Summary:
A struggling writer takes an experimental drug and suddenly becomes a genius.
My Thoughts:
The movie “Limitless” came out right when Bradley Cooper (“The Mule”) was starting to get big. I remember seeing trailers for this film but not really thinking anything of it, but over the years it’s title has floated up whenever people talked about ‘Fun’ movies. That’s what this movie is: it’s fun. There are plenty of moments where it almost takes things too far and almost becomes obnoxious (there’s nothing worse than a movie that thinks its smarter than it is), but for the most part this film is carried along by some innovative cinematic techniques, a solid performance by Bradley Cooper, and an overall bonkers concept. This film wont be remembered as an uber-classy thriller; if anything it’ll be remembered as the pretty decent movie Cooper made before he started to really make some great career choices (“Silver Linings Playbook”, “American Sniper”, “A Star is Born”) and simultaneously it will be remembered as the film Robert De Niro (“Taxi Driver”) made after he started to run out of money from all of the great movies he made earlier in his career.
“Obviously I miscalculated a few things.”
Eddie Morra (Bradley Cooper) is a writer who hasn’t written a word in months; his girlfriend Lindy (Abbie Cornish, “Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri”) has just broken up with him; and his life seems to be falling apart all around. That is, until Eddie runs into his ex-brother-in-law Vernon (Johnny Whitworth, “Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance”) whom gives Eddie a new type of pill that makes the user a genius. Now on this pill, Eddie is able to see things no one else has, and soon he attracts the attention of shady third parties, such as they mysterious Man in the Tan Coat (Tomas Arana, “Gladiator”) and a corporate executive named Carl Van Loon (Robert De Niro).
So, as I mentioned, the best part about this film is the fun it provides, and most of the fun comes from the energy of Bradley Cooper. Today Cooper is a powerhouse in Hollywood, but in 2011 he had yet to earn his first Oscar nomination (eight years later he has seven nominations). I feel like that yearning for greatness comes across in a lot of Cooper’s earlier work. I myself first remember seeing Cooper in “Midnight Meat Train”, a slightly schlocky horror flick inspired by a Clive Barker short story, and though that film was not great (it’s another fun movie, though), I remember thinking that that Bradley Cooper guy really gave his everything to the role. In my opinion, an actor that puts just as much effort into a schlocky splatter film as he does into an Oscar-bait drama is an actor that deserves to succeed; so, good for you, Coop. Anyways, Cooper’s energy in this film was electric- he lights up the screen and steals scenes out from under even veteran actors like De Niro. Where the film itself is just okay, Cooper’s performance in it was enough for me to bump the film up a half a star. However, while Cooper’s performance is great, De Niro seems to be coasting. He seems bored or irritated more than anything. Abbie Cornish is also pretty unremarkable as Cooper’s on-again-off-again girlfriend; though I’ve honestly never seen her in a role where she was memorable.
I thought there were some cool cinematic moments that came along with this film as well. There were a couple camera tricks in certain sequences when the drug was starting to take effect, and those parts were always a touch trippy. There are scenes when the camera flies through the streets of New York using a “Vertigo”-esque effect, and other instances when the camera seems to have a sense of heightened awareness from the way things are lit and shot. Overall there are some pretty inventive techniques that keep the visuals interesting enough.
I think my biggest issue with this film is that it thinks it’s way smarter than it is. Remember ‘Flowers for Algernon’ or its adaptation “Charly”? That story seems to be sort of the inspiration for this movie (only this film takes it a few steps further). Once Eddie takes this pill, he, like Charlie Gordon, becomes a genius, and the way they show that genius is primarily through how they interact with other people. In both ‘Flowers for Algernon’ and “Limitless”, the protagonists shift quickly and everyone seems to notice an almost immediate difference. “Charly” handled this massive uptick in intelligence better in my opinion (it helps that Charlie is more likeable than Eddie). In “Limitless”, Cooper’s personality shifts from a down and out writer to a financial wizard with insights akin to Sherlock Holmes in an instant; he becomes a bit too cocksure, and in a way, his likeability is lessoned.
I also felt like this movie brought up a bunch of cool ideas and then never did anything with them. I wish I knew more about the scientists that originally developed the drug; I wish I knew more about Cooper’s Ex-wife (Anna Friel, “Timeline”) and her relationship to the drug; I wish the mobsters would’ve been flushed out a bit more.
Verdict:
I am sort of surprised this movie ended up with a PG-13 rating; there are a few scenes that are pretty graphic as far as violence goes, and the subject material is kind of heavy… I mean this is a movie about drug users… even if the drug the people are using doesn’t exist it still touches on heavy themes. Overall, this movie is fun enough for me to enjoy it. It’s not amazing, but it’s not bad.
Review Written By: