Soderbergh goes off in another unexpected direction with this low-budget, innocuous and lightweight take on male stripping. It revels in the ridiculousness of the profession with a neat balance of self-deprecating humour and simple drama, which makes for reasonable entertainment stemming from Channing Tatum's real-life experiences (hence his co-writing and co-producer credits) and the director's cinematic eye which reveals itself mostly away from the confines of the strip club. Tatum turns in another charming and credible performance, Matthew McConaughey is clearly having a whale of a time as troupe leader, and Alex Pettyfer as The Kid just about convinces as the ingenue whose downward spiral limps along predictably. Like The Full Monty, male stripping is about male empowerment and control of its hormonally-crazed female audience, so it is to the credit of Cody Horn - as The Kid's grounded sister and Tatum's love-interest - that she creates an interesting and noteworthy performance amongst this testosterone-fuelled display of stereotypes. Magic Mike is neither earth-shattering nor substantial, but it offers wry and well-made entertainment.
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