Oceans 8: The Agony and Ecstasy of All That Unresolved Sexual Tension

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This post contains spoilers for Oceans 8.[hhmc]

To watch Oceans 8 is to indulge in a distinctly ephemeral form of joy; even if the thrill begins to fade from memory after an hour or two, that doesnt make the experience any less pleasant. The heist at the center of the movie goes off without a hitch; in the end, our scammer heroes walk away with all the riches they came for and then some. Theres only one thing that conclusion is missing: a frank acknowledgment of the obvious, vexingly unexplored sexual tension between Sandra Bullocks Debbie Ocean and her best friend—“friend”?—Lou (Cate Blanchett).

Look, far be it for me—for any of us, really—to complain about a romp that gave us Cate Blanchett in so many fabulous suits. But from beginning to end, Oceans 8 seemed to consciously imply that there was more to Lou and Debbies relationship than meets the eye. There are tantalizing bits of dialogue, like when Debbie calls Lou, as she often does, her “partner”—and Lou replies, “Im not your partner—yet.” At another point, Lou teases Debbie, asking, “Oh, honey, is this a proposal?” Debbies reply? “Baby, I dont even have a diamond yet.” Did the two exchange a knowing look when Lou met Debbie wearing her share of the heists haul around her neck, or was that just me? Come to think of it, those two seem to exchange a lot of looks. Also, theres that moment when they feed each other!

But as I drank in every furtive glance and whisper of backstory like a fine wine, I was left mostly with questions. How did these two meet? Did they even actually have a thing? Is that why Lou is both protective of Debbie and impatient about any conversation involving her ex? Although Oceans 8 clearly wants its viewers to catch the fascinating dynamic between these two—the implications are simply too obvious for even the straightest person alive to believe they were inserted into the movie by accident—it also makes no effort to clarify their history. And, its worth repeating, theres clearly history.

That history is also a lot more interesting than the bit of romantic backstory we do get in the movie. Like Oceans 11 before it, which revealed that Danny Oceans big heist was really a ploy to punish the casino owner who was dating his ex-wife, Tess (Julia Roberts), Oceans 8 is also something of a revenge story. Debbie, too, has an ex; his name is Claude, hes played by Richard Armitage, and hes the reason Debbie got sent to prison in the first place. But unlike Oceans 11, which spent a decent amount of screen time putting Clooney and Robertss compelling and playful chemistry on display, Oceans 8 cant seem to decide what it wants to do with Claude. More than anything, he feels like a testosterone-filled waste of space; if it had nixed him altogether, the film wouldnt feel any less complete. Plus, if it had, it might have had more time to focus on Debbie and Lou.

Its ending is, perhaps, the films most vexing move of all. After Debbie and her crew inevitably succeed in their mission, robbing the Metropolitan Museum of several pieces of gigantic, borderline-priceless jewelry, the film offers us a glimpse at how each woman spends her share of the money. Rihannas pot-smoking hacker character, Nine-Ball, buys a bar and names it after herself. Scene stealer Anne Hathaways narcissistic actress character gets to direct her own movies now. And then theres Lou, who mounts her motorcycle and rides off into the sunset, looking almost like one of the leads in the classic Black Mirror episode “San Junipero”—a beautifully told love story about two women that ended with Mackenzie Daviss character, Yorkie, driving off into the sunset in a convertible with the love of her life, Kelly (Gugu Mbatha-Raw).

But when Lou was riding away, where was her Kelly? Well, instead of hopping on the back of Lous hog, Debbie was, sigh, visiting her brother—the now deceased Danny Ocean (George Clooney)—at his gravesite. Wheres Debbies directors chair, her bar, her grand ride off into the future—with Lou by her side? Even a coy “will they, wont they” conclusion would have been more satisfying than a quiet murmur to a brother who never even made a live cameo in the movie. (Because he might not actually be dead, right? Just watch him show up in Oceans 9.)

Perhaps its asking too much to wish for an ending that makes explicit what was already heavily implied—and perhaps pairing Lou and Debbie would even have felt pat. And yet, like a queer Carrie Bradshaw, I couldnt help but wonder what could have been. Maybe thats waiting for us in Oceans 9, too.

Get Vanity Fairs HWD NewsletterSign up for essential industry and award news from Hollywood.Laura BradleyLaura Bradley is a Hollywood writer for VanityFair.com.

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