Ever noticed how in Aussie films drugs are always a metaphor for love? Limitless says forget all that: drugs equal success, and - in a refreshing twist that pretty much justifies the movie all on its own - if you’re smart there’s no real downside to getting high on your own supply. That’s right: Hollywood cocaine dealers have finally pooled their cash and made a movie that gets across their side of the story (okay, probably not).
Eddie Morra (Bradley Cooper) is your average loser – he just lost his girl (Abbie Cornish), his book deal’s about to fall through because he can’t write a word, and he looks like a bum – when he runs into his drug dealing former brother-in law. There’s a new pill in town called NZT-48, and what it does is make you a lot smarter. Turns out being super-smart (Guy Richies’ Sherlock Holmes film-style, where smart means seeing all the connections super-fast) has a whole lot of uses around the home: Eddie gets laid, gets his book written and gets his flat in order all in one night. It’s no surprise then that he goes looking for more; it’s even less of a surprise when the dealer turns up dead. Luckily Eddie finds the stash the killers couldn’t, and he’s off on a brain bender that soon has him making swanky new friends, visiting classy new places, winning back the girl, and generally cleaning up his act.
Of course, that’s not enough, and he ditches the writing gig (it’s for chumps) for the world of high finance, where a mogul (Robert DeNiro) takes him under his wing. It’s not all plain sailing though, as an early loan from a Russian mobster is proving hard to pay back, Eddie’s starting to have blackouts and who’s the mysterious man who seems to be following him everywhere?
It’s kind of hard to sink the boot into a movie that actually comes out and says being smart is good, and fortunately this is just off-kilter enough to keep you guessing even when it seems like there’s only one way for it to pan out. For example, usually this kind of film ends up being a boring and painful lecture on morality: drugs are bad, getting things you haven’t earned is worse, and so on. Not here. Sure, there are plenty of warnings that NZT has lethal side effects, but Eddie’s one step ahead of them – and everyone else in the film, who usually come off second best once they get on the NZT train.
Instead of the usual predictable plot – the drugs come from a sinister corporation that wants them back, for example – this just throws problems in Eddie’s way and once he solves them the film doesn’t look back. There’s a scene where a supporting character has to take NZT to get out of trouble, and while it feels like it’s going to turn out to be a major plot twist and moral dilemma, once the problem's solved (by using a little kid as a weapon, which is the kind of amoral thing this film excels at) it’s never mentioned again.
If you have any moral qualms about checking out a film where about 60% of the suspense comes from a junkie trying to hide or retrieve his stash, this isn’t the film for you. If, on the other hand, you think it’s high time for a junkie President, this may just be your bag.
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