Limitless

Do you ever feel like you’re not using your brain to its full capability? What if you could take a pill that could unlock a seemingly limitless potential? Yesterday, Eddie was just another starving writer struggling to make ends meet. Now he’s brokering thousands of dollars in the stock market and making his way up in the financial world ladder, all thanks to this one little clear pill.

Limitless follows the rapid rise of Eddie Morra (Bradley Cooper) as he takes the world by storm after he is introduced to a radical new drug that gives people access to 100% of the brain, allowing them to focus in on miniscule details and recall anything from their past. Like anything good, improved concentration doesn’t come without some harmful side effects.

At first, Eddie enjoys his instantaneous success but soon we see him fall into drug addiction and like any addict will tell you, it’s not pretty. Excessive sweating, dizziness, and even blackouts plague him as he continues to increase the dosage in order to get the same desired effect. You can really tell that as the film progresses his condition worsens. Through the use of clever camera techniques, the audience joins Cooper on his trippy experience.

What stands out with Limitless is how we too become part of this drug. Before Eddie takes the pill, everything appears dull and washed out. Only after he takes his first hit does the camera brighten up and we see the color and life of the world around him. Eventually it gets to the point to where you don’t even notice the colors fading until he pops another pill and then, bam, everything’s bright again. The film also opens with a spectacular zoom effect that’ll mess with your head for a bit. It does, however, go on to use this effect one too many times throughout.

While the drug provides limitless potential, the film itself fails to capitalize on it. The story starts off rather strong but then crosses the border between imaginative and utterly ridiculous. At times, things were so chaotic I felt as if I was watching another Crank. Sorry but having to drink the blood of a man you just killed to get another fix is where I draw the line.

Limitless is one wild experience but simply doesn’t give you a good enough high. The camera work is great but the story lacks a certain depth to it. In the end, you’re left craving more even though another dose of the film probably isn’t the best of ideas.

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