Limitless

Bradley Cooper’s versatility is put on display in the cross-genre vehicle, Limitless. Cooper’s character is a down in the dumps writer until a miracle drug reverses his fortunes by activating the unused portion of his brain. He then makes money, fixes his relationship and inevitably gets in to life threatening trouble. Cooper is very capable in this lead role and is able to keep his character likeable even when he is making poor decisions. This helps to keep the audience’s attention through the points that the film gets a bit repetitive and slow.

As strong as Cooper is, some of the of the actors have trouble playing second fiddle. I’m looking at you at Robert De Niro. While his performance may be better than some of his recent films, it’s basically a generic role that is acted out with no particular brilliance. But like I said, this is Cooper’s movie through and through. The majority of the plot is like an offshoot of Wall Street, except for the whole sci-fi drug element. Now, for the most part this is an interesting combination. However, all the scenes where Cooper is going through withdrawal and collapsing on the ground get to be a bit much. One or two would have sufficed, but they keep turning up.

The whole film gives off an uneasy feeling, and the resolution never quite gels with the themes. The ending is quite rewarding for the audience, but it’s also debatable. Did he or didn’t he? Is he lying or not? No spoilers here, but they’re definitely some points to think about during the end credits. The other gimmick that proves more of a distraction than a benefit is the narration. When the voice over says nothing that is not already obvious from the movie itself, then it shouldn’t be there. Even Cooper couldn’t turn unnecessary narration into something worthwhile, but he did make Limitless a success. (8.3 out of 10)