Movie Review: Magic Mike

Let's be honest, Magic Mike seemed like a film that doesn't have much to offer other than men stripping. Shockingly though, the movie was actually a lot better than I expected.

The plot did ramble a bit and some parts felt a bit disjointed especially towards the end, but the film had well drawn characters and there was reasonable character development. The amount of emotional depth was a pleasant surprise, I thought the writing wasn't so bad, and the direction was actually pretty good - just the skillful ability to bring a certain level of charm and glamor to this dark world of stripping was quite impressive.

Of course, the "strip routines" were well choreographed - usually with a lot of humor - but what I enjoyed most about this was the acting. Sure, Channing Tatum will NEVER be the greatest actor to ever grace Hollywood, but he was fantastic here. Aside from the terrific dancing, his performance was very compelling and he actually gave his character some interesting depth. This, to me, was possibly one of his performances to date proving that he can actually act. 

The supporting cast fared well too. Cody Horn was lovely and while Alex Pettyfer seemed a little bland for the most part, he was believable. Matt Bomer and Joe Manganiello "performed" well, but other than that, they weren't given enough material to work on. As for Matthew McConaughey, I thought he stole the show. He was a mess, but a fine mess. Haha.

Overall, Magic Mike was a good film. It's not perfect by any means, but there's something to this than just male stripping. It's a film with style AND substance. If you refuse to watch this because of its subject matter, think again.

RATING: 

8/10