Magic Mike’s Last Dance is cinema’s equivalent of the sweat drop emoji minus any of the ambiguity. Super-rich divorcee Maxandra Mendoza (Salma Hayek Pinault) is super-thirsty for Mike Lane (Channing Tatum), with director Steven Soderbergh working wonders in a lusty opening dance scene between the two using flashy camera angles and furniture in exhilarating fashion as the two grind up on each other. The use of rain and water throughout the film leaves zero doubt on its approach to female desire and satisfaction, so it’s a shame that the character of Maxandra never feels fully developed. 

Following the pandemic, Mike is in financial trouble as his furniture business folds. While bartending at a charity function, he meets Maxandra who makes him an offer he can’t refuse: one month’s work for 60k. For her part, she whisks him off to London to create the Magic Mike live show as a middle finger to her cheating husband. 

The first film in the trilogy (also directed by Soderbergh) reached into Tatum’s real-life experience as a stripper while this one goes back to his acting roots, playing out like a sexy Step Up. It’s all about putting on a show, with Mike himself now in the director’s seat and Maxandra the producer. They bicker constantly, with her insecurities eventually rising to the surface and affecting their relationship. One of the best dance sequences makes reference to great cinema. It’s also a beautifully choreographed expression of love and desire, something which the entire film grapples with in multiple, occasionally frustrating ways. 

Magic Mike’s Last Dance is in cinemas from Friday 10 February.