Scarlett Johansson's Lucy is a sleak, crazy and extravagant sci-fi

Rating: 9/10 (10 August 2014)

We all fall for the seductive notion of some kind of superpower, especially if it's just us in the world. That's why it's called superpower. Many writers have played and manipulated this idea with Transcendence and Limitless being the latest consequences. Luc Besson's Lucy is a better culmination than at least these two. The premise being that a human uses less than 10% of his brain.
Scarlett Johansson plays Lucy, a regular college girl with an obviously jerk boyfriend who forces her to deliver a briefcase having "documents". Suddenly the jolly jerk is killed and Lucy is taken by a drug lord. The briefcase contains a blue drug which is the sci-fi element of the film. The drug is surgically inserted into her stomach and Lucy becomes the courier. But the ravenous minions molest her and beat her up. A recurrent of kicks on her stomach and the drug leaks into Lucy's system, slating one of the most dramatic inceptions of superpower. Professor Norman (Morgan Freeman) is small parallel character. Norman is the best expert on the brain but his theories are a mere speculation since no human has used 20 or 30 or 50 or 100% of his brain. Lucy contacts him and confronts that his theories are right. She has 24 hours before her body becomes incapable of handling her.
Luc Besson had to keep the critics at bay before writing this one. He has knowingly not cared much about the ambiguous existing scientific theories about the brain. But he manages a perfect equilibrium between theories and entertainment, purposely compromising on scientific details. Lucy knows telekinesis. She can control humans, a dozen of them in a second. She doesn't feel pain. She can still remember the taste of her mother's milk, change her physical structure. She can eventually travel in time.
The 90 minutes film is paced fast and is high on adrenaline action. Nobody knows what we can do by using 100% of our brain. So it's better to dump the contradicting scientific theories and enjoy this fun ride with the beautiful lady.