Magic Mike

Before I get this review started, let me first say that I got a lot of crap for going to see this movie. 


"That movie is for women and gay guys, Rath." 


Yeah yeah yeah. I know. But a lot of female readers want to know a man's perspective on Magic Mike, and I think I'm confident enough in my sexuality to go watch a couple strip teases. Sometimes, in order to please the crowd you just gotta go see a couple asses. Plain and simple. 


But anyway, on to the review. 


Magic Mike is a fantastic movie. 


Yes male readers, you read that right. As a guy, I enjoyed the movie for a plethora of reasons, many of which are probably different from my drooling female counterparts. And yes guy-viewers, the stripping scenes are uncomfortable for us but they aren't unbearable. If you really have that big of an issue with watching them I think you sincerely need to calm the hell down.  


Ladies are always complaining that movies are full of hot women wearing nothing and it is not fair for the guys to be having all of the fun. Well ladies, soak it up during Magic Mike cause Matthew McConaughey doesn't have a shirt on through literally the entire film. So quit your complaining now! 

See guys, there is some female eye candy

What Magic Mike has going for it the most, in my testosterone-grounded opinion, is that it has a very interesting story to tell. Mike is a hard-working guy who has many aspirations, the least of which is stripping; his night job. On the top of those career goals is to start his own modern furniture company that features one-of-a-kind products made solely from trash, his hands, and his creativity. Unexpectedly, the movie suddenly turns fairly dark towards the end, portraying the dangerous side of the stripper lifestyle and this leads to Mike seriously questioning his lifestyle. Mike is played by Channing Tatum who truthfully is becoming one of my favorite actors in Hollywood lately. He is the ultimate eye candy for the ladies, but if you really notice, he has gotten A LOT better at acting each film that he is in. Not to mention he can dance like no one's business. But Tatum has become such a natural on-screen, especially when trying to create chemistry with his on-screen females. And as we know from 21 Jump Street, he can absolutely nail comedic delivery and timing. I may be bold in saying this, but I think he might be this generation's John Travolta. Agree with me, disagree with me...either way, time will tell and I don't see him going anywhere soon. In Magic Mike he easily portrays the character's highs and more importantly, the character's lows, and absolutely transforms on the stripper-stage. The guy has serious showmanship. 

I haven't told my parents yet, but I am actually the best
male stripper in the state of Colorado...

Magic Mike also took me by surprise by how funny it was. And it was not female humor, it was male humor. Often times it was raunchy male humor too. It was clear to me that Steven Soderbergh wanted to at least attempt to appeal to a male audience and as a male-viewer, I greatly appreciate it. It made the whole thing a lot more enjoyable and less awkward. And even the awkward parts presented by the stripping aren't that bad. If anything I was actually impressed by the showmanship of all of the guys and the fantastic cinematography used to shoot the performances. Think of a battle scene in 300 but just with a lot more hip gyration and air humping...

"Come on. I strip for you, you strip for me."
"Not funny, Mike."

Where Magic Mike falters is in two main categories. The first of which is that there are scenes that just last too long. And I don't mean long as in they are boring, but long as if the movie editor decided to include 5 more seconds of the characters standing there rather than cutting to the next scene. I feel like the filmmakers were trying to go for a sense of awkwardness like in Drive, but it just doesn't work here. It was seriously bugging me a few times. And secondly is that I don't need to see a bunch of male asses. I know it's a stripper movie, but for God's sake, how many times do I need to see some tan butt cheeks before I get the point? I'll give you a hint, it's about 1. I also don't need zoomed in shots of guys' butts. But then again, I guess those parts of the movie aren't really designed for guys so that would be like girls complaining about Megan Fox bending over the hood of the car in Transformers. Regardless, I've had my male-ass-on-screen fill for the foreseeable future.


I guess as a final wrap up I have to say that people need to not judge a book by its cover. I know that sounds super cliche, but take Magic Mike for example. I am a straight male who has gotten a fair amount of crap for going to see it. But honestly, I enjoyed it so much that I could really care less. It was a funny, well put together movie that just happened to have some male stripping scenes in it. 


Guys out there: get over it. Take your lady out to see Magic Mike and she will be impressed as hell and I would almost be willing to bet that you secretly actually end up enjoying it. I know I did. 


And that must have been the Magic that they were talking about...

Many of my readers may not know this, but I actually did a
lot of stunt work for the film. In this scene, I am actually
filling in for two of the actors!

 Pros:

• I was very interested in the plot and wanted to see Mike get out of the stripper business and on to what and who he really cared about
• Fantastic cast. Tatum is one huge movie away from being a Hollywood A-lister, Cody Horn holds it down on the female front, and Matthew McConaughey pretty much steals the show as a stripping-obsessed strip club owner. His performance demands attention every time he is on screen
• A hell of a lot funnier than I was expecting. I thought it was a comedy for the first hour
• The stage performances are truly fantastic. Well choreographed and creative with some great cinematography
• Has a really good and really fitting soundtrack

Cons:

• Gets dark quickly and I am not entirely sure that this plot point was necessary. Effective? Somewhat. But necessary? That's up in the air
• The strips get pretty raunchy and made me pretty uncomfortable at times. I dont need to see strippers humping housewives' faces more than once
• Too many shots of guys' asses. I know it's not really my place to complain, but seriously...a lot of butts
• The editing from scene to scene is kinda ridiculous. Super long lingering shots and pauses between dialogue dont do anything for the movie

Rath's Review Score: 8/10