First up let’s get one thing clear: 'Magic Mike’s Last Dance' is an objectively terrible film, but that doesn’t mean that you’ll have a bad time when you settle in to watch the third and final instalment of the 'Magic Mike' saga.
Sure, the plot is flimsy, the dialogue is deplorable and there are problematic moments peppered throughout, but 'Magic Mike’s Last Dance' does the job it set out to do – the packed theatre is heaving, and squeals of delight are frequent. 'Last Dance' sees director Steven Soderbergh return to the 'Magic Mike' franchise, setting expectations slightly higher than they should be. Despite delighting audiences in the 2017 sleeper hit 'Logan Lucky', the combination of Soderbergh and Channing Tatum delivers no surprises in this offering – if you’ve seen the previous two 'Magic Mike' films, you know exactly what you’re going to get. It’s hot, it’s sweaty and it’s a little too drawn out considering we’re just here to see unclothed muscles gyrating in tune to some banging club hits that we all know and love.
We’ve met Mike before and he’s back with the same delicious dance moves and perhaps a little more emotional baggage this time around. It’s never really explained why, but nobody purchased tickets to this film for sensical explanations – and nor should they. The plot (if you could call it that) is centred around a wealthy socialite, played by Salma Hayek, (merely an unreliable plot device who happens to be gorgeous) and involves Mike travelling to London to direct a play. Cue a bunch of actors with terribly hammed up British accents, despite possibly even being native Brits, combined with a cast of incredibly talented male dancers (none of whom seem to have names or speaking parts), taking on the snobby British theatre scene to bring male strippers to the main stage. What could go wrong? Well of course several things, to provide some semblance of a story arc, but really, it’s all just part of the journey to help us reach the climactic final dance scenes that we’ve all been waiting for.
And wait we did – despite a raunchy opening dance scene raising the stakes early in the game, the film does make you wait a while between drinks. It was clear we were all thinking the same thing after an audience member called out “oh hurry up” when yet another scene that began to tease us eventuated in everyone still being fully clothed by the end.
When the big dance sequence does begin, we are not disappointed. Hardcore fans familiar with 'Magic Mike Live' the stage show spinoff, will recognise large chunks of the final sequence, which seems to essentially be a direct lift, with even the choreography appearing similar. But this part of the film does exactly what it set out to do – we are finally given the club bangers we’re denied for the first hour and a half, combined with truly impressive dance moves. Another highlight of the film is Juliette Motamed who plays Hannah, an actor in the performance the crew put on. You might recognise her as the sassy Ayesha from the brilliant 'We Are Lady Parts' (and if you don’t, what are you waiting for, go check it out!) but she is a welcome burst of energy among the cast.
Without a doubt, this is a film to watch in a cinema with a group of mates who are up for a good time – it’s the kind of experience best shared, with the opportunity to unpack what you just experienced together afterwards. You’ll need to look past a few strange comments that suggest that ‘strippers’ aren’t ‘dancers’ – surprisingly close-minded for a film of this kind, and just try hard to ignore the bizarre narration from ‘Zadie’, the unnecessary daughter of Salma Hayek’s character (it’s a movie about hot thrusting men, we didn’t come here to be reminded that angsty, overzealous teens with big vocabularies exist). Do enjoy the dancing, the shared fun and if possible, try to keep the drooling to a minimum – as tough as that may be, and settle in to soak up this steaming pile of beautiful trash in the cinema with your nearest and dearest woo girls.
