Ocean's Thirteen

Hold on tight ’cause Ocean’s Thirteen is a long ride full of twists and turns. After the disappointment that was Ocean’s Twelve, the series is refreshed with a plot that hinges on revenge rather than greed. Hotel mogul Willy Banks (a sleazy Al Pacino) sets in motion a series of events bound to bring about his downfall when he opts to cut partner Reuben Tishkoff (Elliott Gould) out of the major deal they’ve been working on. Unfortunately for Banks, Tishkoff, who suffers a near-fatal heart attack as a result of the news, happens to be the eccentric former mentor of charismatic conman Danny Ocean (George Clooney) and his partner in crime Rusty (Brad Pitt), as well as an important member of Ocean’s crew, so they set out to settle the score. The con is fast and furious, and the pace is unrelenting. Also, unencumbered with the dead weight of a romantic relationship, like in the first two films, more time gets devoted to the caper and the male bonding that exists between these honourable criminals, played with a sense of fun by an all-star cast that includes Matt Damon, Don Cheadle and Bernie Mac. While the movie itself is fun, the DVD, however, is light on bonus features. A 25-minute documentary on Las Vegas only scratches the surface of its subject, and both the deleted scenes and a short walking tour of the hotel set by producer Jerry Weintraub are barely a beginning to what should have been a better DVD release. The special Future Shop exclusive two-disc SteelBook is worth it if you like the cool metal DVD case (and it is cool) but not if you’re only curious to check out the one 45-minute featurette of over-sensationalised re-creations of some infamous con jobs that must have had a previous life as a made-for-TV biopic. A better edition will definitely be coming down the pipeline.