Focus (2015) [Blu-ray]
Comedy | Crime | Drama | Romance

Tagline: It's about distraction. It's about focus. The brain is slow and it can't multitask. Tap him here, take from there.

Nicky (Will Smith) is a seasoned master of misdirection who becomes involved with novice con artist Jess (Margot Robbie). As he's teaching her the tricks of the trade, she gets too close for comfort, and he breaks it off. Three years later, Jess - now an accomplished femme fatale - shows up in Buenos Aires during the high-stakes race-car circuit, throwing Nicky off his game in the middle of his latest dangerous scheme.

Storyline: Nicky Spurgeon is an extremely accomplished con man who takes an amateur con artist, Jess, under his wing. Nicky and Jess become romantically involved, and with Nicky's profession of being a liar and a cheater for a living, he realizes that deception and love are things that don't go together. They split, only to see each other three years later... And things get messy.

Reviewer's Note: Reviewed by Kenneth Brown, May 29, 2015 -- A note to filmmakers: titling a movie with a potential critical pun invites the wrath of all too pleased-with-themselves critics. Look no farther than cinema's latest victim, Glenn Ficarra and John Requa's Focus, a solid, smartly penned, wonderfully unpredictable con within a con some loved but some were quick to dismiss with a pithy "it lacks... focus!" Cue smoky comedy club rimshot. The irony is Focus is extremely focused, perhaps too focused, using slick sleight of hand, pickpocketing plot points, and taking advantage of every gullible mark in the audience. And therein lies Ficarra and Requa's second non-problem, one that extends beyond disgruntled critics. No one likes being duped. We think we do. We think we love when a movie gets one over on us, and sometimes we do. ("I see dead people!" "Keyser Söze!" "What's in the box?!") More often than not, we shake our fists at the heavens. Too contrived! Came out of nowhere! Doesn't make sense! And sometimes that's true too. But when a good flick twists when we think it should turn, jukes right instead of left, alters the way we see previously likable characters, especially when it's at our expense, we balk, assuming the fault lies with the filmmaker rather than our own expectations. Well, Focus got one over on me. Several times. It twisted every time I thought it would turn, favored right every time my mind barked left, challenged who I warmed to and who I didn't, and I loved it. Not quite as much on my first viewing as my second, or my third, but I loved it. Ficarra and Requa haven't delivered the second coming of the great con-man classic, but they've brought their patented wit, flow and cool-cat ease to the genre. Divisive? Apparently. Entertaining? Absolutely.

When seasoned master of misdirection Nicky Spurgeon (Will Smith) becomes unexpectedly and romantically involved with novice con artist Jess Barrett (Margot Robbie), teaching her the tricks of the trade, she gets too close for comfort. After a successful multi-million dollar con, Nicky abruptly breaks off their partnership. Three years later, his former flame—now an accomplished femme fatale—shows up in Buenos Aires in the middle of the high stakes racecar circuit at the side of billionaire Rafael Garriga (Rodrigo Santoro). But while battling old feelings, dodging Garriga's chief of security (Gerald McRaney), and pursuing multiple angles, his plans are thrown for a loop. Soon the consummate con artist finds himself off his game.

Refreshingly free of the Smithisms of the '90s and early '00s, Focus' Will Smith -- reserved and in full control of his craft -- is one cool customer, far less interested in positioning Nicky as a force of manipulative nature through one-liners and oh-snap comebacks than in digging deep and figuring out what makes his damaged career con tick. A fear of commitment. Family. A neglectful father. Vulnerability. Feelings best left suppressed in his corner of the criminal underworld. Smith's chemistry with Robbie is just as electrifying, giving the film jolt after jolt that sends it scurrying out of the genre's boy club and gives equal play to Jess. Robbie, in turn, sells every pickpocket and con, of her design or his, and leaves you intrigued but genuinely scratching your head. Is Jess trying to one-up Nicky? Get revenge? Is she really smitten or is it all a part of some elaborate long con? Is Nicky ever honest? How much is impulse, how much is planning? Is he falling for her? Running circles? Getting lost in his own lies? Focus is divided into two distinct halves, as are Smith and Robbie's performances. It's that much harder to get a bead on either one, but multiple viewings quickly reveal just how much of a handle the actors and filmmakers had on the script, the story as it unfolds, and each layer of the movie's many cons.

Don't be surprised if you get a Prestige vibe from Focus. Nolan's 2006 film presents the very structure it's about to spend two hours embracing -- the Pledge, Turn and Prestige -- at the outset, just like Ficarra and Requa's third feature lays out everything you need to know, all the context you'll require, from the beginning. The rest is a matter of sitting back and watching a few talented magicians do their thing. You know you're not privy to all the information. You know illusion is the name of the game. You know the riddles are as important as the answers. So why try to piece it all together? The thrill of figuring it out before anyone else, sure. But there's more fun to be had if you let go, enjoy the ride, then work back through to see if Focus adds up as much as its third act suggests. As much as its third act does. When Ficarra and Requa draw attention to their right hand, they steal with their left. When they bump your shoulder, they're slipping your wallet out of your jeans. When they brush your hair, they're swiping your watch. From start to finish, Focus is as much about following each con as it is about being conned, and it always seems to be one step ahead of its audience, right up through the last ace it slips out of its sleeve. (The immediate plot hole you'll assume this ace-reveal opens isn't a plot hole at all. Watch the hotel scene that will come to mind again. You'll know the one. That nagging little plot hole closes right up and brings with it a respect for the intricacy of the endgame.)

Will everyone be as jazzed by Focus' gamesmanship? No. Our own Brian Orndorf felt quite differently. But that doesn't make either of us right. I was swindled and had a blast. He was swindled and didn't. God bless the movies. One man's cheap trick is another man's master con. But watch it, decide for yourself, then join the conversation. What else are we all here for, other than a love of all things cinema?

Focus may split viewers but I ate it up, and didn't mind being an easy mark for Ficarra and Requa. Smith and Robbie deliver, the directors' writing is sharp, and the film has as much fun running cons as it does delighting in their details. Warner's Blu-ray release is terrific too, minus its slim supplemental package, which doesn't offer a lot. The disc's video presentation and DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 surround track make up for any disappointment, though, and leave little to complain about. This one comes recommended.

[CSW] -2.6- This could have been an Ocean's Eleven-style caper flick, if only the sense of team and mission drove the film. Instead, it seems much more interested in the corny, boring, and completely unconvincing romance between a desperate Smith and an annoying Robbie. We're asked to be invested in this cloying courtship when we are never convinced there is anything to really get behind. It should've just stayed in the caper-con-thriller lane. Unfortunately, just like Smith's character suffers as his focus shifts from crime to romance, so does the movie's quality. I liked the characters but with their con aspect there was no reason to believe that the romance was any more real than just a con. So this turned out to be nothing great yet nothing horrible and while entertaining, it is only worth watching again to pick up on some of the subtleties of some of the thievery. Focus seems to lose its focus in over-seriousness and bad romance.
[V4.5-A4.5] MPEG-4 AVC - No D-Box.


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