Review of Logan Lucky (2017) by Kevin P — 15 May 2018

Strengths: Though I'm admittedly not a huge Soderbergh fan, the man gets how to make a compelling heist film. He did with the Ocean's trilogy and again with Logan Lucky. The cast is up to the task and are all fantastic. Channing Tatum (Jimmy Logan) gives one of the best performances of his career, while Adam Driver (Clyde Logan) is right up there with him. Their chemistry together is top notch, with Driver stealing the show. Daniel Craig (Joe Bang) looks to be having the time of his life as the safe-cracking expert convict. Even the people with lesser roles, like Katie Holmes (Bobbie Jo Chapman), Sebastian Stan (Dayton White), and Seth MacFarlane (Max), were all a whole lot of fun. Having the heist go down during a NASCAR race was not only unique and creative, but incredibly fitting of who this band of characters was. The humor was very well done, especially the Game of Thrones joke. The ending was intriguing, as it left you wondering just what Jimmy did with all the money. Did he really go through it all just to give it away? It makes for a very interesting final few minutes.

Weaknesses: Some of the talented actors felt like they weren't given enough to work with, including the ones who performed well. As much as I enjoyed the closing minutes of the film, casting Hilary Swank as FBI Agent Sarah Grayson was a strange choice. She's a good actress, but for a role that is ultimately that small, it's distracting. Also, everything her character does gets completely tacked on in the final ten or so minutes. It would've worked better if we saw a bit of her earlier in the film to get more of a feel for why she was so invested in this. It just feels off to have her thrown in near the end.

Overall: Despite some problems with Hilary Swank's character, this film works very well. The cast all deliver the goods and it's one of the more fun heist movies you'll ever see. The characters are great and unique, while the heist itself is a riot. A great film that would nearly crack my top ten of 2017.