REVIEW | Magic Mike (2012)

To Channing-lusting females, sexually frustrated housewives, gays, and closet strippers, Magic Mike could be the answer to your fantasies. You don't have to visit a male strip club—  just go to your nearest cinema for a generous sight of gyrating beefcakes, even if it's only in 2D.

Generating a ripple effect of female hysteria, Magic Mike seems to be the hottest and much-talked about movie in town, even by straight men. But if you're seeking for fun and entertainment that is beyond hot males grinding their pelvis—i.e., the story—then there's nothing in it.

Marketed as light and fun, the movie is actually more of a drama. Mike (Tatum) is an ageing superstar male stripper at Xquisite Club owned by Dallas (Mathhew McConaughey). The movie establishes early on that Tatum is a wise, responsible guy, so don't judge him! He is only using his sexy gig to save up for his real dream and ambition: furniture-making. But Mike's well-laid plains might just go wrong when he accidentally meets a 19-year-old unmotivated Calvin Klein model-lookalike, Adam/"The Kid" (Alex Pettyfer), and recruits him as a stripper under his wings—  and promises Adam's uptight sister Brooke (Cody Horn), who he has a crush on, that he will keep Adam out of trouble. 

British actor Pettyfer as "The Kid" could be the next Magic Mike.

Directed by Steven Soderbergh, and inspired by Tatum's teen life as a stripper, do not expect a deliciously rich story on the five male strippers on the movie poster—  they're not even close friends in the movie. The story surprisingly only revolves around Mike, Adam, and Brooke, and executed flatly. And the rest of the male strippers? They are just extras— except for McConaughey, the ambitious and narcissistic leader of the troupe.

From the perspective of the three main characters, you'd barely feel anything. You won't feel Mike's struggles as an ageing stripper; you won't care what happens to him. With Adam, there is initial thrill when he is introduced to stripping, but we are weirdly not sucked into the world of male strippers— it's just all in the surface. You comprehend but you don't experience. And Mike and Brooke have no chemistry, with Brooke most of the time pouting and her eyes traveling thoughtfully. And whenever anybody talks in the film, it's irritating. The dialogues are lame, sad, and empty, making Gossip Girl and Glee look like they were written by geniuses.

Cody Horn looks like this in the entire movie, but Magic Mike is smitten by her.

For someone like me who don't go gaga over male strippers, the performances provide light fun and entertainment and is quite engaging, especially when the males accumulate all the sweaty, rumpled Benjamins stuck in their leather thongs, and you're happy for them. The choreography and costumes provide amusement but somehow you don't get any infectious giddiness from the female audience in the club. You see them shrieking and going wild, but you don't feel anything. Stamped PG-13 in the country, the sexy moves are not shocking, only teasing and naughty, and the frequent loud rip of clothing material to reveal male bums can elicit laughter. Tatum is the only skilled dancer in the entire gang, yet he does not exude the special superstar persona; it is McConaughey who delivers a lively and impressive stripper performance, and the only one with a strong sense of character.

Mathew McConaughey is a credible stripper.

Set in sunny Tampa, Florida, the movie provides a beautiful yellow glow throughout the film, complete with visually pleasing palm trees and the sounds of crashing ocean waves, with physically fit men and women walking around...but the story is scattered and ambivalent. You cannot grasp anything. It's floating, barely felt. No real sense of drama, and the humor is dry. There is no magic.

Overall, if you're seeking to be entertained with the story, then Magic Mike is a complete waste of time. The story is dragging, boring, and empty and only inspired me to get into shape because of Brooke's enviously flat belly. But if you're in it for the visual male eye-candy alone, and you don't care whether the movie has a story or not, then you might enjoy it. Because, really, you're just paying for a non-live, silver-screen version of Chippendales, with Channing Tatum in it. 

1 out of 5 stars

Still showing in Philippine Cinemas