Review of Focus (2014) by Dennis R — 11 Nov 2015

Focus has zero focal point. I do not want to be laughed at and robbed at the same time. What a group of miscreants! All these characters could rot in FED prison and no one would visit them. Very creepy ensemble of the morally bankrupt.

I want to believe a STING (Newman and Redford) quality film exists out there but Smith is simply wrongly cast. He keeps stumbling over his "starlight" ego. I put most of the blame on him for accepting this role.

This could have been a better movie. Robbie tries her best but even her alluring beauty becomes irrelevant to the movie. The whole film is completely glorifying malignant narcissism and some kind of awful high class grifter crime that does not exist.

It is highly imaginative to suppose these people exist with zero consequences but the people involved in these activities in reality are organized criminals called mafia or ethnic gangsters that do commit violent crimes such as murder as a means to an end.

And, the criminals often end up in prison or dead. Smith looks exhausted in this flick after too many horrible flops under his belt. The main character has a peculiar, cold indifference that successfully manages to stop the audience from caring about the fate of any character including Robbie.

I will give it one star for one watchable scene when they start betting on anything about the Super Bowl. Unfortunately, if someone did bet this way he would not be in a casino too long or have anything too long.

Fortunately, I saw this flick on a TV channel network. I did not waste my money or time on a ticket. This movie would have been better if Robbie was not so shy. Robbie was misused in this flick. Smith is a good actor in certain films but he has never been able to be a main character to me.

He is a great secondary character with main actors. Period.