‘Logan Lucky” is more of 50/50 in terms a movie experience. The acting is great, but the script could be funnier. The characters are deep, but the story ia familiar. And overall, the movie is entertaining yet disappointing. The viewer may certainly have no regrets in watching it, but still think what else might have been accomplished during the two-hour run time.
If this movie about two Southern blue-collar brothers who attempt a heist beneath a NASCAR speedway proves anything, it’s that Channing Tatum (playing lead Jimmy Logan) continues to prove he’s got some better-than-solid acting chops. He really gets to not only deadpan a few lines perfectly, but is given a range of emotions to work with — and delivers authentically.
After being fired from his construction job for reasons that are all too real under modern American health care and labor laws, he turns to a forgotten life of crime to continue to support himself and provide for his daughter.
Adam Driver (who played Kylo Ren in “The Force Awakens”) is also great as Clyde Logan, Jimmy’s brother with a drawling monotone and one arm. He’s the only one who out-deadpans Channing Tatum, and at moments he’s even funnier for how perfectly he plays his country-fried Hank Hill-sounding character.
But it’s Daniel Craig’s portrayal of Joe Bang that steals every scene he’s in — mostly because it seems so bizarre to hear the British actor speaking in a West Virginian twang. Bang is an eccentric and unconventional safecracker who may just border on being a modern Southern dandy.
But for every awesome performance and occasional laugh in this heist comedy, it takes a step backward in other aspects. And if the movie’s biggest leap forward is acting and characters, its biggest drawbacks are story and laughs. Though the script has some excellent dialogue at times, it is pretty lax in terms of being a comedy, as the laughs are very sporadic. And though the story is satisfying just in terms of how it ends, there’s no real sense of stakes or even danger present, as the movie is loaded with formulaic and familiar subplots, clichés and typical movie tropes. The greatest threat to the heist is in the form of two FBI agents who don’t even show up until the last 20 minutes of the movie — and simply for logic’s sake.
Aside from the great characters, the heist is the most original thing in the movie, involving vacuum tubes full of money, the aforementioned NASCAR speedway, Clyde’s prosthetic arm, a bag of candy, a plastic bag, bleach pens, a jail riot with a great standoff involving “Game of Thrones,” trash bags, and some assorted twists that will revitalize your interest just as you start wondering how much longer the movie is.
The movie is not particularly deep, relying on charm, style and characters alone to propel its entertainment value. Although it’s not significantly memorable or worthy of being viewed multiple times, it’s not a bad choice if you plan on going to the cinema this weekend — though a matinee price is more suitable for what you get.
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“Logan Lucky” is currently playing at the Riverside Cinemas, 1017 S. Boone St. in Aberdeen.
George Haerle holds a bachelor’s degree in creative writing for media and lives in Cosmopolis.
