Although it wasn’t a prolonged hiatus from the screen, Will Smith’s role in John Requa and Glenn Ficarra’s new film “Focus” was certainly not a triumphant return. Surely looking to emerge from a storm of negative criticism after the 2013 flop “After Earth,” Smith was shadowed by Margot Robbie’s debut lead performance. Thanks to Robbie’s standout performance, along with a colorful slate of supporting actors, the film was saved from Smith’s inability to reassert himself as one of the industry’s most versatile actors.

The film begins with seasoned con artist Nicky Spurgeon (Will Smith, “Winter’s Tale”) at an upscale restaurant where he meets Jess (Margot Robbie, “Z for Zachariah”) who tries to con him. Although her plan fails, he decided to apprentice her, putting her through a series of jobs burglarizing naive tourists. After Jess and Nicky develop a romantic bond, he abruptly releases her from the business after a masterful gambling con. Three years later the duo unexpectedly rendez-vous when Nicky does a job for an Argentine racecar owner, Garriga (Rodrigo Santoro, “Rio, I Love You”) in Buenos Aires. After Nicky attempts to get Jess to leave Garriga for him, he succeeds, only to be found out by Garriga and held hostage.

One of the films main faults was its structural problems. “Focus” is filled to the brim with plot twists and changes that are constantly interfering with the flow of the narrative. This becomes increasingly evident during the final hostage scene where Nicky, Jess and Garriga go back and forth, exchanging subterfuges. Subsequently, the plot changes more than four times within a period of 10 minutes. The shuffle between choppy action scenes and uninteresting sex scenes are exhausting and makes the film challenging to follow.

Even though the quick-witted humor peppered throughout “Focus” has many standout moments, Smith is unable to reliably deliver the punch lines with the ease and elegance of Robbie and supporting actor Adrian Martinez. Smith’s overall awkwardness in the role is only so surprising because these soft-action leads are roles where Smith has excelled in the past (“I Am Legend,” “Men In Black”). However, in Smith’s defense, the screenplay was extremely confining. The myriad of plot twists did not allow for substantial character development.

However, the real high point of “Focus” is the wonderful performance by Margot Robbie. Her charming wit and natural elegance juxtaposed with Smith’s overall awkwardness showcases her rapid and seamless growth from a supporting actress to a powerful lead. Robbie naturally delivers one-liners and charms her fellow characters as she illustriously moves about the romantic streets of Buenos Aires.

Unfortunately, it is apparent that Smith is unaware of how to handle Robbie’s emotional maturity, especially after their rendezvous in Argentina. For every laugh-inducing moment, Smith’s inability to handle Robbie’s bubbly, yet sexy, romantic energy forges uncomfortable squeamish moments for viewers.

Another redeeming factor making up for Smith’s subpar performance is the picturesque setting for most of the movie’s memorable moments. Buenos Aires made the shots of New Orleans look like the Fresh Prince’s West Philadelphia. The Argentine capital was the perfect setting for the premise of “Focus,” which has the perfect urbanity and elegance for the criminal action genre, but also has a seamlessly beautiful setting for a romantic film.

“Focus” has some refreshing humorous moments sprinkled amongst a storyline that is choppy and difficult to follow due to an exhaustive amount of plot twists. Beautiful settings and Robbie’s excellent breakout performance are the only factors that bring this scatterbrained film to life.

3/5