Review: Magic Mike XXL

Magic Mike XXL (2015) Directed by Gregory Jacobs. Starring: Channing Tatum, Joe Manganiello, Matt Bomer. IMDB says: “Three years after Mike bowed out of the stripper life at the top of his game, he and the remaining Kings of Tampa hit the road to Myrtle Beach to put on one last blow-out performance..”

I thought that Magic Mike was a really entertaining movie. That was before I saw Magic Mike XXL. All the fun and funny parts of that first movie are turned up to 11 in the sequel and all the drama is literally thrown out of the window about twenty minutes in. After seeing MMXXL I rewatched Magic Mike and was surprised at just how serious and depressing that movie was at times. It’s not a bad thing, in fact that movie was deeper than expected, which made it all the better. The ratio of hot men dancing and having a good time compared to our lead Mike’s trouble with starting a business and becoming disillusioned with his night job was kind of unbalanced looking back though. It might just be because MMXXL is all about the party. It is one of the most fun times you can have at the theaters this summer for that reason.

This movie’s pure escapism is reflected in the one thread of a plot we have to follow. Mike Lane (Channing Tatum) has achieved his entrepreneurial goal in his custom furniture business, but the grind of keeping it afloat has got to him. When his old Kings of Tampa male entertainer cohorts come through town, he sees their trip to a convention in Myrtle Beach as the perfect opportunity to get away for a few days. The old group gladly welcomes him on board as they make their way up the east coast, stopping each night to party along the way. Each stop they make has a totally different vibe and party experience that makes for a really interesting watch. Whether it’s a drag night at a bar or an upscale membership-only male revue, each destination provides some kind of new entertainment and keeps up the pace.

Losing the story of the Kid’s rise to male entertainment stardom and Dallas’s shady dealings from the first movie allows time to expand the roles of the gang we met in Magic Mike. Alongside the dancing pro Tatum are Joe Manganiello, Matt Bomer, Adam Rodriguez, and Kevin Nash. I love that this is essentially a comedy road trip movie with a cast of non-comedians. It adds so much charm watching them really go for the laughs and get silly. They each have a bit of character building and their own moment with Mike, which was a simple and effective way to give them a good share of screen time. MMXXL also benefits from all the characters and cameos they pull in from the periphery, with more entertainers like Donald Glover, Michael Strahan, tWitch (from So You Think You Can Dance who is the only one who can dance toe to toe with Tatum) and Jada Pinkett Smith, who plays their emcee/goddess from another planet.

There are more great characters that pop up throughout, but the most important to mention would be Amber Heard, who plays a woman following a similar path up the coast that Mike becomes determined to cheer up. It’s not a particularly exciting role, but it does allow for some moments that break up the partying and show offbeat moments that feel improvisational, like scenes in the first movie. There are other well done moments like this with other characters too and they bring this wild tale back to Earth every now and then. They definitely feel like Steven Soderbergh’s influence coming through, and since he was the cinematographer and editor it really does still seem like his movie. The director, Gregory Jacobs, is a long time first assistant director on Soderbergh’s movies, so it all just seems like a way for him to keep up the guise of his so called retirement.

All around this is just one hell of a package, with good looking filmmaking that often puts you in the vantage point of the crowd. It makes you feel even more like part of a real life audience, with my theater acting as excited as if it was a live event, short of throwing dollar bills. I’ve never seen a movie so dedicated to female gratification to be honest. From the dialogue to the dancing, every scene seems to bring up the idea that women are in need of a bit more attention and satisfaction. Sure, Magic Mike XXL is intended to hit home with the ladies, but it’s a completely fun movie experience in its own right.