After flirting with the world of male stripping, can Channing Tatum convince audiences to go all the way?
You’re watching Beyond The Trailer’s review of Magic Mike XXL...
The first Magic Mike was relatively tame. More of a way for Channing Tatum to own his
stripping past rather than be embarrassed by it, the film showed off a few butts but
nobody did the full monty ala Michael Fassbender in Shame. The dance routines were also more
Bar Mitzvah than Erotic Stripclub, cutting away before anything truly risque appeared
on screen. That strategy also resulted in co-stars Joe Manganiello and Matt Bomer largely
writhing around on the editing room floor only. But like all sequels, Magic Mike XXL
is upping the ante - and as a result diving deeper into the world of stripping. What was
a mere flirtation in the first film has become a full on excursion, and perhaps more revealing
of the taste and judgement of someone who would turn to stripping in the first place.
Yes, that’s right, Tatum didn’t think it would be cool to be a stripper, or simply
stripped for his friends. He was a legit, paid professional stripper - and now that
he’s got your attention he’s pulling you up on stage. Will audiences be game to go?
Magic Mike XXL features more diversity, perhaps to fend off wannabe competitors like Chocolate
City, and Jada Pinkett Smith meets Magic Mike and his crew in the kind of urban stripclub
spotlighted in Bad Grandpa - a scene which itself was a raw as it was funny. And while
Magic Mike XXL has lost some star-power behind the camera with Steven Soderbergh stepping
down as director - he’s still the DP and editor - it’s gained some new stars in front
of the camera. Elizabeth Banks, Andie MacDowell, Donald Glover, Michael Strahan and Mrs Johnny
Depp all join the cast, as does Think You Can Dance star Stephen tWitch Boss and Ellen’s
famous shirtless gardener. But Channing Tatum is still front and center, a risky move resting
this entire sequel on his pecs alone considering recent flops Jupiter Ascending, Foxcatcher
and White House Down. In fact, Tatum has yet to duplicate his boffo year in 2012, where
The Vow, 21 Jump Street and Magic Mike put an awful lot of bills in his box office g-string.
So, is Magic Mike XXL a return to glistening greatness?! Or the movie equivalent of a stripper
past his prime dancing to a mostly empty audience...?