Ocean’s 8
- Doomacheal
- Jun 10, 2018
- 2 min read
Ocean's 8, directed by Gary Ross is a spin-off from Steven Soderbergh's Ocean's trilogy and features an all-star ensemble cast featuring Sarah Paulson, Cate Blanchett, Rihanna, Mindy Kaling, Anne Hathaway, Awkwafina,Helena Bonham Carter and lead by America's Sweetheart Sandra Bullock.
Like the previous Ocean's films, this new iteration follows the same beats. It all boils down to a really fun popcorn heist film that is on the hold quite formulaic but is soooo needed in this day and age. Ocean's 8 would have to pass the Bechdel Test 8 times over. And why is that important? What does it offer us as a society today? Ocean's 8 is literally a blatant metaphor for female friendship. Anne Hathaway's character outright states, “I don’t have a lot of female friends,” when her dopey character rises to the occasion and solidifies this group of 8 women. It's such a strong empowering, yet simple and fun film that firmly places women at the front.
The whole ensemble cast shines throughout but it's the friendship between Bullock's Debbie Ocean and Blanchett's Lou that was the real selling point for me. The banter these two share together was fantastic.
Another thing that I really loved was the lack of typical conflict you'd see between characters. There was none of that. All of the ladies worked together. They’re stealthy, careful, cunning, and they are ready to get shit done. And they can get shit done because they have come together to do it. There’s no weak link or “catty” fighting. These women all want the same thing, and they all support each other and work together to put one man in jail.
All in all, I feel that Ocean's 8 is a great step forward for positive representation of females in film. They are all given so much agency which as a woman is so great to see on the screen. And while the story is very straightforward and at times quite predictable I do think that it has laid the groundwork for future sequels that could further expand on these new characters and perhaps the possibility of a mega Ocean's crossover with Clooney's crew.
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