Top 10

‘Logan Lucky’ means luck for movie fans

BY JAY BOBBIN

He still was the screen’s James Bond at the time, but for a taste of Daniel Craig’s versatility, look no farther than “Logan Lucky.”

And he’s not the only attraction of the 2017 crime caper, which Showtime offers Friday, Sept. 30. It brought director Steven Soderbergh back to the screen in fine form, with a story that’s not that far in basic concept from his “Ocean’s Eleven” updates, here but still is quite original in terms of its very colorful characters.

Among his many talents, Soderbergh knows how to assemble a terrific cast, and he did so again here. His “Magic Mike” star Channing Tatum plays a personally and professionally troubled man who conspires with his war-veteran brother (Adam Driver) to rob North Carolina’s Charlotte Motor Speedway – and one of the others they enlist is Craig, as an ebullient Southern convict they have to spring from jail for the heist, then put back in.

Yes, there is a definite “Ocean’s” vibe to “Logan Lucky,” which proves to be very entertaining in its own way. Riley Keough (granddaughter of Elvis Presley) plays another family member who’s in on the scheme, and Katie Holmes, Hilary Swank, Seth MacFarlane, Katherine Waterston, Jack Quaid and Brian Gleeson also populate the story. Some of their characters offer major surprises even if the crime itself is pretty straightforward, which doesn’t make whether it pans out any less suspenseful.

The “Logan Lucky” screenplay is credited to a Rebecca Blunt, who turned out an extremely assured and effective first movie script – if, indeed, there really is a “Rebecca Blunt.” It’s reportedly been confirmed that was a pseudonym used by Soderbergh’s wife, former entertainment reporter Jules Asner. However, Soderbergh himself has handled various aspects of his movies by assuming aliases for them in those jobs; he’s played so coy about the background of the alleged Ms. Blunt, it wouldn’t come as a huge surprise if he had a hand in the writing here, too.

Much of the pleasure of “Logan Lucky” comes from the sense of enjoyment you can feel from its performers, all of whom seem to appreciate that they have good material that isn’t meant to be taken too seriously. That lets them loosen up with it, and nowhere is that more evident than with Craig, who obviously relished getting as far as possible as he could from Agent 007.

“Logan Lucky” just wants to give audiences a laid-back, fun time. That, it does, and for that, everyone who watches it is lucky indeed.

Channing Tatum’s Top 10 Movies

BY JAY BOBBIN

“Logan Lucky” (2017): Director Steven Soderbergh’s clever comedy about a planned autorace-track heist features Tatum as a conspirator in the crime.

“Foxcatcher” (2014): Tatum broke through to the ranks of Oscar-caliber movies with this true tale of sibling wrestlers under the spell of an eccentric patron.

“The Lego Movie” (2014): He’s voice-only here, but Tatum surely captures the brawn and heroism needed for the sound of Superman.

“White House Down” (2013): A good-humored Tatum’s teaming with Jamie Foxx ups the entertainment quotient for this adventure about a would-be Secret Service man protecting the president during a White House siege.

“Magic Mike” (2012): There was a lot invested for Tatum in this drama (and its sequel), since his own experiences as a male stripper fueled the film.

“21 Jump Street” (2012): Tatum and Jonah Hill make an amusing duo as undercover police detectives in this fun update of the Fox series.

“The Vow” (2012): Back on Nicholas Sparks territory – though Sparks didn’t write this one – Tatum does good work as a newlywed trying to jog his wife’s (Rachel McAdams) memory after a car accident robs her of it.

“Dear John” (2010): Tatum is affecting in Nicholas Sparks’ story of a soldier whose letters from the girl he left back home (Amanda Seyfried) keep him going.

“Public Enemies” (2009): As Pretty Boy Floyd, Tatum makes a convincing mobster in this saga of several of the underworld’s most notorious figures.

“Step Up” (2006): Tatum launched a franchise and gained a wife – co-star Jenna Dewan (they’ve since divorced) – by making this dance drama about a reformed hoodlum who finds his calling at a performing-arts school.

The great outdoors supplies the ingredients on Hulu’s ‘Chefs vs. Wild’

BY GEORGE DICKIE

At a time when grocery prices are going through the roof, foraging for one’s own ingredients seems like a good idea. And as it turns out, a tasty one as well, judging by a culinary competition series coming to Hulu.

In “Chefs vs. Wild,” an eight-episode series premiering Monday, Sept. 26, two world class chefs are dropped in the wilderness, where they’ll be tasked with not only surviving but also foraging enough wild ingredients to create a restaurant-worthy, five star meal. After a head-tohead competition in a wilderness kitchen, the final products are then judged by wild foods expert Valerie Segrest and chef and adventurer Kiran Jethwa, who is also the host.

Of course, the foraging-for-food subgenre of foodie TV has been expanding over the past decade or so and the following is just a fraction of what is available.

“Gordon Ramsay: Uncharted” (Available on Disney+ and Prime Video): The British celebrity chef and restaurateur shows his wild side in this National Geographic series as he ventures to some of the most remote locations on Earth in places like New Zealand, Peru, Tasmania and Morocco, to dive, forage, fish and even jump out of helicopters for extraordinary ingredients, from which he will create meals certain to impress the locals.

“Wild Harvest” (Available on YouTube): “Survivorman” Les Stroud and chef Paul Rogalski are your guides for this series that originally aired on PBS stations, in which they explore the culinary potential of wild ingredients in locations across Canada and the United States. Among their stops: the Oregon coast for mussels and wild radish; the Canadian Rockies for horsetail and dandelion; Alberta for grouse and Labrador tea; and Ontario for lambsquarters and raspberries.

“Original Fare” (Available on PBS online and YouTube): From PBS Food comes this foodie/ adventure series that follows host Kelly Cox as she hunts, forages and farms her way around the globe to search for the best ingredients our planet has to offer. Her travels take her to places such as Bodega Bay Calif., to hunt for gaper clams; Texas Hill Country to check out the wine; South Carolina to gather oysters; and Puget Sound, Wash., to catch crabs for crab rangoon.