'Limitless' fails to realise its potential

Film: Limitless (A)
Cast: Bradley Cooper, Robert De Niro, Abbie Cornish, Anna Friel
Director: Neil Burger
Rating: ***

Edward Morra (Cooper) is a mentally constipated writer living in a squalid apartment who is given by a shifty former drug dealer, brother-in-law from his failed marriage, a drug called NZT-48 that enhances his mental faculties to a superhuman degree.

Focused, with unhindered access to the most obscure regions of memory and to extraordinary comprehension abilities, Morra, whose girlfriend Lindy (Cornish) ditched him for being a deadbeat prior to his transformation, is able to do everything from divining the stock market (after not-so-smartly borrowing capital from a Russian goon) to ordering dinner in a variety of languages to beating up street punks with moves instantly recalled from Bruce Lee flicks.

Morra, making headlines for his financial wizardry, quickly finds himself in the employment of self-made business titan Carl van Loon (De Niro) and reunites with Lindy, a successful editor in her own right. But with the stash of pills that is responsible for his meteoric assent come great liabilities.

Amidst a growing dependency on the pills, Morra learns of the terrible fate of its previous users, including his ex-wife (Friel). Then there is this mysterious man always looming about with clear intention to cause harm and, of course, the aforementioned Russian goon.

Cooper, as the far-from-dashing Morra, proves to be perfect for the role, both as a dishevelled wannabe writer and suave savant. De Niro, as the wary Van Loon, gives his best as an actor in a supporting role.

Limitless, unlike its protagonist however, fails to reach its potential. Though filled with sumptuously shot sequences, the film’s plot, which deals with a being of great intelligence, is perforated by breaches of common sense, a generous amount of back story being shrouded in absolute mystery, and sub-plots that are vastly under-nurtured.

While one enjoys the ride which is packed with humour and excitement, it is when it draws to a close that one sees how rushed the final product has been, with the focus unashamedly leaning heavily on style. Still, worth a watch.