The philosophy of getting something for nothing

Rating: 2/10 (9 September 2012)

Limitless is a film that's problematic on many levels.
Firstly its based on a popular misconception about brain activity: that we use only a small amount of of our mental powers leading to the assumption that we'd be superhuman if we could harness all of it. In fact, here's the expert's opinion on the subject, taken from Wikipedia: "Neurologist Barry Gordon describes the myth as laughably false, adding, "we use virtually every part of the brain, and that (most of) the brain is active almost all the time"." In short: we use just as much as we need at any given time, no more no less.
However, factual inaccuracies are the least problematic issue with Limitless. It is the main character that breaks the film. A nobody, with no obvious talent or desire to succeed gets a designer drug that gives him superhuman intelligence and, avoiding all the hard work that goes into succeeding in life - he climbs the social, financial and intellectual pyramid literally overnight. Up to this point we still sympathize with him because we know this course of action leads to an inevitable downfall, a price that has to be paid and a lesson to be learned. Yet that never happens - at the end the main character is still fundamentally unchanged, still a nobody without the drugs, which he has managed to refine so as to use them without repercussions. That is the core of this film, getting something for nothing - twice. The lesson learned? Cheat as much as you can, use people as much as possible, regardless of who gets hurt (several deaths occur indirectly or directly the responsibility of the main character) and you will be rewarded appropriately. Just don't get caught doing it.
Truly, the main character makes the corporate sharks he associates with in the film look like honest, hard working individuals. In fact, even gangsters have it harder than this.
At certain points the movie devolves into pure fantasy - a sequence where the main character fights several individuals by recalling knowledge from Bruce Lee movies and fighting video tutorials - as if memory had anything to do with skill gained by endless repetition.
As for the rest, the performances are decent. There are a few nice camera tricks with continuous zooming in. The direction is competent, the movie itself watchable.
The subtext however, renders it mediocre at best.