Ocean's 8 (2018) — Kate's Corner Blog

I want to preface this post with a statement of support for the absolutely incredible female cast of Ocean’s 8 (2018) that made the film an accolade for the feminist movement. Each actress carried their character phenomenally and contributed their own unique flare to the plotline (especially Rihanna because... it’s RIHANNA!). That being said, Ocean’s 8 was not a great movie, in my opinion. But before you jump down my throat, here’s my reasoning for believing this: it’s incredibly derivative. We’ve seen nearly every satirical and quick-witted comment before. Where, you ask? Well, for starters, in the three previous Ocean’s movies. But, for the sake of time, I’ll limit my comparisons to just the first of the trilogy, Ocean’s 11 (2001).

First and foremost, at the start of Ocean’s 8, we see Debbie Ocean (Sandra Bullock) at a parole meeting being reviewed for release. If this scene seemed eerily familiar, that’s because we saw an identical scene in Ocean’s 11 when Danny Ocean (George Clooney) similarly was questioned prior to being paroled and subsequently released. When freed, Debbie is dressed to the nines, which is the same as - guess who! - Danny, who was liberated in a full tux.

The next similarity can be seen between Debbie’s right-hand (wo)man, Lou (Cate Blanchett), and Danny’s, Rusty (Brad Pitt). Not only do both have nearly identical quirky sartorial presences, but they also share an oral fixation which I can only assume came from being reformed smokers. In addition, the pair start out their respective films surrounded by less-capable associates. At the opening of Ocean’s 8, Lou is watering down bottles of vodka with people that don’t know how to measure and, in Ocean’s 11, Rusty is “cold-decking ‘Teen Beat’ cover boys” (Clooney’s words, not mine!). They’re both bored and looking for the next big thing, which soon presents itself in the form of the Ocean siblings. Oh, but that’s not all. Lou and Rusty each inquire as to why Debbie and Danny want to do the jobs they’ve cooked up and are both lied to due to the Oceans’ underlying subterfuge meant to disguise their true goals of exacting romantic revenge on their exes (although Danny’s motivations are more redeeming than Debbie’s). And if you’re thinking “Well, their exes are so different,” think again. Danny’s ex-wife, Tess, is an art curator in Las Vegas while Debbie’s ex, Claude, is an art broker in New York.

In addition, both Danny and Debbie incorporate a visit to their former lovers during their heists. In Ocean’s 11, Danny plants a cell phone in Tess’ coat and, in Ocean’s 8, Debbie drops a multi-million dollar diamond into Claude’s jacket pocket. During the ensuing scenes, Danny and Debbie make sure they both have alibis (Debbie being caught on camera and Danny being beaten by Bruiser).

There are a few smaller examples throughout the two films that border on identical. One such instance can be seen in how Lou and Amita (Mindy Kaling) disguise as kitchen workers to cart jewels out of the Met, which borrows from the Malloy twins in Ocean’s 11 that impersonated casino staff members to carry Yen into the vault. And again, we watch Danny create a replica of the casino vault in Ocean’s 11 and Debbie mimics this by creating a replica of the jewels in Ocean’s 8. Finally, there is this bait-and-switch method implemented in both films where Danny uses a staged video to mislead his target into letting him walk out with $160,000,000 in cash, leaving flyers for hookers in his stead. Debbie does something eerily similar by staging that the Toussaint necklace had been lost so that all focus would be on retrieving it while she actually stole the crown jewels on display elsewhere in the museum.

It’s a well-known fact that most siblings share hand-me-downs from time to time but I didn’t quite expect Ocean’s 8 to steal the same concepts from its big brother, Ocean’s 11. Although I fully support the all-female cast, I had hoped the plot would be more inspired and original. As of right now, I have to say that I prefer Soderbergh’s versions much more because each presented an inventive twist that I couldn’t have predicted, which is a commendation I can’t give to the Ocean’s 8 storyline.