Will Smith has been sort of flying under the radar lately, while I don’t even need to mention the failure that was After Earth (even though I pegged it as guilty pleasure status) and before that was Seven Pounds, a drama that had no footing, and a convoluted plot that was too dull for most moviegoers. Smith is not necessarily on-top of his game here in Focus, but his charismatic charm, and wit is on full display in a fun con caper, that has a little too much exposition, with very predictable outcomes. Match that with the equally as talented Margot Robbie (any man who saw Wolf Of Wall Street, knows EXACTLY who she is) – and well Focus does as the title suggests, keeps you focused.

Smith stars as Nicky, a third generation con-man who has been at it so long, not even Nicky knows where the lies end and the truth begins. Nicky and his hefty team (including Adam Martinez, the robust comic relief sidekick who knows our anti-hero better than anyone else) work big events such as the college bowl games, conventions and professional sports championships where the less than fortunate, albeit gullible, tourists make for easy targets.

Its thievery and at the same time hard work, and this is how Nick makes his living. Then there is the drop-dead gorgeous Margot Robbie as Jess, an inexpierenced con who pleads with Nicky to show her some new tricks of the trade. Obviously there is an instant amount of chemistry between the two, and they spark an interesting relationship.

Smith and Robbie are great together on screen, there is a certain level of mystery throughout their entire run. At one point Smith is playing her, then she is playing him, and just when you think their guards are down..they may actually be in love all over again. But the barriers of time seem to have different notions for the audience to inspect.

The directing duo of Glenn Ficarra and John Requa have the talents of filmmakers with enough edge to indulge in some bigger and more intense set pieces (that perhaps they’re not accustomed too.) Their last film, Crazy Stupid Love, was stupendous with it’s nice affirmation into the world of romantic comedies. Focus has more romance than what’s advertised, and for a brief little while-much of that takes away from the overall goal of the movie. Then at times, I found it hard to establish a sense of ‘where is this going’, however, when it does it’s well worth the price of admission.

A great scene that immediately comes to mind was when Nicky gets caught up in an escalating betting war with a thrill-seeking businessmen (BD Wong, in a nice, yet, small role that is fun to watch.) I mean the betting starts with a mere $10 at how many men will ogle a woman as she passes by. Then in an instance were talking $1.1 million dollars (say that in a Dr. Evil voice, it sounds better.) Obscene amounts of money being thrown around like it’s monopoly. The scene was grueling, brilliant, intense, and has a righteous pay off.

Of course once the plot starts to take more of a pulse, this is when Focus deteriorates from the plausible to the type of stuff you only see in movies like, Mission Impossible. It seems to get messier as the film goes on, and it perhaps maybe hard to clean-up. But the screenwriting team did a good job at doing just that, cleaning up. The final twists and turns that occur within the films climatic fifteen minute span are all something you could guess after the first half hour, never is it rocket science, although one could argue that it tries to be.

Still Smith does a flawless job stepping back into his wheelhouse, playing these types of roles that are more serious, yet afflicting enough to keep us interested. While Robbie is equally as fascinating with her movements of dashing charm that will make any man drool over her. There was a time while watching Focus that I lost track of time, and maybe it’s because, as the old saying goes, too much style can cause a rupture in the substance. Sometimes that’s just what you need. Grade: B