Not a weak link to be found in ‘Logan Lucky’

When director Steven Soderbergh announced his retirement four years ago, no one really pined away over the loss. Not because the director already touted an impressive, decades-spanning career of prolific output (“Ocean’s Eleven” trilogy, “Out of Sight,” “Erin Brockovich”), but more because no one believed it.

Since his Sundance debut in 1989 with “Sex, Lies, & Videotape,” the director has dabbled in all reaches of the film industry. His efforts range from producing works for TV as series and films, to big-screen experiments such as “Bubble” (which was the first film released simultaneously in theaters, DVD and streaming) and “The Girlfriend Experience” where he cast working porn actress Sasha Grey as the lead.

So when word got out that he was returning to the big screen this year with “Logan Lucky,” there was little surprise, but much anticipation among film geeks.

He picked a comedic take on the heist genre, one he has helped to perfect through the years, and it marks a roaring return. Starring Channing Tatum (from Soderbergh’s “Magic Mike”), Adam Driver, Riley Keough, Hilary Swank, Katie Holmes and “introducing” Daniel Craig, the film has certainly stacked the deck with talent while providing one of the summer’s most entertaining rides.

The setup looks as though it could be a hillbilly take on his “Oceans” films (even an on-screen reporter refers to the heist as “Oceans 7-11”), but it evolves into a film of surprising twists, depth and humanity that is wholly satisfying by its final credits.

Tatum stars as Jimmy Logan, a good ol’ boy from West Virginia who can’t catch a break in his construction gigs because of a pre-existing condition that has left him with a slight limp. He merely wants to do right by his little girl, despite the fact that his ex-wife (played by Holmes) has moved on and up, shacking up with a local used car magnate.

His younger brother Clyde (played by Driver) isn’t faring much better, having lost his hand in Iraq and now slinging booze at a local dive bar, often muttering about the Logan Family Curse. When Jimmy spots a chance to siphon cash from the local NASCAR track, he and Clyde decide to enlist local explosives expert Joe Bang (played by Craig, having the time of his life), and Bang’s ne’er-do-well siblings.

And while all actors seem to bathe in Southern drawls thick as maple syrup, the characters are not held up for sheer mockery. In fact, much like the Coen Brothers’ “Raising Arizona,” you can’t help but root for these backwoods bandits.

There is not a weak link to be found, in either the performances or in the airtight script. One Rebecca Blunt, whom no one in Hollywood has been able to identify, is credited as script writer, but this could perhaps even be a pen name for Soderbergh or wife Jules Asner. And while “Lucky” may take a few moments to get its engine started, by its final scene, set in the same dimly lit roadhouse where Clyde works, we feel as though we are surrounded by friends, and are eager to spend time with them for just another round to toast Soderbergh’s return.