February 6, 2026 | Relish
CHASING THE DOLLAR

021020 | sunday
Hollywood will do anything for a buck. Witness the latest news that soon, movie viewers will be treated to a sequel to Ocean's Eleven: Last year's crappy remake of a crappy original. (Read my review here.) The American public will never cease to amaze me for allowing itself to be force-fed mindless tripe. Honestly.
Take the original. A half-assed excuse for the Rat Pack to go to Vegas, drink themselves silly, and get paid. Ok, certainly stranger things have happened and, with the presence of Frank and the boys, one wouldn't have to be a psychic to see that the film would do more than simply survive at the box office. But a good film? Hardly.
Fast forward to 2001… a new group of hipsters, a somewhat (actually, much) weaker story and even better box office results. Movie-goers ate it up. Critics were, for the most part, appreciative of the effort as well and, as usual, producers are clamoring for the "next" Ocean's Eleven. Soderberg et al, not wishing to disappoint the public (or miss an opportunity to make a trunk-full of cash) will deliver the updated product, replete with a full ensemble of "flava de jour" casting and the requisite "To Be Continued?" ending at some point soon. And the public will eat it up. And Hollywood will earn its buck. Just watch out for Beneath the Planet of the Apes: II..
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