Eddie Mora (Bradley Cooper) has an opportunity to try an exclusive new drug called Limitless which allows you to use all of your brain rather than the 50% we apparently normally use. The consequence is vastly increased intelligence and the ability to see things before they happen; however, it is not without its side effects and Eddie is by no means the only person talking Limitless.
This is an example of a film that takes a fairly simple idea and runs with it, and also manages to weave an interesting story around its central premise. It's not the most cerebral film, but at the same time it's not completely mindless. Bradley Cooper is very good as the main protagonist Eddie; he is suitably surprised at having increased intelligence, but manages to be very suave with it. Robert De Niro is also very good as Carl Van Loon, the chief exec of the firm Eddie ends up working for.
The film is bright and the palette is full of colour, especially when Eddie is talking Limitless, at which point there are some very cleverly edited zoom transitions to convey his heightened sense of awareness. I also liked the way that seemingly unrelated events were linked and everything could be traced back to Limitless.
A very enjoyable film whose story builds nicely on its basic premise, until everything becomes connected. Well acted and stylishly shot, Limitless is well worth a look.
Good review Russ. It's an entertaining movie but I couldn't help but feel like there was something missing at the end. Still trying to figure out what that was, but it will eventually come to me one of these days.
ReplyDeleteCheers Dan. I'm not sure I really felt anything was missing, but like I say it's not the most complicated film so I don't think I expect it to do something incredible.
Delete