Trepidation and Contempt on the Outer Limits: A Review of Limitless

"Drugs are a bet with your mind." (Quote by Jim Morrison from the American rock band "The Doors")

It seems rather apt that I have decided to open this review with a famous quote made by one of the most controversial figures in 20th century music. Not solely due to the quote itself, which stands as a telling elucidation of the film's central theme, but also due to the attribution associated with the statement. "The Doors" was a name inspired by Aldous Huxley's book on his experiences with mescaline. Entitled The Doors of Perception, Huxley referred to a quotation by the eminent poet William Blake: "When the doors of perception are cleansed, things will appear to man as they truly are.... Infinite." Huxley acknowledged that any user could open their mind to a plethora of possibilities and would experience a vision of clarity not achievable in a normal state.

This is certainly one of the central themes of Neil Burger's stylised thriller Limitless. Starring Bradley Cooper, Robert De Niro and Abbie Cornish this study into the addiction of success, as well as conventional drug abuse, has seen an overwhelmingly positive response from US audiences and critics. Normally, when I see "US NO.1 BOX OFFICE SMASH HIT" emblazoned all over a film poster, I tend to distance myself from it like the similar poles of two gargantuan magnets. As I've mentioned in previous reviews box office success does not necessarily correspond to fresh, original and marvellous filmmaking. Quite the opposite in fact. Film studios tend to label their cash cows with "modest" platitudes solely to drive baffled herds of film-goers into cinemas just to witness utter garbage, thus lining their gold-plated coffers with piles of money. For instance take films such as Just Married, The Last Exorcism, American Pie Presents Band Camp, The American, Ocean's Twelve  and Battle: Los Angeles to name but a few. However, in this particular instance Limitless deserves all of the praise heaped upon it.

Based on the 2001 techno-novel by Alan Glynn entitled The Dark Fields, Limitless tells the story of a washed-up writer in New York City. Eddie Morra (Cooper) suffers from the worst case of writer's block since Jack Torrence in The Shining or, alternatively, acute laziness or self-pity. Dumped by his successful girlfriend (Cornish) and missing a  multitude of deadlines for his book, Morra seems to be a man on the precipice of ultimate failure. However, a chance meeting with his ex brother-in-law and their subsequent conversation gives Eddie the opportunity to try a new "FDA approved" drug known only as NZT-48, which gives the user the ability harness the full power of the brain. With no other avenue to pursue and in utter desperation Morra swallows the transparent tablet only to realise that he is now vastly more intelligent and able to focus to a degree not experienced by normal human beings. What follows is a dizzying ascension to the summit of success, as Eddie can learn to speak many languages fluently, utilise the power of mathematics to dabble on the stock market and use his heightened focus to finish his book in four days. Although the heights to which Eddies attains would be tempting for any of us to seek, Burger also demonstrates the powerful side effects of NZT, whilst also showing audiences that no matter how intelligent Eddie Morra is there will always be like-minded geniuses out there. The director also allows the audience to see that the desperation Eddie experienced before taking NZT, is only replaced by a more burning desperation to be more successful, whilst also frantically craving more of this new untested drug.

In terms of narrative, Burger has certainly nailed how one person would be tempted by and react to this new designer drug. Bradley Cooper provides a narration to fully immerse the audience and allows them to delve into the mind of this desperate, yet intelligent man. Normally, I don't approve of such a plot device as it spoon -feeds an audience rather than relying on any visual flair to tell a story. However, with Cooper's delivery we are able to soak ourselves in all of the idiosyncrasies of this character as well as watch the film in gut-wrenching tension, excitement, suspense, elation and disbelief. Burger also manages to produce an incredible atmosphere of paranoia as the side-effects begin to suffocate Morra. Through the clever use of narrative and camerawork in unison, we begin to question Morra's mental health and whether his perception of certain events is the correct one. Although, this is all well and good there was one plot hole, which I felt wasn't convincing enough to drive the story forward at one point. Throughout the course of the film, Eddie deals with some very undesirable characters. If he was supremely intelligent, why would he even contemplate dealing with such people? Maybe this was Burger's commentary on whether, regardless of intellect, we would still stoop low enough to satisfy our desire to succeed? I leave that for you to decide.

Bradley Cooper playing Eddie Morra (looking rather ill and paranoid) in 'Limitless'

This is a film whereby the ensemble cast are all brilliant. Cooper seems to have been written off in recent years as a "one-trick pony", with only the ability to play characters with 100% charisma and no substance whatsoever. Although, for a large part of this film, he does play a character who is cocky and arrogant, Cooper convinced me completely that this was a man on the edge, who was suffering from some severe side effects and an acute bout of paranoia. The initial plot development of Morra taking this drug from a man he hasn't seen in years could have been entirely implausible had it not been for Cooper's portrayal of a man in complete desperation.

The man himself, Robert De Niro, has finally landed in a film which isn't crap! For two hours, I had completely forgotten he'd recently starred in the mindless and juvenile drivel that was "Meet the Fockers."Although he didn't have much to do in this film, asides from give sound advice to Cooper's character, it was a solid performance. Surprisingly not mentioned as a title character, Anna Friel's brief appearance is a memorable one. Playing a former NZT addict, I found her performance haunting and deeply unsettling. By introducing her into the fold, it allows the theme of drug addiction to blossom even more as Morra hastily continues to "up his dosage" and not heed the words of his former lover. Put simply, a very clever character addition.

Although, the performances in Limitless are fantastic, the cinematography, editing and direction are where it truly shines. Cooper creates a vibrant and effervescent New York, which is reminiscent of a similar feat achieved by Michael Mann in Miami Vice or  Matthew Weiner in the TV show Mad Men. This quality is only heightened when Morra is on NZT. Upon taking the drug, the ambient light around him brightens, giving a greater sense of clarity and definition. It's a fantastic editing tool and is very similar to a technique used by Jonathan Demme in The Manchurian Candidate (2004), a film which I highly recommend. However, what nailed it for me personally was what I like to call the "lightspeed" shot. To simulate the passage of time and space, whilst also displaying the dizzying effects of taking such a powerful drug, Burger uses this particular shot. Imagine witnessing the "jump to lightspeed" shot from Star Wars, replacing the stars with buildings, whilst the camera is physically moving forward through the frame. If it sounds nauseating it certainly is but I assume that this is what Burger set out to achieve and it is, to put it lightly, bloody fantastic!

In closing, Burger has achieved something, which is not readily attainable in cinema: the depiction of the peaks and troughs of drug abuse. He allows us to appreciate that success, in of itself is a drug which everybody takes with unquestionable conviction and that the higher up the ladder you go, the only thing you're achieving is increasing the distance you will fall. For those of you who wish to go to see this fresh and original film I must insist that the doors of your own perception won't be cleansed, they'll be well and truly kicked down.