Vincent Smith (huntersmithx) In anticipation for Logan Lucky this weekend, I've decided to look back at 2012, which in my opinion, is one of the best highlight reels for cinema of this century. From the top 3 highest grossing films (The Dark Knight Rises/Skyfall/The Avengers), to award winners (Argo/Silver Linings Playbook/Django Unchained), and the foreclosure of one of the worst book to film cash cows in recent history (Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part 2). That year; Magic Mike didn't score well with mainstream audiences due to it's marketable lead in a film that was more than just an estrogen catering piece, but received substantial reviews sitting at an 81% on Rotten Tomatoes.Much of the film's success lies on the shoulders of director Steven Soderbergh. He has been a huge inspiration to me in filmmaking. In 1989 at age 26, he was the youngest director to win the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival for Sex, Lies, and Videotape. His directorial style is transparent in his films that range from obscure art house pictures to critically acclaimed masterpieces, that like Magic Mike, thread art house and blockbuster mechanics together into a coherent whole.What me and many other people who enjoyed Magic Mike can agree with- the directing, lighting, editing, and soundtrack all fuse together.This film displays some of the best cinematography I've seen in modern film; vivid spotlights and camera angles centered around dances on the Fourth Of July and Mike flaunting his hip hop swagger in a black vest, Mike and his friends partying after a night of stripping and foreplay, and an ecstasy infused nightclub sequence- mixing a variety of color palettes and close up angles makes the environment of Tampa, Florida a breathing entity which is a skill Steven has been parading since Traffic.On the surface; it's a story we've seen before and but how it's executed when you consider how it's subject material has been bastardized by the likes of Showgirls and Striptease, that is something to be honored.Mike and Adam are the most real characters in the film, as they struggle with realizing their dreams and the perception of their lives as male strippers by other people, including Adam's sister Brooke.Matthew McConaughey fires on all cylinders as Dallas. Before his more depth driven work, he had been phoning it in with a thread of forgettable romantic comedies. Matthew strikes an equilibrium between the 2 personas. Aside from Cody Horn's mousy bored as hell performance as Brooke, the whole cast is a delight.Down to brass tacs; Magic Mike is an underrated masterpiece, and among Soderbergh's best, reminding us of an important lesson in quality movie watching- Don't judge a book by it's cover. Grade- A

Davis P Magic Mike (2012) is one of my favorite movies. Okay I'm gonna review this film in two different ways. First: the stripping and sexy part, the stuff they advertised and why it attracted a lot of people. Okay so the sex appeal and stripping is definitely reason enough to see this movie. Every single male entertainer is very very attractive and KNOWS how to perform. Alex Petyffer, Channing Tatum, Adam Rodriquez, Matt Bomer, and Matthew McConaughey are all to die for in this film, very irresistible, and that is needed in the film because it's about strippers for gods sake, they have to be sexy and they must know how to perform the routines well, and believe me, they got that COVERED. And I enjoyed that part of the movie very much, it feels like you're actually in the audience. Now for the second aspect of the movie: the drama, the meat, everything other than the sexy stripteases. The actors in the movie are a lot more than just sexy guys who can get down like nobodies business. Channing Tatum gives a terrific performance! I absolutely loved his portrayal of Mike. He was very sweet and kind hearted, he wasn't just some typical arrogant male stripper that has sex every 5 minutes, no his character was so layered and detailed, and I loved seeing those layers peel back, getting to see the "real Mike". Alex Petyffer was also very good, he wasn't as good as Tatum, but he still turned in a pretty good performance. His character was not as detailed and layered, his did have some depth, but not as much. Matthew McConaughey gives a wonderful performance! I loved him in this movie, he's so into his role and so intense with everything. The scene where he's "teaching" Adam how to tease and dance is sooo well done. The way Matthew moves, the way he talks to him, what he says is all written and acted out perfectly. The movie address both the highs and lows of being an adult entertainer. There are scenes where it shows the potential harms of being in that industry. And I liked that, gave it more depth. Cody Horn is great in this movie! I loved her performance, it was very real and serious a lot of the time, then she could get loose and fun when she needed to. All in all its a sexy movie with great acting, good writing, and more depth than one might expect.

Sam Cannon If there's one thing the trailers for this film got right, its that it's a film about male strippers. However, this film approaches a raunchy subject with a decent amount of class and restraint, which the trailers fail to imply.Magic Mike is a drama about the male strip scene. There's nothing much funny about what happens in the film, and it's driven by well written and well acted characters more than anything else. This isn't the male equivalent of a film like Showgirls, something that relishes in the exploitation of women, no. In fact, if the genders of Magic Mike were reversed, it would probably be heralded as a feminist masterpiece.The film is mainly about the friendship between Mike and Adam. Mike is a 30-something entrepreneur who wants to start a custom furniture business, and Adam is a 19 year old who doesn't know what to do with his life. They meet on a construction site, go to a nightclub, and Adam discovers that Mike is an incredibly talented stripper, and Adam discovers that he wants in, to the dismay of his older sister.From there comes quite a compelling character drama that goes through the highs and lows of the male stripper life, and it's compelling. Apparently, Channing Tatum (Mike) was a male stripper before he got into acting, and it shows in the beautifully filmed dance sequences. Magic Mike is essentially a well written, R-Rated Step Up film, and it's incredibly entertaining on that level.The main flaw this film has is basically how it was marketed. I can't really imagine how many straight women (and gay men) came to the film expecting some good old sexual exploitation, and instead got a lot of drama and conflict. It's good, but not what was expected. It's like ordering a hamburger and getting a taco, they're both delicious, and they both contain beef, but you'd still be a little annoyed that you didn't get what you asked for.Anyway, if you keep that in mind, you'll definitely enjoy this movie for what it is, a compelling character drama in a fairly unique setting.

sage411 It has its occasional humor bits but the majority of it is just trash. The best part was finding out that Brooke is played by Cody Horn. Her father is the chairman of Walt Disney Studios and was, formerly, the president of Warner Bros. I guess she had connections. Her mother was a model too. Matthew McConaughey was in great shape for this but what male stripper wouldn't be. Not very good or funny, but worth a glance on cable. Don't go out of your way or take too much time to watch it. In my book, not worth male watching unless you are with a female that might be in to the strippers. I need to keep adding lines to get the review published, so I will continue as long as needed to get something done.