By The Filmhead (Holliston, Massachusetts)
The thing that I think I love about film is to be able to transport myself into a different world or life for an hour or two, clear my head and have some fun. They say anything can happen in the movies, but unfortunately this amazing quality sometimes can take us out of the movie as fast as it can leave us with some timeless moments, for Will Smith’s new film, Focus, this is just the case.
Despite how charismatic Will Smith is his performance in this was just a rehash of his same punk attitude and quick-witted one liners that I did not find funny. The writing in this movie was bad. I feel like they tried to throw in these ridiculous stats to make it believable but it just made it stupid. The chemistry between Margot Robbie and Will Smith was stale and bland, which makes me a worried about Suicide Squad even more.
This film really did not impress me, but I will say this, the general story line minus the BS stats, the poor performances, and the chemistry between Robbie and Smith kept me wanting to stay and find out if it was as predictable as I thought it was, which it is with one twist at the end that I didn’t see coming.
If you are a fan of either actor I could see how you could dig this movie, or if you looking to watch some mindless fun with absolutely no substance, I could also see how someone could like this. Me personally, I compare some of these theatrics to Steven Seagal using a two liter bottle as a silencer, just over the top stupidity that I didn’t find fun at all.
I give Focus a 4 out of 10. I’m nervous about SUICIDE SQUAD!!!!!!!!
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SPOILER FREE SWEETIE!!
Firstly if the screen chemistry between Will Smith and Margot Robbie is as forced as it is here in Suicide Squad we are in for a letdown. I just watched Focus and that is exactly what I struggled to do…FOCUS!
I normally am not one to complain about Mr. Smith but I forgave him for After Earth and had hoped he would be back on form. My hopes were dashed within the first 10 minutes of this movie which you would have thought Will Smith could play with his eyes closed, and furthermore he might as well have. He doesn’t have the twinkle in his eyes and if I didn’t know better I’d say he was bored as this overlong version of Hustle played out.
Smith’s character as a con artist hustler isn’t anything we haven’t seen before and I could have put up with that if the story was not arse numbingly boring and the 2 leads at least tried to have a spark. I don’t have a massive concern about their chemistry in Suicide Squad as that is all round a much different beast and I hope the producers and director have pumped the whole squad to bounce of each other somehow.
However this movie isn’t by no means a disaster, it’s just that it didn’t offer up anything we hadn’t seen before and I’d much rather have watched Adrian Lester and Robert Vaughn recruit new members on the big screen before embarking on a brand new series of Hustle with new faces.
I’d give the movie 4 out of 10 for the fact Margot Robbie is so dam hot!!!!
Disagree
From reading this review, I think you went into the theater already hating on the flick. I’m not even a fan of Will Smith, or Margot Robbie; just appreciating a job well done. No substance, poor performances, “bland” chemistry between the main actors etc. You are the FIRST reviewer – whether it was good or bad – who disliked Will and Margot’s chemistry, AND said that the whole cast gave poor performances; that’s astounding! And the writing was bad? Then how do you explain how snappy the dialogue was, Margot playing the funny, naive grifter well, Adrian Martinez being the comedic relief, and the believable love story (even if some believe it to have come “out of nowhere”)? You didn’t even give any good comments; the “basic story, except” line doesn’t count!
You couldn’t even give Xavier Perez Grobet props for his great cinematography, which made the colors pop and gave cool shots of the scenery?
I understood why some people did not like “Focus,” because of it being “predictable” or Will Smith not selling his character as well as Margot did hers, BUT the distance between you and them, is that they gave props! Even though I disagreed with their negative reviews, at least I could take them seriously!
Also, who cares about the stats being ridiculous! If anything, they added to the craziness and how clever the cons were! Again, you’re the only one to complain (actually, to even bring them up)!
Here is my review for Focus…
https://straightfromamovie.com/focus-review/