Fun and creativity don't come without a few minor kinks

Rating: 7/10 (23 August 2011)

Amidst the sea of remakes, reboots, sequels, and prequels it's refreshing to see Hollywood produce something wholly original. Limitless is the story of Eddie Morra, a down on his luck writer whose career is going nowhere. Things change when he discovers a drug which enhances the brain immensely, unlocking the other 80% that we don't even have access to. He uses his enhanced intelligence to make money off of the stock market which causes him to get lots of attention from big-shot corporate investors. Morra slowly uncovers a whole line of corruption within the world he has gotten himself involved in, getting himself in over his head and having to deal with a lot more than he bargained for. It's a twisty, complex, and thrilling adventure that could have gone sour quickly, but it is actually surprisingly decent.
This is a movie you pretty much go into totally blind. There's no previous work for you to base the film on other than the book, but there's never any knowing if the film will be faithful to the book at all. The film isn't the work of some big time director that one can always expect good things from. It's an original film from the director of The Illusionist and one or two other recognizable titles. So, of course, going in I had my skepticism, seeing how this film could easily just be another dumb thriller that lacks any creativity. But, much to my surprise, it wasn't. It's actually very entertaining and very unique in its substance and style. It tells a story that is excellent at its core, but has a few kinks, making it a tad rough around the edges. A little more effort in tightening up the story could have gone a long way for the film, but its nothing that detracts from the overall impact of the film. Really it is just small absurdities and unrealistic elements that sometimes stretch the film's already thin logic. However, there is enough to hold on to that the film is still plenty entertaining.
Limitless finds a good balance between substance and style. It tells its complicated story but maintains a slick atmosphere that makes the film a lot of fun. It's well shot and the cinematography is excellent. Lighting is used heavily, giving the film a wash of bleakness at first, but after Morra takes the brain enhancing pill everything grows brighter. There are a lot of visual quirks that are used to illustrate Morra's enhanced brain. Stylish direction and clever edits give the film a great design and excellent overall style. The entire visual style of the film is just one smart choice after another, giving life and image to something that is going on in our protagonists brain. To do this in writing is easier because a book is a gateway straight into the mind of a character. On film it is more difficult to make it informative as well as interesting, but Limitless pulls it off very well.
This film isn't perfect but it is certainly one of the better action suspense thrillers to come out recently. This sub genre is something that produces a lot of pretentious and over zealous trash, but Limitless rises slightly above all that and becomes one of those films worth mentioning. I don't know that I will be talking about Limitless years or even months down the line, but it is a fun watch and a solid film.