It’s the year of the “threequel” . . . and it’s not got off to the greatest of starts, writes our Movie Blogger Carl Jones.

The third Spider-man and Pirates of the Caribbean offerings kicked off what was increasingly appearing to be a slippery slope towards big-budget anti-climax.

To greater or lesser degrees, they were both rather disappointing. Pirates wasn’t a patch of the first two fun-filled frolics, and although the third Spidey adventure was an eye-popping ride, it too was the weakest yet.

So it was with some trepidation that I took my chair to view Ocean’s Thirteen – the third outing for George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon and his band of drop-dead-cool tricksters.

What a relief . . . my faith in this threequel business is now restored. Just when it seemed they were all going to be big-budget letdowns, gorgeous George and his playmates serve up a masterclass in style over substance, which you just can’t help enjoying.

Ocean’s Thirteen is a highly enjoyable romp which has its tongue planted firmly in cheek.
The plot is preposterous, and the main protagonists are impossibly cool and trendy, but do we care?

Ruthless casino boss Willy Bank (Al Pacino) promises security expert Reuben Tishkoff (Elliott Gould) a partnership in his new Las Vegas empire, but double crosses him when the project is nearing completion.

It’s a decision he’ll come to regret, because Reuben is best pals with Danny Ocean (Clooney) and his band of charm-laden tricksters, who vow revenge on their pal’s behalf.

Their plan is simple: to ensure that on its first night of business, the casino suffers the biggest losses in Las Vegas history.

All that stands between them and success is an artificial intelligence security system which is supposedly unbreakable, and Bank’s sexy right-hand woman Abigail Sponder (Ellen Barkin).

Thankfully, along with the usual band of card sharps, explosives experts and pickpockets, Danny has enlisted the services of electronics genius Roman Nagel (Eddie Izzard) and rival casino owner Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia) who has purely selfish reasons for offering assistance. The game of cat and mouse is on . . .

The film looks splendid – the leads changing their sharp attire with dizzying frequency, and banter between Clooney and Pitt (described amusingly and appropriately at one point as the “Morecambe and Wise of thieving”) is littered with laughs. Director Steven Soderbergh oversees a string of expertly orchestrated action set-pieces.

Matt Damon flexes his comedic muscles too, while Pacino chews hungrily on the scenery as the villain of the piece, sealing his downfall when he boasts: “I don’t lose. People who bet on me to lose, lose.”

It’s possibly not quite as impish and cheeky as Ocean’s 11, but it comfortably erases the memories of the rather ill-conceived Ocean’s 12. Ladies, book your front row seats at once – Hollywood’s number one collection of ultra-cool hunks are back in business.

So, perhaps it really is three cheers for the threequel – although the inside view from preview screenings of Shrek The Third indicate we shouldn’t get too excited just yet.

• Carl Jones reviews the latest film releases every Friday in the Shropshire Star.
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