Magic Mike (DVD REVIEW)
Magic Mike
DVD Review
by Kam Williams
Channing Tatum Stars in Character-Driven Male Stripper Saga
Among Channing Tatum’s odd jobs en route to becoming a matinee idol was a brief stint as a male stripper. But rather
than deny taking an embarrassing detour on the road to superstardom, the hunky
heartthrob has opted to embrace that chapter of his checkered past by making a
semi-autobiographical movie recounting his daring foray into the adult
entertainment industry.
The upshot of that effort is Magic
Mike, a raw and revealing character-driven drama
directed by Oscar-winner Steven Soderbergh (for Traffic) who previously
collaborated with Channing on the action-thriller Haywire. The two also just
finished shooting A Bitter Pill, a crime caper set for an early 2013
release.
Here,
Channing stars as Mike Martingano, an erotic dancer who goes by the stage name
Magic Mike when titillating the ladies at a seedy, Tampa dive called Xquisite. The place is
managed by Dallas (Matthew McConaughey), a silky smooth operator who has
promised his most popular performer 10% equity to follow him when he relocates
the club to Miami.
Trouble
is Mike isn’t getting any younger, and his big plans for himself definitely
don’t include stripping into his 40s like Dallas and the other members of the
aging revue: Tito (Adam Rodriguez), Tarzan (Kevin Nash), Ken (Matt Bomer) and
Big [bleep] Richie (Joe Manganiello). Instead, he dreams of saving up enough
seed money to set himself up as a custom furniture designer, and maybe settling
down with Brooke (Cody Horn), the sister of the 19 year-old (Alex Pettyfer)
he’s just recruited for Dallas.
Unfolding
over the course of a long, hot Florida
summer, Magic Mike is such an unpredictable and palpably raw-edged adventure
that you soon forget that you’re even watching actors performing on sets. In
that regard, the picture is rather reminiscent of Quentin Tarantino’s similarly
super-realistic Jackie Brown (1997), a masterpiece which also featured a flawed
protagonist ensnared in a sticky predicament at an unpretentious oceanfront
setting.
Will
Mike summon up the requisite resolve to extricate himself from the stripping
game and thereby save his soul? Or will a financial setback cause him to
rationalize moving to Miami,
leaving his hopes and girlfriend behind for the sake of easy money?
A
compelling character study not to be missed, if only to witness a gutsy, career
performance delivered by the ever-improving Channing Tatum.
Excellent
(4 stars)
Rated R for profanity, drug use, brief graphic nudity and pervasive
sexuality.
Running time: 110 minutes
Distributor: Warner
Brothers Home Entertainment
Blu-ray/DVD Combo
Pack Extras: Extended dance scenes; Dance Play Mode; Backstage on Magic Mike;
and more.
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