--- title: "Magic Mike: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/magic-mike/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/magic-mike" critics_score: 62 critics_reviews: 10 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Magic Mike (2012): what the critics said Critics' score 62 from 10 reviews: 4 positive, 4 mixed, 2 negative. Most critics find Magic Mike more fun than they expected and less than they hoped. The praise clusters on the dance sequences, which nearly everyone calls energetic and well shot, and on the two lead performances: Channing Tatum is singled out as a proper star, and Matthew McConaughey’s strip-club boss is the turn most often named as the film’s highlight. Soderbergh’s unhurried, non-judgemental way with the backstage world is widely admired. The reservations cluster on the story. Several reviews say the film is strong for its first half and then slackens into conventional plot threads and an underpowered romance, and The New Yorker goes further, calling the moral uplift of the final act close to hypocrisy after the sleaze that precedes it. The spread is fairly wide. The Guardian thinks the film never gets under its characters’ skin or takes a real risk, and The Wrap alone finds the whole thing dull, stripping included. ## Empire — Kim Newman Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 2 July 2012. Soderbergh delivers a fun yet serious look at the male stripping world that showcases Channing Tatum's talents and Matthew McConaughey's standout performance. The film offers terrific entertainment with wry melancholia despite some wavering in the final act. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/magic-mike-review/) ## Time Out — Cath Clarke Rating 4/5. 10 July 2012. Soderbergh brings his signature grungy style to a fun, throwaway tale of male strippers that will appeal to its target audience despite a routine script. The dance sequences are hilarious and the camp backstage world is captured well, with strong turns from Tatum and especially McConaughey. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/magic-mike) ## Evening Standard Fi1m's normalised score 60/100 (inferred from the text). 16 July 2012. The film starts with promising material about male strippers but settles into a pleasant, undemanding soap opera where everyone's troubles resolve happily. It succeeds mainly through its energetic and corny strip routines filmed in a convincing style, making performative male sexuality seem wholesome. [Read the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/magic-mike-review-7939214.html) ## Radio Times — Adam Smith Rating 3/5. Soderbergh’s surprisingly sweet-natured tale of Florida male strippers offers more than just stripping, with strong performances and beautiful shooting, though it feels dramatically underpowered and avoids real sleaze. Tatum gives a star-making turn but the film doesn’t fully commit. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-ohwhs0/magic-mike/) ## The New Yorker — David Denby Fi1m's normalised score 60/100 (inferred from the text). 2 July 2012. The first three-quarters of the film is great fun, with strong performances especially from Matthew McConaughey and Channing Tatum's dynamite dancing, creating an easy rhythm in the strip club setting. However, it turns into a conventional morality play that borders on hypocrisy by selling the sleaze then pushing moral uplift. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/magic-mike-stripping-with-soul) ## The Guardian — Peter Bradshaw Fi1m's normalised score 40/100 (inferred from the text). 15 July 2012. Soderbergh's film about male strippers in Florida is oddly innocent and well-tempered but fails to get under the characters' skin or take real risks. It is not especially original and avoids deeper issues like aging or exploitation. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2012/jul/15/magic-mike-steven-soderbergh-review) ## Financial Times — Nigel Andrews 12 July 2012. Soderbergh delivers a ridiculously enjoyable tale of male strippers that blends comedy, voyeurism, love, conflict and dance with an ironic moral. Channing Tatum gives a nuanced performance with sensational bodywork. [Read the review](https://www.ft.com/content/2ec0e5c6-cc05-11e1-aac1-00144feabdc0) ## The Hollywood Reporter — David Rooney 24 June 2012. Soderbergh delivers a raunchy, funny, and nonjudgmental comedy-drama about male strippers that balances sex appeal with heart and male camaraderie. The critic praises the energetic performances, especially Tatum and McConaughey, and the lively strip routines while noting some narrative familiarity. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/magic-mike-film-review-341305/) ## The New York Times — Manohla Dargis Rating NYT Critic’s Pick. 28 June 2012. Soderbergh delivers a funny, enjoyable romp about male strippers and the American dream, with Channing Tatum as a terrific lead who works the crowd like no one else. The film showcases the hip-pumping energy of the dancers and grounds the story in relatable ambitions and realities. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/29/movies/magic-mike-by-steven-soderbergh-with-channing-tatum.html) ## Variety — Peter Debruge 24 June 2012. This breezy, low-calorie fun offers more entertainment than any Soderbergh film since Ocean's Eleven, with Tatum and the hunks delivering a guiltless girls' night out and strong showcase for dance moves. Soderbergh is in excellent form, re-embracing professional techniques while keeping a nonjudgmental, anthropological tone toward the stripping world. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2012/film/reviews/magic-mike-1117947812/) ## Vulture — David Edelstein 29 June 2012. Soderbergh's film is an enjoyable, arty take on the male-stripper world that emphasizes pleasure and choice over moralizing, with strong turns from Tatum and especially McConaughey. The strip sequences stand out as energetic and free of the director's usual repulsion, making it effective soft-core entertainment. [Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/2012/06/movie-review-magic-mike.html) ## Collider — Matt Goldberg Rating B. 28 June 2012. The critic finds it an enjoyable and thoughtful exploration of sexual objectification and gender roles through stripping performances, praising the choreography and performances, but criticizes the underdeveloped conventional love story. [Read the review](https://collider.com/magic-mike-review/) ## /Film — Adam Rating 7/10. 30 June 2012. The film is an observational and subtle take on the male stripping world that avoids seedy sensationalism. It delivers on the expected dance sequences and physical appeal while exploring the limitations of that lifestyle. [Read the review](https://www.slashfilm.com/521901/adams-magic-mike-review-steven-soderbergh-ladies/) ## Den of Geek — Luke Savage Rating 3/5. 28 June 2012. The first half is strong thanks to Soderbergh's unhurried, observational style and engaging character moments, but the film loses focus in the second half as it tries to cover too many conventional plot threads at once. McConaughey's charismatic, layered turn as the strip-club boss stands out as the film's highlight. [Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/magic-mike-review/) ## The Wrap — Alonso Duralde Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 28 June 2012. The critic finds the film dull and repetitive, especially the stripping sequences, and criticizes the slight, familiar story and lack of interesting characters. Soderbergh's attempt to comment on the economy is seen as less effective than in his prior work. [Read the review](https://www.thewrap.com/magic-mike-review-male-stripper-saga-never-quite-takes-it-46031/) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/magic-mike.md