film. Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia), the owner of the three casinos, confronts each member of the team in turn, demanding the team return his money, with interest. Benedict gives the team two weeks to come up with the money, which amounts to the original $160 million plus $38 million interest for a total of $198 million. The Ocean's Eleven members don't have enough and are short $97 million which they must get in 14 days or they are "dead men."Danny and the team decide to stage another heist to pay off the debt. Being too "hot" to work in the United States, they pick a European target: the world's oldest stock certificate, which was issued by the Dutch East India Company in 1602, worth around 2.5 million euros, and is kept in Amsterdam. The certificate is enough to extend their deadline. The group manages to breach the security around the certificate, in part by physically lifting the building to achieve line-of-sight. But a rival thief, the "Night Fox" (Vincent Cassel), beats them to the document and leaves a message for them.The Night Fox is a notorious European thief who was trained by the legendary retired thief Gaspar LeMarque (Albert Finney), and believes himself to be the world's greatest thief. As it turns out, he is the one who revealed the identities of the Eleven to Benedict. The Fox is incensed that his mentor, LeMarque, failed to correct a businessman who claimed that Danny was the best thief in the world after hearing of the elaborate complexities of the Ocean's Eleven 'Bellagio job'. The Fox breaks "rule number one" (revealing another thief's identity) in order to lure the team to Europe, where he can propose a challenge, since going after the same object is the only way to tell who is the best thief. Both Danny's group and the Night Fox will attempt to steal the famous Coronation Egg within a week; the first to succeed will be declared the better thief. If Danny's team wins, the Fox will pay off the team's debt to Benedict. With no other options, Danny accepts the challenge.Meanwhile, a Europol detective, Agent Isabel Lahiri (Catherine Zeta-Jones), with a romantic link to Rusty, hears of the increased theft activity in Amsterdam. She forges her superior's signature on a request form in order to procure enough resources to track down the group. In the first attempt, most of the group are captured; the second, involving a very reluctant Tess (Julia Roberts) masquerading as the famous actress Julia Roberts, ends the same way, partially due to unintended interference from movie star Bruce Willis (as himself). A U.S. official, actually Linus's mother in disguise, manages their extradition.Danny and Tess meet The Night Fox at Lake Como in Italy. At his home, the Night Fox delights in explaining how he was able to steal the egg by climbing to the roof of the Museum at dark without being detected by Danny's Recon squad. He passed through the laser grid, dances his way and avoids triggering the alarm. Danny then reveals the truth: the contest was over before it began, and the egg that the Fox stole was the fake. Danny and associate Rusty Ryan (Brad Pitt) had previously visited LeMarque and learned the location of the real egg which was transported in a duffel bag instead of the armored car. LeMarque also warned Danny and Rusty to assume that the Night Fox would always have them under surveillance. Hearing this, the Fox is crestfallen, and Danny gets the money that the Night Fox had given to LeMarque to hold in confidence when the competition was first proposed.It is not until the end that the viewers realize that LeMarque was actually the mastermind behind the entire operation. By deliberately making the Night Fox feel inferior to Ocean's group, he manipulates the Night Fox into entering the competition. This is "the solution to all our problems" that he alludes to in the meeting with Daniel and Rusty. The Night Fox is the mark, and Danny's team is essentially a pawn of LeMarque. Their task is to simply acquire the egg, and then get caught. This convinces the Night Fox that he has won, although the contest is just misdirection. Another goal of LeMarque is to be reunited with his daughter, Agent Lahiri, who had thought her father had died over a decade previously.The result of the entire adventure is that Danny's group is now in the clear with Terry Benedict, the extraordinarily talented Night Fox is disgraced (both in fortune and in reputation), and LeMarque is reunited both with his daughter and with the Fabergé egg he had stolen years earlier (his wife made him put it back). This illustrates the artistry of LeMarque, and why he is regarded so highly amongst those who perform the long con. This is the reason LeMarque is so apologetic to Danny and Rusty, and he claims "I'm still getting the better of you" at the end of their meeting. Reuben then meets with Benedict to pay him honestly and in full. During their conversation the camera zooms in on the Night Fox in the background disguised as one of Terry Benedict's gardeners, implying that the Night Fox plans to rob Terry Benedict in order to prove himself once again and to get his money back.Isabel Lahiri joins Ocean's group in a get-together afterward. She and Rusty are together again.

Tags: revenge, entertaining

Review:
And these films do indeed have A lot of Hollywood star power in them; Julia Roberts, George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Catherina Zeta Jones, Bernie Mac, Andy Garcia, Don Cheadle...
Unfortunately, the audience may not gain the same pleasure as the actors did....If you were like me, absolutely blown away by the chic and jazzy first film, then Ocean's 12 will be a disappointment.
After reasonably goofy short scenes between Pitt/Zeta-Jones and Clooney/Roberts, the film spends several minutes watching Andy Garcia waltz from scene to scene, telling each individual member of Danny Ocean's original eleven that he wants his money back.
I won't give it away, because I know most of you will be foolish enough to throw down the money to see this movie anyway.What I will say is that it makes most of the 2 hours you have sat through already completely irrelevant.I was excited to see this film, after absolutely adoring Ocean's 11.
I left the theater feeling like I had been the victim of a truly great con pulled by the cast and crew of this movie in tricking me into thinking that this movie would actually be worth watching.
At times it could be a little frustrating and leave you wondering why they even showed the last ten minutes of the movie.By far the strong suit of the film was the cast and their generally above par performances.
The latest in a long line of tepid Hollywood sequels; the cast may have had fun making this film but that doesn't mean the audience will as it drags on for over two hours with endless story lulls, self-conscious humor, and banal dialogue.
There's the constant music, the people with the general European accents (well, villains), and every other caper movie cliché in the books.Danny Ocean (George Clooney) and his eleven/twelve compadres are forced to pay back the money that they stole from Terry Benedict's (Andy Garcia) casinos three years earlier.
They are pursued by a clever and gorgeous Inspector , Catherine Zeta Jones , Brad Pitt's sweetheart .This thrilling as well as hilarious hold-up film displays a twisted caper from the beginning to ending , comedy , turns , along with limited action of varied manner .
I feel like the actors in this movie got together, realized they could do whatever they wanted and people would still come see it, and made a travesty of the first movie.The heist is these actors taking a good movie, Ocean's 11, and using a sequel to steal about $7.50 per person in theaters.
It begins with Terry Benedict(Garcia), the villain from the first one, going around acting cool while letting the Ocean's Eleven know that they had two weeks in which to return his money with interest or he would have them killed.
the cast did a great job and Catherine Zeta-Jones is probably the most beautiful woman I have ever seen in film...something about her just takes my breath away..
I actually watched it in Rome, one of the locations used in the film, and not a single ancient ruin appeared (apart from George Clooney ;->); indeed, the opening scene of a line of cars all sounding their horns was familiar enough to send a laugh around the Roman audience.There were one or two plot oddities that'll probably show up in the IMDb goofs section (Arsenal FC going from Amsterdam to Barcelona?!
Besides all these, a completely unexpected and ridiculous script is a must.This movie has it all!I would like to remark the performance of Catherine Zeta Jones, it's so horrible that now i can't watch any of her previous movies without laughing.and Julia Robert as ....
George Clooney didn't have any charisma this time around as Danny 'smooth operator' Ocean , Andy Garcia wasn't quite mean enough, I can't figure out why Bernie Mac was in the film and as already mentioned I felt that there was more potential romantic / sexual potential in Zeta-Jones' character.
Its extremely painful to sit through - the best performance is by Matt Damon in one particular scene which is the highest point the movie ever reaches -I hope they make an Oceans 13 and really think of a nice story this time around as a sort of apology for their bad behavior this time - or bring out an apology to all the fans they conned!.
a comedic heist film with the best cast ever.This movie lives up to the star power shown in Ocean's Eleven, but it has a different twist of humour.
a feel-good film.What I highly enjoy about the Ocean's Trilogy is being able to watch a film that brings together great talent, some of the biggest names of my own generation, and watching them in a comedic heist film that deserves some popcorn and laughs.This movie is highly underrated, not because of how great the storyline is, but because of how great the entire package is.Enjoy it for what it is..
The cast is obnoxiously self-aware  in the first film Rusty Ryan (Brad Pitt) walked the line between "cool" and "fool" and in "Ocean's Twelve" he comes across as an utterly annoying, wannabe hipster.
In fact, the first fifteen minutes of the film really just exists to give Garcia a role in the movie  except for a brief appearance at the end, it's the only screen time he really gathers.The new additions seem tacky and unnecessary  likewise the cameos are contrived, and the self-referential Julia Roberts-playing-Tess-playing-Julia-Roberts scene must have looked a lot better on paper.Soderbergh's direction is harder and laced with grit  the hand-cam shots and filtered bleak cinematography really give the film an abysmal edge that hinders it.
The original was vibrant, colorful and alive  "Twelve" is dead from the start.Not a terrible motion picture by any standard, but then again I'd hardly feel compelled to label this "entertainment." It's a sporadically amusing, mostly grueling sequel that never really rings true  it's like an exclusive in-joke for the cast and crew, and the audience's involvement was obviously of secondary importance during filming..
The real problem with this is, a scene which Tess Ocean dresses up in different clothes and looks like she is pregnant, to disguise as "Julia Roberts" within the movie.
The only reason I didn't give it ten stars is because it does kinda miss a surprising twist in the end, but this ending is well done to.I recommend this movie to everyone because it's a great sequel to the first one and and I would love to see an Oceans Thirteen.
Could they repeat the success, or would it be a prime example of lightning never striking twice.Ocean's Twelve picks up a few years after events of the last film, with all the band of thieves scattered, and still trying to outrun Casino owner, victim of their heist, Tess's ex, and all round nasty piece of work, Terry Benedict.
To complicate matters there is the small detail of Rusty's (Pitt) recent ex-girlfriend, Isable (Zeta Jones), an Interpol agent tracking down them, and the mysterious thief The Nightfox, who has a small matter of honor to work out.The film takes around 20 minutes to really get started, and that first 20 minutes will alienate a lot of people who just want to chew popcorn and be excited.
The main story is weak, and there are too many subplots which are totally unnecessary, distracting and very annoying.It looked like the different actors of the original Ocean's 11 cut some sort of a deal with the Producers and Director whereby they were all given more screen time - there in lies the first big flaw.
Although her various successful and magical red-handed arrests of the various team members of Daniel Ocean appeared too cheesy at times.Julia Roberts looks tired and old in most scenes; I don't understand why she couldn't have been made more presentable using make-up etc..My recommendation is to wait for the DVD which should be out in a month or two..
I found this movie to be sleek sheik and entertaining.I found the camera techniques to be very new and neat.the cast was great and they have a chemistry with each other that is truly rare.They leave you hanging right up till the end and then you're surprised to see how it plays out.Katherine Zeta Jones joins the all star cast as a female top cop and the love interest of Rusty(Brad Pitt),who not so coincidentally chose Amsterdam to pull the job to try to raise almost 20 million to save their lives after they are tracked down by Benedict( Andy Garcias character),who wants his money back with interest.There were a few scenes that the movie could have did without.One of those being the predictable scene where they dress Julia Roberts up as,well,Julia Roberts.You just know someones going to say that she doesn't even look like her(which they do)and that they're going to run into someone that knows the "real" Julia,which they do.Bruce Willis was funny though and kind of saved the scene.Also the movie could've done without the confusing showing the ending and then flashing back to what happened part.It made it hard to tell what happened when.However,This movie proves to be very entertaining from start to finish and worth the rental fee.I probably wont buy it but by the same token,I'm likely to rent it again just to see parts i missed..
This may be number two in what is another franchise but Steven Soderbergh's love of movies and the movie-making process is evident in every fabulous looking frame, (this is probably the best-looking movie you'll see all year), and if the extremely daft plot, (there are daft heist movies and then there is "Ocean's 12"), could be scribbled on the back of a postage stamp this is also the most sheerly enjoyable film I have seen in a very long time.As for that daft plot, it exists only as an excuse to do a follow-up to the hugely successful "Ocean's 11".
It's complicated, at times it's basically non-existent and this movie, more than the last one, often feels like a bunch of pals goofing around in front of the camera; (remember the very first "Ocean's 11" with the Rat Pack?
Julia Roberts and Catherine Zeta-Jones works wonders the the film's only misbegotten character, Pitt's love interest who happens to be the female detective on everybody's tail.
Daniel Ocean and "Rusty" Ryan, played by George Clooney and Brad Pitt, both good-looking and talented actors, are just complete geniuses.
I have lost count of the times I've watched Ocean's Twelve on DVD - it is pure, engaging entertainment, a 2000's version of a 60's movie.
Although Julia Roberts plays the role of Ocean's wife Tess, she also is uncredited--the credits actually state, "and introducing Tess as Julia Roberts." Julia's probably hoping people will think it wasn't her, especially since she wore no makeup (evidently to make her role as a housewife more believable.) IMDb won't let me give a lower rating than 1 star, but a one half star each for Catherine Zeta-Jones' and George Clooney's looks does add up to 1 star total..
If you enjoy 'I know what happened, but how did it happen?' movies then this is worth watching and if you're a fan of Catherine Zeta-Jones you'll love this movie as she's absolutely beautiful in it, but if you're expecting Andy Garcia to play a prominent role (his Bad Guy in the original was great) you'll be disappointed; if you're expecting a high-tech crime movie with believable techy stuff you'll be very disappointed; if you're expecting a visually great movie (which is a fair expectation considering the Rome/Amsterdam setting) you'll be disappointed.The under-use of Andy Garcia's character makes me believe that he'll be the main Bad Guy again if significant box intake results in another movie - but don't bank on it.2.5 / 5..
This is a totally original movie that will entertain you, go watch it, just don't expect to watch something like Ocean's 11..
With actors such as Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Julia Roberts, Andy Garcia, and Matt Damon, How can the movie be bad.
Reuniting the cast from the original remake, "Ocean's Eleven" (2001), this one finds Danny Ocean (George Clooney) and his band of thieves running to Europe to pull of heists to pay off Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia), the hotelier they ripped off in the first film.Trouble is if Terry didn't intimidate them the first time, why would they really get worried this time around?
Clooney, Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, Matt Damon, Elliott Gould, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Vincent Cassel.The last two are new this time.
So many people were disappointed to learn that Ocean's Twelve was not yet another heist movie.This film had to be a sequel.
However, it would have been unreasonable for all eleven original characters to share an equal share of the spotlight and still turn out as well.In the end, Ocean's Twelve is not a mere heist film but an Intelligent Comedy that may need to be watched more than once to appreciate some of the subtleties in the dialog.
Damon cuts his way into the screen time with a nice line of joking about "coming up" but Roberts and Jones are really pushed to the edges of the film even if they do have some things to contribute.
OCEAN'S TWELVE (2004) **1/2 George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Julia Roberts, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Andy Garcia, Vincent Cassel, Don Cheadle, Elliot Gould, Bernie Mac, Carl Reiner, Eddie Jemison, Scott Caan, Casey Affleck, Shaobo Qin, Robbie Coltrane, Eddie Izzard, Jeroen Krabbe, Albert Finney, Topher Grace, Cherry Jones (Unbilled cameo as himself  Bruce Willis) (Dir: Steven Soderbergh) The Con is On (the Audience) Sequels and remakes are let's face it kissin' cousins that at times result in cinematic inbred retardation.
With a window of two weeks the gang are back together for one final job in Europe.Returning are retro cool Rusty Ryan (Pitt), eager to be his own criminal Linus Caldwell (Damon), bloke safecracker Basher Tarr (Cheadle), street smart Frank Catton (Mac), knuckle-head Malloy brothers Turk and Virgil (Caan and Affleck, respectively), seasoned pros Reuben Tishkoff and Saul Bloom (Gould and Reiner, respectively ), techie geek Livingston Dell (Jamieson) and Chinese acrobat 'greaseman' Yen (Qin)  who more or less have gone to less-distinguished yet 'legit' lives since their big score.Also on hand is long-suffering Tess (Roberts), now Danny's re-married wife who pines for domestic niceties and police detective Isabel Lahiri (Zeta-Jones)  ex-gal pal of Rusty  who is hot on the trail of her boyfriend.This over-thought and undercooked crime spree is convoluted and a tad too sure of itself even as it asks the ridiculous notion of the group to simply screw things up and let the domino effect fall where it may is what is truly at fault in George Nolfi's screenplay and the addition of master thief Eurotrash Francois Toulor Cassel) to gum up the works slams the brakes on the trip to Coolsville the film so arduously attempts to rekindle the far superior remake it subsists off like some cinematic vulture on carrion.What is to like are the sprinkles of humorous dialogue between the chemistry, baby, chemistry of this unlikely gathering of men on the take for the easy life with no strings attached and the bonhomie, although stilted since many of the ensemble is stretched out like so many potholes, retains a few moments of relaxed anxiety.What I truly tired of was the addition of Mr. Willis' unwelcome 'cameo' that is the definition of star-tripping smugness that clearly grinds things to a halt by the film's troubled third act ; 'nuff said.Soderbergh's camera is all knowing angles and scattershot editing is his trademark and at least attempts to keep the plottings such as they are lively.
Well, for some reason, that just didn't sit well with Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia) who not only lost the casino's money a job for which he was responsible - but also his girlfriend Tess (Julia Roberts) to the mastermind behind the group, Danny Ocean (George Clooney).
Steven Soderbergh's Ocean's Eleven came out that same year, a smooth caper film with hip actors such as George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, and Matt Damon stealing a cool $150 million from casino owner Andy Garcia.
George Cloony, Brad Pitt, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Julia Roberts, Matt Damon and Don Cheadle...'Ocean's 11' was a fun, lightweight caper film.
This is such arrogant, self-important claptrap, that it happily demolishes everything in sight with a brainless, relentless absurdity, which, when the dust finally settles, leaves you with the feeling that someone has, quite sincerely, just robbed you of time and money, and stuck their middle finger in your face for two hours.I give this movie two out of ten, because I love Brad Pitt, who plays this entire film with a bored, I can't be bothered with life swagger, and does seem rather fed up; Catherine Zeta-Jones, who is usually good fun, and sometimes quite a good actress, and the marvellous Vincent Cassell, star of "La Haine", and "Black Swan", who gets a chance to strut his stuff here with some cool acrobatics, but little else.
And I liked that they changed the central character (Brad Pitt instead of Clooney this time) for this movie!Vincent Cassel was also great, although he (or better his character) must feel cheated.
Ocean's 11 was a very entertaining heist film and while the sequel is good its not as good.
The all star ensemble cast makes it worth seeing though including George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Andy Garcia, Don Cheadle, the late Bernie Mac and Julia Roberts are still great in their roles not matter how big or small their part is in the movie.
I just love Steven Soderbergh films, despite the fact I've only seen three of his movies.