Sometimes, an hour and 45 minutes just isn’t enough time.
Like, for instance, when a deadbeat writer discovers a pill that turns his brain into a supercomputer, allowing him to learn a new language in a day, churn out a bestseller in less than a week and manipulate the stock market so that $100,000 becomes $2 million.
That’s precisely what happens to Eddie Morra (Bradley Cooper) in “Limitless,” and while his rush from rags to riches is exhilarating, it’s over too soon. Just as we’re starting to see what being “limitless” means, the movie shuffles Eddie off to a neat and tidy conclusion.
As ESPN columnist Bill Simmons tweeted: “‘Limitless’ was a solid PPV movie that would be a much better TV series. I just wanted the guy to keep being limitless.”
Couldn’t agree more, Bill.
“Limitless” bucks the trend for movies that imbue their protagonist with godlike abilities. Unlike “Bruce Almighty,” which squandered the potential of turning Jim Carrey into God, “Limitless” aptly handles the responsibilities of giving Cooper unlimited brain power.
What holds this movie back is what has to come with any movie – a plot that wraps up in less than two hours (unless it’s “Lord of the Rings” or some other prolonged epic).
Because of the basic laws of filmmaking, we get this great concept wrapped up in a story of shady mob bosses and back-stabbing Wall Street tycoons, one of whom – Carl Van Loon (Robert De Niro) – tries to keep Eddie under his thumb.
It’s pretty standard fare, with enough foot chases and fisticuffs to satisfy action junkies and even a little romance thrown in for those who enjoy their suped-up brain movies with relationship drama.
Where “Limitless” makes up for its pedestrian plot is with its cinematography. Director Neil Burger and his crew came into this movie with a vision in mind – show what the world would look like to someone tripping on a brain drug that’s all-powerful and very dangerous.
They achieve wild success in that regard, giving viewers fish-eyed time warps across New York, flashbacks that would feel at home in a graphic novel and characters who routinely see multiple copies of their own bodies.
Incorporating that same look and feel throughout the whole movie helps it feel like an experience rather than a gimmick.
On the performance front, Cooper handles the transition from bumbling to brilliant with ease despite getting a role with huge “over the top” potential. He’s slovenly before NZT (the brain pill) and suave afterward, and not only that, he’s charming the entire time.
Cooper also plays Eddie with a morality that makes his character sympathetic even when his decision-making is questionable, which makes for a likeable, yet flawed, protagonist.
Some critics have suggested “Limitless” is Cooper’s breakout role and that description is apt. If there was a question of whether that stylish guy from “The Hangover” could carry a blockbuster, this movie and it’s $50 million in revenue gives a definitive answer.
There isn’t much acting to critique outside of Cooper besides De Niro, who takes his limited screen time and acts the same way with Eddie that he did with Ben Stiller’s Greg in “Meet the Parents.”
Suffice it to say, you know what you’re getting with De Niro at this point in his career and it’s nothing out of the ordinary.
What handicapped “Limitless” was that its running time couldn’t be limitless. It’s the right idea trapped in the wrong storytelling medium, hampered by the constricting walls of modern cinema.
But that doesn’t mean it isn’t worth the trip.
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