Magic Mike

Steven Soderbergh has a long history of making sexy, female-oriented films with likeable leading men, and Magic Mike is no different. Soderbergh goes with the potent ladykiller combo of Matthew McConaghey and Channing Tatum as the owner and star of a male strip club in Tampa.

I have to say, being one of the few men in the audience, the experience was authentic. Hoots and hollers from the feisty women in the crowd made me feel like I was close enough to smell the sweat from the dirty male g-strings (is that sexy?). The experience was interesting, but the film itself was much more tame than I thought it would be.

It plays out like the Great Gatsby crossed with a soft-core Boogie Nights. Channing Tatum is Magic Mike, a ridiculously talented dancer with the looks and attitude that make the women swoon. He picks up a down-on-his luck kid named Adam (Alex Pettyfer) and opens his eyes to the world of sex, money, and ultimately, drugs. The obligatory love interest is Adam's sister, Brooke, played by the Hilary Swank-esque Cody Horn, and the relationship between Mike and Brooke is boring and slow to develop.

Soderbergh does well to keep the film from falling into the potential traps of the dark, seedy underworld of the industry, and considering the audience and success ($40 million the first weekeend) he made the right choice. Just enough nudity, and flowing colorful language, this is a soft R rating.

On the surface, the film is centered around Tatum's Mike (Gatsby), who's a legend in his niche, but in reality, it's really about the journey of Pettyfer's Adam (Carraway) and his rise and fall as a protege in a shady business. Think a naive Dirk Diggler being exposed to more than he can handle. I'll stop with the mixed analogies here and get back to the point.

The reason the film was created in the first place is to capitalize on the female and homosexual male market. Considering the buzz from all of the women and gay men I know, it's a big success. The dancing is incredible, and the cast had to be having fun while filming (except "Big Sexy Giant Killer" Kevin Nash - I'll get to that in a minute). All of the cliche costumes are used (sailor, army, fireman, cowboy, police), and Tatum is seriously talented with his moves. The most fun however is McConaghey. He's flamboyant and cocky as the owner and operator of the club. He plays up his southern drawl as he rouses the crowds of women, and the final dance scene of the movie is his chance to show his moves.

The rest of the supporting cast is mostly shaved legs and six packs. Except Kevin Nash. Being a former wrestling fan, I love his personality and presence. He's a 7 foot tall beast of a man, and plays Tarzan in the film. It's simply uninspired though. I couldn't tell if it was intentionally done and it was his character, but he went through the choreographed motions rigidly and without any emotion. Walking when the others were dancing, it was comically entertaining, but confusing at the same time. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt and think that it's the character and not the actor. You can see him in another uninspired role in Rock of Ages as Tom Cruise's bodyguard.

Ultimately, the story was lame and ended predictably (from a Rom-Com point of view) which was a smart move considering the target audience. My one complaint, which may be shared by the homosexual community is that the story made the job look like a straight guy's dream with beautiful women everywhere. There wasn't a gay man in sight, and not even a reference to that portion of the market. Taking place in Florida, there would be a significant population interested in the moves of Tatum, McConaghey, and Joe Manganiello. Maybe I'm over thinking it.

Magic Mike is a fun movie for anyone. My wife turned to me in the middle while Tatum was doing flips and gyrations on the stage and with a surprised expression, said "He's really good!". Thanks, Channing Tatum. 7/10.