Soderbergh struts with ‘Magic Mike’

Steven Soderbergh has an unusual talent: He can take an average script and make a good movie, but he can’t always take a lame script and make an average movie. In the latter category: “Haywire,” which was released earlier this year. The former: “Magic Mike,” which opened Friday.

On a basic level, “Magic Mike” is nothing special. It stars Channing Tatum as a male stripper who dreams of something better. But the money is so good, and the lifestyle so alluring, that he finds it hard to make a move. Of course, banks aren’t in the habit of making business loans to guys with no credit rating, no matter how much cash they can pull out of a briefcase. Then Mike meets a guy, who has a sister, and he begins to see his life in a new light.

If this sounds familiar, think “Boogie Nights,” P.T. Anderson’s study of the porn industry. But while Anderson strives for greatness, and arguably succeeds, Soderbergh settles for creating solid entertainment. And he is helped by stirring performances by Tatum, who continues to grow as a multi-talented movie star, and Matthew McConnaughey, who is likely to earn a Best Supporting Actor nomination for playing the charismatic strip-club owner.

“Magic Mike” is the kind of film that many people are going to overlook. Or dismiss. That would be a mistake. If you don’t mind a bit of nudity, and some graphic language, you might find that “Magic Mike” offers something that most Hollywood dreck does not. A slice of life, rendered authentically, by a filmmaker who — when he chooses to — can make the mere ordinary into something extraordinary. Maybe even magic.