Ocean's Eleven is a remake of the 1960 Rat Pack film. It stars George Clooney as Danny Ocean, an ex-convict who gathers a group of ten lawless but lovable criminals to help pull off the biggest job of his career: robbing three Las Vegas casinos, the Bellagio, The Mirage, and the MGM Grand, in one night. All three casinos are owned by brutal businessman Tony Benedict, a man who also happens to be dating Danny's ex-wife Tess. With young Linus trying to prove himself in the robbery and Danny's right-hand man Rusty trying to keep Danny focused on the prize, Danny and his gang pull through in the end with a nine-figure sum split eleven ways.
Logan Lucky is a heist film as well but with a very different vibe and a very different ending. Instead of the swanky and fast-paced world of high-end Las Vegas casinos, Logan is a slower-paced film taking place in West Virginia. Almost everyone has a Southern accent and the main character Jimmy Logan drives a pick-up truck; it's like Ocean's Eleven meets King of the Hill. After being fired, Jimmy needs money to afford a good lawyer so he can more easily visit his daughter after she moves with his ex-wife and her new husband. With the help of his brother and sister as well as a jailbird Joe Bang and his two dim-witted brothers, Jimmy robs the Charlotte Motor Speedway. Instead of keeping all the money like the gang in Ocean's Eleven does, Jimmy keeps the money he needs, gives some to those who helped him along the way, and gives the rest of the money back to the Speedway.
As mentioned before, there are differences between the two films in both pacing, setting, and motives for the main characters to get involved in such big heists, but there are still similarities in plots. Both heists are initiated by men who have ulterior motives to doing such a big robbery other than just getting rich quick. In fact both films involve ex-wives to some extent as the real reason behind the robbery. And even though they are in charge, both Danny and Jimmy have their right-hand man; Danny has his good friend Rusty and Jimmy recruits his brother Clyde. Both men, Danny Ocean and Jimmy Logan, also gather together a group of fellow robbers who each have a specific skill set, people with technical savvy, knowledge about bombs, or acting chops, just to name a few. And interestingly Ocean's Eleven and Logan's group each contain a set of brothers (in Logan Lucky there are actually two sets of brothers). Virgil and Turk Malloy, the Mormon twins and getaway drivers in Oceans' gang, are similar to Sam and Fish, the hillbilly brothers of Joe Bang, the convict who gets recruited by Jimmy and his brother Clyde. The Malloy twins and Sam and Fish are alike in a lot of ways. They often are the ones wearing disguises and setting things up before the big heist and are also the getaway drivers. Both sets of brothers are also responsible for a lot of the comic relief in both movies. Another similarity is the heist occurs during a major sporting event in each film. In Ocean's Eleven, Danny uses a big boxing match as a major part of his plan as it will be a good distraction while he and his gang make for the vault. For Jimmy Logan's heist, he tries to avoid doing the robbery during the Coca Cola 600, the longest NASCAR race held at the Charlotte Motor Speedway, because there will be far more people and higher security. But after some complications Logan and his group have to do the heist that day, which adds to the tension.
You can often find parallels in various movies due to a director's certain style, like a Danny Elfman score played over gothic scenery in a Tim Burton movie or how almost every John Hughes film is set in Chicago. Soderbergh's heist movies in particular have some fun connections or similarities. For example both films feature an ensemble cast, major actors who come together in a way you maybe wouldn't have expected. The writing is very similar in both films and includes a lot of witty humor. Both film's scores, which are great, are composed by David Holmes. The scores are similar except Ocean's has more of a jazzy sound to fit the tone and Logan uses more of a soundtrack filled with country rock songs and makes very good use of John Denver, one of my favorite musicians. Another similarity which I really enjoy and makes these kinds of movies so fun is having a montage at the end that shows how they really did it. Towards the end of both heists you think it went one way or you're not really sure how it went and then the film takes you back, and with some good Mission Impossible-esque music, gives us a montage of how the robbery really happened, perhaps changing what you really thought or giving you new insight into a character. Both films include incredible cinematography done by Soderbergh under the pseudonym Peter Andrews. The costuming also really stands out in both Ocean's and Logan. Rusty's suits in Ocean's are so distinctive and telling of the character. The same goes for both Jimmy and his sister Mellie. These characters have great costumes that tell us about the kinds of jobs they have, the the town they live in, and what they're like. Another tidbit I really enjoy is how Soderbergh utilizes both his arguably biggest actors in the end credits. The credits of Ocean's Eleven include the line "Introducing Julia Roberts as Tess Ocean." He does the same at the end of Logan Lucky: "Introducing Daniel Craig as Joe Bang." It's a funny addition to the film that could go under the radar but adds another layer to the Soderbergh style.
Seeing the connections between these great movies only makes them more enjoyable. Soderbergh's heist movies are interesting because at the end of the day they're all about antiheroes, thieves and even convicted criminals who steal a ton of money. And you root for them because they're layered and interesting and likable. These aren't films that go out promoting crime but they are perfect movies in that we can live vicariously through them. You want escapism? You want fantasy when you're tired of reality? You want far-fetched plots with crazy characters? Ocean's Eleven and Logan Lucky are movies that aren't there to preach or make you feel guilty or depressed; they're simply there to entertain. And, really, that's all a movie has to do.
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