What’s it about?
Elite con-man Nicky (Will Smith) agrees to tutor Jess (Margot Robbie) on the ways of deception and money-making, beginning an affair in New York that brings them hurtling back together years later in Argentina.
What did we think?
Dominic says: Smith and Robbie are exactly the charismatic couple you want, and it’s easy to watch them pull off big steals together in grand locales such as Buenos Aires and the American Super Bowl. It’s less easy to remember the plot, not because it’s too complicated but because the constant lies and illusions fail to distract from the fact that they’re playing uninteresting characters. It’s sort of funny, sort of pretty, but in the end sort of not very good.
Elodie says: Focus – something I definitely didn’t lose during this movie! It was edgy, clever and had enough twists it’d give a tornado a run for its money. I like movies where you get sucked in from the get go. Focus did that for me. I also think the style of local-born Margot Robbie played a factor in that too.
I’d give it 4 ½ stars out of 5.
When will Hollywood learn that just casting stars with charism and/or pulling power isn’t enough to make a film successful? Get a good plot first and work from there. 2/5