Review: Limitless

daniel cohen reviews the new no. 1 movie in america …

Plot: Struggling writer Eddie Morra (Bradley Cooper) is given a pill which enables him to use his brain to the fullest potential. He quickly becomes a genius but must stay on the drug, or he’ll lose the power. When the drug starts creating side effects, he struggles to maintain control.

If you can accept the basic premise of this film, you’ll enjoy it quite a bit. I did. When Eddie starts taking this pill, his rise from the gutter to bad-ass superstar in all things happens almost instantaneously. It’s a pretty nutty idea, but they simplify it enough. The whole allure of Limitless is watching this guy become a mega-genius, and just like the pill he swallows, the movie uses this hook to its fullest potential but never gets too ridiculous. It’s got major issues, but it also has great suspense and a superb performance from Bradley Cooper.

Cooper really sells you on this character. You like him a lot, even if he does come off as pathetic and lazy in the beginning. You clearly want him to succeed. What’s impressive with Cooper is that he has to play a lot of personalities in one character. We’ve got Eddie the almost homeless writer, there’s the confident genius Eddie, and of course the “I’m losing control” Eddie, and my personal favorite, withdrawal from the super-drug Eddie. Cooper and director Neil Burger really bring you into this guy’s head. One of the problems, though, is I’m not sure how to feel about him in the end. It makes for a good discussion, although it feels like the film wants you to like Eddie, but I’m not sure it’s that simple.

That’s one of the biggest flaws here. They touch on some pretty serious shit that doesn’t get wrapped up in a clear manner. Without spoiling it, there’s a very bad thing that happens in the middle of the movie as a result from the drug that is never fully explained. The movie wants you to move on, but its way too big to just forget.

The ending is clunky as well giving lazy answers to a couple major questions. It’s really frustrating. One of the supporting characters also makes a random choice at the end, which makes no sense to the character’s previous actions.

Despite all that, the film is terrifically directed. For every lackluster explanation, there’s an intelligent rationalization for something else. And once Eddie really starts using this drug to its full advantage, and his brain moves at warp speed, the movie moves with it as the character and visuals are totally in sync. It’s extraordinary to experience what he goes through in such a stylized manner.

As the story reveals more and more about the history and consequences of this drug, it gets more and more intense and tension filled making for some great and thrilling scenes. One of which involves a chase on an ice pond that ends in the most bad-ass way possible. Another is towards the end in Eddie’s upscale apartment involving one of the pills, which is truly gut-wrenching.

This is a very enjoyable and wildly entertaining movie, but I can’t call it great because of a few plot holes and questionable character decisions. The acting all around is top notch; Robert De Niro, Abbie Cornish, Anna Friel, Johnny Whitworth. But it’s Cooper who carries this movie and gets you emotionally invested.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10 (Very Good)