Feb 27 2015

Focus

Lifelong con-man Nicky (Will Smith) runs into trouble when an old accomplice and flame(Margot Robbie) shows up and throws a wrench in his latest scheme. Staying in character and never giving up the con are the rules to live by, but doing so could lead to a deadly outcome. How to survive one more heist? focus Written and Directed by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa, this twisting, turning, who done who plot seems to lumber through the motions trying to outsmart the audience, playing them as “the vic” or “the newbie,” slowly letting everyone in on the super secret stuff that con artists do. Which, mind you, is interesting stuff, and the perfected art of pickpocketing with assistants is an impressive orchestration to watch, but then there’s the romance side to the film, and while Smith and Robbie do seem to share on screen spark, their overall story is as dry as the Las Vegas dessert, ho hum. All told, think matinee, but really more of a rental later. Focus is rated R.


Feb 27 2015

The Lazarus Effect

Frank and Zoe (Mark Duplass and Olivia Wilde) are two lead medical students with assistants Clay, Niko, diabetes and pregnancy and documentarian Eva (Evan Peters, Donald Glover, Sarah Bolger). On a quest to bring people back from the dead and give second chances to the world, the gang stumble upon what might just be the secret of re-animation. Of course there are always the unintended consequences of disrupting nature’s balance, but what if? What if? Lazarus Based on the name of an actual rare medical condition where the body of a deceased individual flings their arms out to the side upon autopsy (don’t ask how I know these things), Director David Gelb takes his first stab into feature length cinema with this moderately suspenseful thriller. Trouble is, writers Luke Dawson and Jeremy Slater haven’t come up with anything terribly new morphing Flatliners (1990) with Carrie (1976), and once again, with an omnipotent super-villain created, all logic gets shot in the foot and the thrill is gone. So, strong start but repetitive finish makes this a rental later for a few jump scares. The Lazarus Effect is rated PG-13.