A good plot but underdeveloped characters

Rating: 6/10 (17 April 2011)

Limitless
Director: Neil Burger (The Illusionist)
The film begins with the writer Eddie (Bradley Cooper) being dumped by his girlfriend, this is quickly followed by various examples of how bad his life is: we find out that he is divorced; he is writing a book and can't get started; his apartment is a mess. This all changes after a chance encounter with his former brother in law, who (after a past of drug dealing) works for a pharmaceutical company and has a legal wonder drug which allows you access to the full capability of your brain. Eddie very quickly becomes very successful; however he finds that it's not easy being at the top.
The role of Eddie is played by Bradley Cooper who has only really played the good looking cocky guy (in The Hangover and A-Team) but here he is playing both a loser (at the start) and then a confident successful businessman (later on). As the confident businessman he is perfect and very comfortable, but when playing the loser he looks unconvincing, and not really believable. The next biggest name (or maybe the biggest name depending on how you look at it) is Robert De Niro, who plays Eddie's eventual employer, who uses his talents to try to merge with another company. De Niro is very good but his character isn't, there is no depth, he is basically a one dimensional businessman. What I would have liked to have seen is De Niro trying to investigate why Eddie is so talented.
The main problem with this film however is the lack of a good main villain, it has a good hero who is likable and a kind of everyman, but the main villain is some random loan shark who also gets hooked on the drug. The finale with this villain is good (although somewhat unbelievable) but there is no real intellectual threat to him, it is a major problem.
There is also a lack of continuity, where Eddie (who is an intelligent man just not motivated) and the loan shark (who is not intelligent) and almost everyone else in the film gets addicted to the drug, when Eddie's on-again-off-again girlfriend takes it she is able to give it up without even so much as a struggle.
In conclusion, this is an average film, which definitely gives up character depth for plot; however there are some good moments like the lighting: it is very dull when he is not on the drug and then brighter and more lively when he is on it, letting the viewer know what's going on.
Overall: 6/10
Best quote: Eddie Morra: I see every scenario, I see 50 scenarios, that's what it does Carl - it puts me 50 moves ahead of you.