Stolen moments to cherish

might be relevant later on, you will have long forgotten about it by the time it comes into play.

This makes for a superbly satisfying experience of watching everything slip into place like tumblers in a well-oiled lock.

There is one late twist that does have a hint of deus ex machina about it, but in the end even this sequence is delivered with such style and flair, and fits to precisely into the plot, that I didn’t mind at all.

Soderbergh has not returned to direct this film but stays on as producer, and director Gary Ross ( The Hunger Games, Seabiscuit, Pleasantville and Big) has done an admirable job of keeping Ocean’s 8 faithful to the established aesthetic and feel of Soderbergh’s preceding films.

The scenes are composed and framed almost like high-end fashion commercials, and the soundtrack is used to great effect to enhance the bold swagger of the story. Add to that the expected references to fashion, the extravagance and the gleeful thievery, and the result is a slick, stylish piece of cinema.

Yes, Ocean’s 8 is a straight genre flick — it is a heist movie, pure and simple, and it follows the well-trodden formula of its kin very precisely. But, as with any good genre flick, this isn’t a weakness. This is simply the framework that holds the rest of the stylistic and narrative flourishes together, allowing the cast and story to just do their thing.

And Ocean’s 8 is a highly entertaining and satisfying caper.

(M) is now showing at Village Cinemas, the State Cinema and Cmax. Rating: