Surprisingly Exciting and Thought Provoking Film

Rating: Null/10 (19 July 2011)

What if you could expand the limits of your mind? What if you could remember things you thought you had forgotten, understand the world in a matter of seconds and minutes? What if you could change the world with this gift? Limitless presents a fascinating theory in a film that's frantic, exciting, and crackling with creative energy. It's not perfect, but I am very surprised to find this film as endearing as it was.
The film presents the concept of a drug that can unlock huge potential in anyone. A person who was once lazy and unmotivated becomes a dizzying ball of energy and inspiration. They become smart, sophisticate, and capable of learning anything they desire. As you might suspect, this happens to our main character, Eddie, who goes from mooch to millionaire practically overnight. Of course, like any drug, there are side effects and the film does a good job of portraying this new, fast paced life Eddie achieves through this wonder drug.
More than anything, Limitless is a study in artificially achieving everything. It imagines a world where people can becomes smarter, more sophisticated, more ambitious, and more energetic without any of the work. It certainly seems harmless enough and it's a fantasy that is hard to argue with, but the films analysis of what if? is quite interesting. This is coupled with a top-notch performance from Cooper and some fantastic technical work makes this film a surprise. Cooper certainly does deliver a great performance, showing diversity as two people living in one mind separated by a chemical transformation. It's fun to watch Cooper, especially since he's somewhat different from the charming guy he tends to play (of which he is only charming half the time here).
Just as well, the dizzying array of camera and editing effects that, at first come off as too flashy, but quickly show a great relationship with the story at hand. They do wear a little bit, but they fit the film quite well. Probably the best quality of the film is it's pacing. It's relentless. 30 minutes into the film and Eddie is already a major player. The film hardly slows down to take a breath before playing tug of war with Eddie. It makes the film very exciting and it hardly gives you time to think about anything you might dislike about what you just saw.
There are issues here, however. Primarily, the second half takes a bit of a downturn. Things get a little too hectic and there are some unbelievable moments happening, particularly a certain scene in a park that features a fairly unbelievable turn of events. The ending also leaves a bit to be desired, with it ending a bit too Hollywood for me. Robert DeNiro is enjoyable, but once again, this is a role that is beneath him. Hard to accept DeNiro playing second to Cooper, but then it was hard to accept him playing second to Ben Stiller as well.
Overall, I enjoyed Limitless. It was entertaining and thought provoking with a relentless pace. Not perfect, nor is it even really that great, but certainly enjoyable. I'd recommend a rental.