MAGIC MIKE'S LAST DANCE

It would take too long to list everything that’s wrong with the unwatchable Magic Mike’s Last Dance, but a total lack of narrative is the main faux-pas.

Magic Mike’s Last Dance was supposed to air as an HBO Max streaming exclusive. Why it ended up getting a theatrical release is anyone’s guess because surely even the Warner execs who saw the film beforehand must have realised they had a virtually unreleasable product on their hands.

It would take too long to list everything that’s wrong with Magic Mike’s Last Dance, but let’s begin with the fact that the picture is nearly completely devoid of narrative. Director Steven Soderbergh has never been afraid to experiment yet here he takes it several steps too far with a series of bland, barely related sequences that completely ignore character development, emotional stakes or basic plot progression.

Add in leads Channing Tatum and Salma Hayek, who give arguably the worst, most stereotypical performances of their career and a final act that is one of the most irrelevant I’ve ever seen, and you’re left with a film that’s irredeemably awful.

No matter how often the picture’s annoying, superfluous voice-over waxes laughably lyrically about the many emotional and transcending qualities of dance.

release: 2023

director: Steven Soderbergh

starring: Channing Tatum, Salma Hayek, Ayub Khan-Din, Jemelia George