Magic Mike XXL Review

Set three years after the first flick, XXL is basically a road trip movie as Mike (Tatum) jettisons his furniture business and joins the remaining Kings Of Tampa for one last show at the improbably named Myrtle Beach. En route, the gang bicker, meet up with Mike’s old dance caller (Jada Pinkett Smith), entertain some Southern Belles (hello, Andie MacDowell) and Mike has a thing with Zoe (Amber Heard). Steven Soderbergh’s original was a rich character study, a look at the human realities behind a glitzy subculture. With Soderbergh now only on cinematography duties, this one takes all of the original’s surface — chiefly the hip gyrations — and none of the substance, interesting character arcs or charms. And any Tatum film that chiefly reminds you of Step Up can’t be a good thing.