Ocean’s Eleven is a 2001 American heist comedy film. Steven Soderbergh directed the movie starring high-profile Hollywood actors. It was the first installment in the Ocean franchise. Ocean’s Eleven was a remake of the original 1960 movie of the same name. Today, we will take a look at other heist movies like Ocean’s Eleven.
The movie was a huge box office success. Grossing more than $450 million, it was the fifth-highest grossing film of 2001. Because of its success, Soderbergh directed the two sequels making the Ocean Trilogy. More on that later on.
The original Ocean’s Eleven cast includes George Clooney, Bernie Mac, Brad Pitt, Elliott Gould, Casey Affleck, Scott Caan, Eddie Jemison, Don Cheadle, Shaobo Qin, Carl Reiner, and Matt Damon.
People magazine called the movie “pure fun from start to finish”. Here are more movies like Ocean’s Eleven. If you are into some crime and fun, we’ve got you covered.
Ocean’s Twelve
We said there are two more movies in the Ocean trilogy. Ocean’s Twelve was a 2004 American heist comedy. Andy Garcia was the major addition to this movie. He had a supporting role in the first movie as well.
In the second installment, Garcia portrays Terry Benedict, who locates members of Danny Ocean and his crew. He demands they return the money they stole from his casino and some interest.
The group then schemes to stage another heist, this time in Amsterdam to avoid problems with US authorities.
Catherina Zeta-Jones plays the amazing Detective Isabel Lahiri in Ocean’s Twelve, adding more star power to the franchise.
Ocean’s Thirteen
Also known as Ocean’s Thirteen, the 2007 American heist comedy film was the third and final installment in the Ocean franchise. The entire male cast reprised their roles from the previous movies. Al Pacino and Ellen Barkin joined the cast. For this movie, Julia Roberts and Catherina Zeta-Jones didn’t return in their roles.
In this movie, Reuben Tishkoff invests in building a hotel-casino on the Las Vegas Strip. He does it against advice from his friend, Danny Ocean. Reuben involves himself with wealthy investor Willy Bank, played by Pacino.
Following Tishkoff’s death, Danny Ocean again gathers his crew and plans to avenge Reuben by running Bank on the opening night of the hotel.
Ocean’s Eight
Stylized onscreen as Ocean 8, the 2018 American heist comedy is a spin-off of Steven Soderbergh’s franchise. The twist here is that the ensemble cast is all females. The cast includes Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett, Anne Hathaway, Rihanna, Sarah Paulson, Mindy Kaling, Awkwafina, and Helena Bonham Carter.
Bullock portrays Debbie Ocean, the sister of Danny Ocean. She plans a sophisticated heist at the annual Met Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Following the third installment in the Ocean franchise, Soderbergh stated he had no intentions of making a fourth film. But then Gary Ross directed the fourth film, this time with an all-female spin-off.
Ocean 11
We said before that the Ocean trilogy was inspired by the 1960 heist film of the same name. Lewis Milestone directed the movie, starring five of the Rat Pack, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Peter Lawford, Joey Bishop, and Sammy Davis Jr.
In the original movie, Danny Ocean is a World War II veteran. Alongside his veteran partner Jimmy Foster, they recruit nine comrades from their unit in the 82nd Airborne. They simultaneously rob five Las Vegas casinos, The Sahara, The Riviera, the Desert Inn, The Sands, and The Flamingo.
The gang plans the New Year’s Eve heist with the precision of a military operation.
Logan Lucky
The 2017 American heist comedy film was also directed by Steven Soderbergh. While he had no intentions of a fourth Ocean movie, he still made a heist comedy movie.
This time, Channing Tatum stars as the titular character, Jimmy Logan. He is a blue-collar worker whose promising football career was ruined by injury. He devises a plan to rob the speedway.
Other actors and actresses include Adam Driver, Daniel Craig, Seth MacFarlane, Katie Holmes, Hilary Swank, Sebastian Stan, and more.
The film follows the Logan family and their attempt to rob the Charlotte Motor Speedway while avoiding security officers and the FBI.
Now You See Me
Speaking about movies like Ocean 11, let’s talk about another heist thriller comedy movie franchise. Now You See Me is a bit different, but it is still a heist movie. The first installment features an ensemble cast of Jesse Eisenberg, Mark Ruffalo, Woody Harrelson, Isla Fisher, Dave Franco, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, and Melanie Laurent.
The plot follows an FBI agent and an Interpol detective trying to bring justice to a team of magicians. They pull off bank heists and robberies during their performances. But they are like Robin Hood, the team of magicians then reward the audiences with the money from heists.
Now You See Me 2
Also known as Now You See Me The Second Act, the 2016 American heist thriller again stars an ensemble cast.
The story continues 18 months after escaping the FBI. The fugitive Four Horsemen, Lula May, Merritt McKinney, Jack Wilder, and J. Daniel Atlas, now await orders from the Eye. That is the secret society of magicians.
Their handler, FBI agent Dylan Rhodes delivers the instructions to them. They have to expose corrupt tech CEO Owen Case. Owen is set to release a cell phone that will secretly collect personal data from users.
The Informant
This 2009 American biographical crime comedy movie was also directed by Steven Soderbergh. The movie came out two years after Ocean 13.
The movie stars Matt Damon as the titular informant by the name of Mark Whitacre. Critics praised his performance and the movie’s comedic, yet ironic tone.
Vegas Vacation
Let’s go a bit back in time and talk about a movie that came out before the Ocean franchise. Released in 1997, Vegas Vacation is an American comedy movie directed by Stephen Kessler. It was the fourth installment in the National Lampoon’s Vacation film series.
It was also the first Vacation film not to carry the National Lampoon label.
Casino
Casino is an epic crime movie. Martin Scorsese directed the movie. It might not have the comedic element like Ocean Eleven, but it is still a good casino movie.
Based on the 1995 nonfiction book Casino Love and Honor in Las Vegas by Nicholas Pileggi, the movie has an A-list cast. Starring Sharon Stone, Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci, James Woods, and more, the movie marked the eighth collaboration between Scorsese and De Niro.
The story follows Sam Rothstein, played by De Niro. He is a Jewish American gambling expert handicapper who goes to oversee day-to-day casino and hotel operations in Las Vegas. His character was inspired by real-life Frank Rosenthal, also known as Lefty. Frank ran the Stardust, Fremont, Marina, and Hacienda casinos in Las Vegas for the Chicago Outfit in the early 1970s.
Sharon’s performance was one of the best parts of the movie. She won a Golden Globe Award for her performance and earned a nomination for an Academy Award.
The Italian Job
The movie came out between Ocean 11 and Ocean 12. Some would say it was a rival and a way to make a similar heist movie. The Italian Job stars Mark Wahlberg, Charlize Theron, Edward Norton, Jason Statham, Seth Green, MosDef, and Donald Sutherland.
It was an American remake of the 1969 British film. The story follows a motley crew of thieves who plan to steal gold from a former associate who double-crossed them.
The Mexican
In 2001, The Mexican came out. It was the same year as Ocean’s Eleven. This movie stars Brad Pitt and Julia Roberts in the main character roles. The plot is a mixture of different genres.
The movie follows Jerry Welbach, played by Brad Pitt. He crashes into the car of a mob boss, who is sent to prison. Jerry is then forced to work for the second in command.
For the entire movie, Jerry works for the mob and the movie shows his journey from getting out of their hands.
Inception
It is still a heist movie, right? While it plays more in the science fiction genre, Inception is still a heist movie. Stealing an idea is also a heist. Directed and written by Christopher Nolan, the movie stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Joseph Gordon Levit, Marion Cotillard, Elliot Page, Tom Hardy, Michael Caine, and more.
DiCaprio plays a professional thief who steals information by infiltrating the subconscious of his targets. He is then hired to have his criminal history erased as payment for the implantation of another person’s idea into a target’s subconscious.
The movie won Academy Award in four categories, including cinematography, sound editing, sound mixing, and visual effects.
Heat
The 1995 American crime features an ensemble cast led by Al Pacino and Robert De Niro. Praised by critics as a real thing by people who do that stuff.
Warner Bros Pictures released the movie. It grossed $187 million on a $60 million budget. While it didn’t receive any award nominations, the movie is often cited as one of the most influential films in the genre.
Inside Man
Fans will tell you this is one of the most underrated movies in the genre. The 2006 heist thriller was directed by Spike Lee. The plot revolves around an elaborate bank heist on Wall Street over a 24-hour period.
Denzel Washington stars in the main role. Other cast members include Clive Owen and b
Chaos
Do you want a heist movie in which the bad guys actually win? That is another point of Ocean 11. The “bad guys” actually manage to pull off the heist.
In this movie, we see Jason Statham, Wesley Snipes, and Ryan Phillippe. Statham plays a Seattle PD detective implicated in the death of a hostage situation.
He is suspended, but some time later, he is reinstalled because bank criminals ask for him specifically. Through twists and turns, we find out that Jason’s character was the one orchestrating the whole heist.
Gone in 60 Seconds
We cannot talk about heist movies like Ocean 11 without mentioning Gone in 60 Seconds. After all, it stars one of the most memed actors and funny actors in Hollywood, Nicolas Cage. Other cast members include Angelina Jolie, Robert Duvall, Vinnie Jones, and more.
Shot in Los Angeles, the movie was released in June 2000. While the movie received mostly negative critics, we have to mention it just for fun. Not to mention, the movie did manage to gross $237 million with a $90 million budget. So, it was a box office success.
