Slick and shiny, Focus is the latest film to pair home-grown talent Margot Robbie with an A-list veteran of the film industry.
If you take one thing away from Focus, it's to keep an extra-close eye on your personal possessions.
The film, which follows amateur scammer/pickpocket Jess (Robbie) and born-and-raised con man Nicky (Will Smith), features such dazzlingly slick and well-choreographed sequences of thievery, that you'll never look at a crowd or parade the same way again.
Jess and Nicky meet when the former tries to clean Smith's character out of his cash with a clumsy con.
Nicky, a veteran of the illegal craft, gives Jess some pointers after the failed con and their chemistry is clear from the get-go.
Jess follows Nicky to the Superbowl in New Orleans, where his crew of highly organised thieves (like a smaller-scale Ocean's 11) are ready to scoop what they can from unsuspecting revellers.
The first half of the film, where Jess learns the tricks of the trade under Nicky and the gang's tutelage and the full, unbelievable force of their superbly planned theft is displayed, is fantastic; it's fun, light and visually enjoyable, culminating in an awkward and tense encounter with a high-stakes bettor that rivals this year's earlier film The Gambler for gall.
If Focus ended after this first portion, it might have been a wise decision - instead, audiences are taken three years ahead, where Jess and Nicky meet again in Buenos Aires after leaving things on a sour note.
While the film retains its slick movement and high-production value in the second half, the script slips and slides, unable to find steady ground.
It's not bad, it's just a disappointing comedown from the excitement of the first half.
Focus feels like two independent narratives squeezed into one film, with only the thinnest of threads holding them together.
The filmmakers should have taken a leaf out of Peter Jackson's book, and split their story into two films (though, like Jackson should have figured out with The Hobbit, two is enough), giving each story more room to breathe and develop.
With better set-up, the second-half could have been a very good, smart film on its own, but feels rushed and relies too much on the suspension of audience belief.
Focus is still enjoyable and fun, especially the first half, and the second is good enough if you make yourself a deal not to think about it too hard.
For a piece of light entertainment, it ticks all the boxes.
Focus is in cinemas now and is rated MA15+.
