Limitless - (March 18, 2011): PG-13
Distributor: Relativity Media
Opening Weekend Box-Office: #1 with $18,907,302
Domestic Box-Office Gross to-date: $69,723,000
Gross Revenue: $100,323,000
Budget: $27 million
Director: Neil Burger
For all of his success, closer inspection does reveal that Bradley Cooper’s quality of work in Hollywood has been slightly uneven; sure we all loved him in The Hangover and his performance in The A-team was one of the better elements in the otherwise disappointing film, but I’m sure we would all like to forget the critically-panned All About Steve and the decisively under-performing Case 39. Though his best work usually comes when he is part of an ensemble, Cooper’s individual popularity among audiences is undeniable, and so many were undoubtedly curious to see what he could do in his first true leading role. Based on the 2001 novel The Dark Fields by Alan Glynn, Limitless was initially developed by Universal with Shia LaBeouf attached to the lead role, but the project eventually found its way to Relativity Media and Cooper was cast as the protagonist. While the combined star-power of Cooper and Robert De Niro would have probably been enough to generate some impressive ticket sales, marketing efforts were clearly geared towards the premise of Limitless, the idea of transforming into a rich and successful savant virtually overnight playing to audience’s deepest success fantasies; as Cooper put it in the trailer: How many of us know what it is to become the perfect versions of ourselves?” Based on that imaginative appeal alone, I knew I had to see this thriller.
Limitless introduces audiences to struggling New York City author Eddie Morra (Cooper), who is struggling with everything from book deadlines and rent payments to the heartbreak resulting from his recently being dumped by his longtime girlfriend, Lindy (Sucker Punch’s Abbie Cornish). After running into his ex-brother-in-law, a low-level drug dealer, Eddie is offered a sample of NZT-48, a new wonder drug that will allegedly allow him to access 100% of his brain’s power. Almost instantaneously after taking the drug, Eddie is transformed into a super genius, remembering innocuous details with encyclopedic accuracy and uncovering patterns and details with superhuman efficiency (he is able to finish writing his book in a matter of days and learns foreign languages just by casually listening to conversations). Once he gets his hands on a steady supply of NZT, Eddie not only takes Wall Street by storm, amassing an impressive fortune and attracting the attention of powerful businessman Carl Van Loon (Robert De Niro), but he also smoothly wins back the affections of Lindy. Unfortunately, Eddie soon begins to experience some adverse side-effects to the wonder drug, a complication only further aggravated by the fact that his success is attracting some very unwanted attention from the authorities, mobsters, and a mysterious assassin. With all of these complications, Eddie must decide if his newfound success is worth either his safety or sanity.
Maybe this has something to do with my status as an overworked grad student, but I’m sure that everyone at one time or another has fantasized about being a super-genius capable of achieving success with incredible ease, and that fact is what makes Limitless so entertaining. Bradley Cooper brings such charisma, humor, and energy to his role that you simply can’t wait to see what impressive mental feat he will accomplish next; you are not jealous of Eddie’s success, you idolize it. Combine that fact with his ability to hold his own against veteran Robert De Niro (who shines as a subtly threatening antagonist that audiences know not to cross), and Cooper proves that he has more than enough talent to skyrocket forward as Hollywood’s next go-to A-lister. This strong acting and intriguing premise are only further enhanced by the unique cinematography and production design; placing Eddie in exotic locales and luxury penthouses demonstrates the scale and desirability of his success, while erratic camera angles combine with the punctuated narrative flow and disorienting visual effects to help give the audience a true sense of the jumps in time that Eddie experiences as a side effect of the drug. Taken in its entirety, Limitless is a fast-paced, thrilling, and thoroughly entertaining film, but it is not without certain imperfections.
For as much as I enjoyed Limitless, I would be remiss if I didn’t point out a few of the discrepancies that hurt the overall quality of the film, the most obvious having to do with the overall pacing and bloated plot elements. Again, I loved the premise of taking a pill and going super-genius, and I understand how the fast pacing complements the energetic narrative, but it seems like the filmmakers simply tried to cram too much into one film. At times the plot moves so fast and introduces so many intellectual obstacles for the protagonist to solve that it becomes difficult to keep track of every problem or character presented. I found myself asking questions throughout in order to try and keep every element of the story straight, and even now I must admit that I still have unanswered questions. While this shortcoming is disappointing, the overall quality of Limitless makes such a criticism trivial at best; don’t over-think what you see on screen, simply sit back and enjoy.
Despite the strong buzz surrounding Limitless, analysts were still surprised by the film’s performance its opening weekend, beating out strong competition in the form of The Lincoln Lawyer and Paul to take the top spot with just under $19 million. Strong word-of-mouth has helped Limitless maintain an impressive domestic performance, and international box office receipts only further solidify the financial success of a thriller with a relatively modest budget of $27 million; Relativity Media has to be pleased with this turn of events. If anything, Bradley Cooper has more than proven that he has considerable talent outside the comedy genre, but that doesn’t mean that I’m any less excited for The Hangover: Part II. Though the film isn’t perfect, Limitless is nevertheless very entertaining and a smart thriller that is well-worth seeing in theaters.
Overall Recommendation: Very High
