Logan Lucky (2017)

Jack and I thoroughly enjoyed this action comedy about West Virginians plotting to rob an actual NASCAR race in Charlotte, North Carolina. Adam Driver, Channing Tatum, and Riley Keough play the Logan siblings in order from least to most wily. Driver was last blogged for Paterson; Tatum was most recently in these pages for my catch-up post on White House Down which was released years before Hail, Caesar!; and Keough, Elvis's granddaughter, makes here an impressive follow-up to American Honey. Daniel Craig (last blogged for Spectre) is terrific as accomplice Joe Bang with a bleach blond flat-top and Appalachian accent--his on-screen credit is prefaced with "and introducing."

Plenty of supporting actors add to the mix, including Katie Holmes (some of my faves are her first movie The Ice Storm (1997), Wonder Boys (2000), Phone Booth (2002), Pieces of April (2003), Batman Begins (2005), Thank You for Smoking (2005), and Woman in Gold) as Tatum's ex-wife; Farrah Mackenzie as their daughter, with big eyes like Holmes's; Hilary Swank (last in The Homesman) as a humorless FBI agent, and a trio of Hollywood royalty: Jack Quaid (son of Dennis & Meg Ryan) and Brian Gleeson (brother of Domhnall and son of Brendan) (both young men are new to me) play Fish and Sam Bang, also accomplices, and Katherine Waterston (she's the daughter of Sam and was most recently in Steve Jobs) plays Sylvia, who has a terrible bowl haircut. I'd like to forget Seth MacFarlane (last blogged for A Million Ways to Die in the West) as an arrogant Englishman in a bad wig.

Director Steven Soderbergh supposedly retired from Hollywood after Side Effects in 2013 (after that he helmed the series The Knick and the TV movie Behind the Candelabra) so this is a comeback of sorts, independently financed (more on that). He often uses pseudonyms when he edits (Mary Ann Bernard) and shoots (Peter Andrews) (the movie was shot during the actual Coca-Cola 600 race) but this time he takes credit for those jobs, according to imdb. However, some people believe that screenwriter Rebecca Blunt (who has no other credits) may be he. Others think it's his wife Jules Asner (ex-daughter-in-law of Ed). No one is quite sure who wrote this movie, though Soderbergh insists that Rebecca Blunt is a real first-time screenwriter. Here's an article that says it's Asner.

David Holmes (scored '71) is credited with the soundtrack but mostly we noticed the wonderful songs, 24 of which are listed here with play buttons. The official soundtrack has 16 tracks. The music is but one similarity to O Brother Where Art Thou (2000).

Rotten Tomatoes' critics are still applauding this with an average of 92%. Their audiences are cooler with 76. We had a great time last weekend and stayed, as usual, until the end of the credits to be rewarded with a small written bonus.