A blog on the world of entertainment. Blunt opinions abound with a healthy dose of geekdom every so often. I hope to help people find the right entertainment for themselves. Prospective writer, filmmaker, producer, whatever helps me to entertain my peers. Thanks for reading!
I had no idea. Absolutely no idea. Not a clue that buried beneath six packs and crazy dance moves was one of the year's most fun and thoughtful movies. Yepp, Magic Mike XXL was one of the best times I have had at the movies this year, and it was also one of the films that carried a palpable and great message for the crowd that it intended to draw in. In the film, Mike is living as a successful custom furniture maker. However, he reconnects with his fellow male entertainers from the first film and they hop on the road to travel to the entertainer convention and hopefully go out in a blaze of glory and beefcake. Above all, this movie is an absolute blast. Instead of going for the cautionary and serious drama of the first film, this one goes straight for the fun, turning up the crazy dancing and interactions between the guys. Much has been said about this film's lack of plot, and in a sense, it does lack many plot points. In that way, it is very similar to an old Scorsese movie like Raging Bull, where the film let the characters drive the movie rather than the plot. We are re-introduced to all the guys from the first film (Big Dick Richie, Tarzan, Ken, and Tito) and their interactions with each other and Mike lie at the heart of the movie. Along the road, we are introduced to many new characters, each played by a celebrity in a cameo. The two stand outs are Jada Pinkett Smith and Donald Glover, both bringing a phenomenal swagger to their roles and fitting right in with Mike's troupe. From all these wonderful characters and their interactions, the message of the film is conveyed loud and clear. This is a movie that revolves around saying goodbye to your previous self and embracing what makes you who you are. It believes in having the confidence in yourself to achieve what you want and not relying on past ideals that somebody had told you to embrace. It's quite interesting that such a positive and timely message comes from a movie about male strippers, but that is beside the point right now. Another very important message of the movie concerns the treatment of women as well. This is a movie that is all about making the women in your life happy. It really celebrates women as individuals and encourages men to listen to their loved ones and really listen to them instead of just looking at them as objects. Overall, Magic Mike XXL was simply a great movie, one I would never hesitate to watch again. Judge all you want, but I truly loved this movie. It was loads of fun and had a great sense of humor, mixed together with a great message. What more could you ask for?
