Ocean's Eight (2018)

Directed by Gary Ross

Screenplay written by Olivia Milch and Gary Ross

Starring Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett, Anne Hathaway and Mindy Kaling 

An all female spin-off of the original Ocean's heist movies-- how could it get better than that? I loved the idea of this considering how much I enjoyed the original Ocean's Eleven. The a-listers they casted drew me in initially, the story of a gang of bad-ass women pulling off a huge heist starring eight of your favorite actresses? Sign me up!

Debby Ocean (Sandra Bullock), the younger sister of Danny Ocean, is freshly out of prison and has the idea for a diabolically brilliant heist that is five years in the making. She is going to convince Cartier to lend a $150 million diamond necklace to a hot-headed actress, Daphne Kluger (Anne Hathaway) for the annual Met Gala, where she will steal the necklace off the actresses neck. To pull this off, she recruits the help of a highly skilled team of women (including Cate Blanchett, Mindy Kaling, Sarah Paulson, Awkwafina, Rihanna and Helena Bonham Carter). 

Aside from one big surprise towards the end of the movie, the heist seems to predictable and easy. The idea of stealing an ancient necklace off the neck of a vein actress at the Met Gala is very original and seems like it is going to be a challenge, but the women never really run into any problems. Maybe thats the point? They're so devilishly good at pulling off heists. It just doesn't lead to any real plot twists or major dilemmas, which is what Ocean's Eight was lacking. 

The performances weren't all shining considering the amazing line-up of women they got to fill the eight slots. I honestly forgot to even add Rihanna's name above at first, if that is a testament to the acting performances. I love Sandra Bullock, but her role was a little flat in this movie. She didn't have much going for her as far as emotions go. Most of the women were just heist movie stereotypes- the gadget girl, the mastermind, the sly and sneaky one. Helena Bonham Carter was my favorite performance of the bunch, as the wacky fashion designer. She often was stealing the show when she was on screen. Hathaway did a good job playing a vein actress which makes you ask if that's just her actual personality? Let's hope not. 

Despite the lack of nail-biting tension from the heist, it does keep you interested and wanting to find out how it gets pulled off. The film does have enough humor as well, to keep you entertained throughout. While it may have not lived up to it's predecessors, it did prove for a worthy 1 hour and 50 minutes of my time. 

7/10