THE VAULT — It’s hard not to like a heist movie. They have great style, clever plot twists and great characters.

One of the all-time best heist flicks is “Ocean’s Eleven.” The two follow-up films left a little to be desired, but that doesn’t take away from the effortless cool that first film exudes.

It’s because of the pure enjoyability of “Ocean’s Eleven” and the stellar cast that I was looking forward to “Ocean’s 8,” a new spinoff of the earlier trilogy.

The cast of this new heist is truly remarkable, with three Oscar winners, an Oscar nominee and loads of other talented actors. With a solid base to start from, a great cast to work with and a seasoned director calling the shots “Ocean’s 8” has a lot going for it and it almost pulled off the job.

Don’t get me wrong, “Ocean’s 8” is enjoyable, but it was just missing some of that magic I was hoping for. Here are some reasons why I had fun with “Ocean’s 8,” but why it won’t be considered a classic:

How they got away with it

The cast is solid

I alluded to this earlier, but just like “Ocean’s Eleven” before it, the producers put together a phenomenal cast for “Ocean’s 8.” The ever-likable Sandra Bullock leads the team as Debbie Ocean, Danny Ocean’s (George Clooney) sister. Her team consists of Cate Blanchett, Helena Bonham Carter, Rihanna, Sarah Paulson, Mindy Kaling and Awkwafina. Other players include James Corden, Richard Armitage and Anne Hathaway.

I felt like everyone played their parts well, but when it comes to characters themselves I’m afraid that falls into the not-so-great category. But we’ll get into that later.

The heist is entertaining

Like any great heist movie the job itself has to be clever and entertaining and “Ocean’s 8” managed to pull that off.

The planning leading up to the job left a little to be desired, but the heist itself made for a lot of fun and is undoubtedly the best part of the movie. There are some “surprises” you see coming from a mile away, but some of the twists make for a good time and overall the end result was satisfying.

How they got caught

Chemistry is missing

One of the things that made “Ocean’s Eleven” so special was the chemistry between characters, the banter, the inside jokes and familiarity. “Ocean’s 8” was missing that, and it hurt the film.

As I mentioned earlier I don’t think anyone played their parts poorly, but there was just something missing. One of the best moments of the Ocean’s trilogy came in the first film when Rusty (Brad Pitt) is watching TV in his room and Danny (Clooney) comes in and has an entire conversation about needing another team member without Rusty saying a word or even looking away from the TV.

The chemistry and camaraderie are palpable in that scene and give us a clear glimpse into why this team can knock over multiple casinos at the same time and get away with it.

“Ocean’s 8” was void of these moments and when they tried to duplicate it between Blanchett and Bullock it just didn’t work the way it should have, and that seemed to take away from the film.

KSL Movie Club: 3 of our favorite heist movies

Here at KSL.com we thought the release of “Ocean’s 8” was the perfect excuse to restart our KSL.com Movie Club and do it with some style focusing on our favorite heist movies.

Conclusion

When I walked out of the theater I wasn’t totally disappointed, but I felt let down.

I appreciated the fact they didn’t try to just do “Ocean’s Eleven” all over again and tried some new things. I like the cast they assembled and I enjoyed the clever heist they strung together, but I have to say it was missing that magic that could have made it special and I think you need to see the film for yourself to really understand what I mean.

There is a real possibility this is one of those films I watch again in a year or so and appreciate it more on multiple viewings. This happened with “Ocean’s Thirteen,” and it may happen with “Ocean’s 8,” but as for now, I’ll stick with “Ocean’s Eleven” to get my heist movie fix.

“Ocean’s 8” is rated PG-13 for language, drug use and some suggestive content. Check back tomorrow to see a parents content guide for the film.

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