Focus (2001/I)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

Neal Slavin

Writers:

Arthur Miller (novel)
Kendrew Lascelles (screenplay)

Release Date:

2 May 2002 (Australia)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

Everything Is About To Become Very Clear

Plot:

In the waning months of World War II, a man and his wife are mistakenly identified as Jews by their anti-Semitic Brooklyn neighbors...

Plot Keywords:

Jew | Eyeglasses | Racism | Typist | Kiosk

Awards:

2 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

William H. Macy	...	Lawrence 'Larry' Newman
Laura Dern	...	Gertrude 'Gert' Hart
David Paymer	...	Mr. Finkelstein
Meat Loaf	...	Fred (as Meat Loaf Aday)
Kay Hawtrey	...	Mrs. Newman
Michael Copeman	...	Carlson
Kenneth Welsh	...	Father Crighton
Joseph Ziegler	...	Mr. Gargan
Arlene Meadows	...	Mrs. Dewitt
Peter Oldring	...	Willy Doyle
Robert McCarrol	...	Meeting Hall Man (as Robert Mccarrol)
Shaun Austin-Olsen	...	Sullivan
Kevin Jubinville	...	Mr. Cole Stevens
B.J. McQueen	...	Mel
Conrad Bergschneider	...	Tough's Leader

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for thematic material, violence and some sexual content.

Runtime:

106 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Australia:M | Iceland:12 | Finland:K-11 | Argentina:13 | Canada:PG | Norway:15 | USA:PG-13 (certificate #38298)

Filming Locations:

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Company:

Carros Pictures

Trivia:

Neal Slavin claimed to have wanted to make this film since college.

Goofs:

Continuity: Just after Mr. Newman his been attacked, one of the frames on his glasses is obviously bent. However, when he enters Mr. Finkelstein's shop just seconds later, his glasses are in perfect shape.

Quotes:

Lawrence 'Larry' Newman: Really, Gertrude, I never stop thinking about you. It's like I've been thinking about you for years. That's why you struck me so the first time I saw you.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Shanghai Kiss (2007)

Soundtrack:

My First Love

Terrific Performances and a finely tuned story

One of Arthur Miller's finest works, Focus, comes to the screen and while there was a lot to like about the movie, some of it seemed like it was almost unreal (though I'm not sure if that's in a good or bad way).

William H. Macy, great as always, plays Lawrence Newman, average Joe and good guy in Brooklyn, NY in the early 1940's who finds he needs a new pair of specs. Unfortunately, his choice of glasses makes him appear to be, well, Jewish, as this seems to his mother from the start. Lawrence tries to ignore the ignorance and bigotry in his neighborhood against the Jewish people, but with a string of events involving his neighbors (Meat Loaf, David Paymer), and a new girlfriend (Laura Dern in one of her best performances) who knows what trouble Lawrence is in, push him into the conflict of his life.

Often, Focus, delivers a poignant, startling and smart story in showing a character with so much at stake it is making him insane. Macy and the rest of the cast are so close to perfect and if only for them make this a must see. Not to dissapoint the fans of Miller's book, I suppose, but if it does then that is just another flaw. B+