As I sat in an Austin theater last weekend watching director Steven Soderbergh’s latest Magic Mike During the movie, my heart sank when I realized that the seats around me—all the seats, in fact—were filled with drunk, rowdy women. Not anyway , but the vibe screams stag party, with all the penis straws and awkward karaoke numbers and obligatory heterosexuality, I’ve been having a hard time enjoying that Activities that encourage “girls” (barf) to let go and have fun.
To be fair, considering the Channing Tatum-led franchise revolves around male strippers, it’s A totally predictable turn of events when watching Magic Mike’s The Last Dance
. I should have assumed the vibe would be very “WOOOO! ” but for some reason I wasn’t prepared – and neither were the two friends I brought prepare me. However, what I’m even less prepared for is finding myself… having fun? (Of course, Alamo Drafthouse lets you drink while watching a movie, but I swear my treat isn’t all alcohol.)
Let me be clear: Magic Mike’s Last Dance , which focuses on the titular Mike choreographing a striptease at a historic London theater at the behest of his lover-slash boss (Max, played delicately and terrifyingly by Salma Hayek) Acting, not good. The premise is shaky, the acting is overwrought, and the script is full of lines that don’t make any sense, yet: Magic Mike’s Last Dance is very entertaining, especially because this sucks. (All in all, Tatum is incredibly gifted at delivering one-word lines like “Sup?”, and his dry expression provides the baseline needed for the film’s other uncanny heights.)
I’ve gotten used to watching movies at home for the past three (million) pandemic years, and I think it’s raised the bar for me to see movies in theaters; after all, why spend $15 Watching a memorable action movie – parking and snacks not included – when I can watch the wonders of modern cinema like The Godfather or Get something from the comfort and safety of my bed? (These movies are just as important and worthwhile in my opinion. Fight me.) What I lost, though, was the ability to sit in a movie theater—in the words of film critic Dwight Garner—“succumb to the spell Cast,” and Magic Mike’s Last Dance did cast quite a few spells.
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