Science Fiction Thriller Film Critique Example

Question

The Movie Critique Analysis

The movie Limitless features the protagonist Eddie Mora (played by Bradley Cooper), his girlfriend Lindy (played by Abbie Cornish), and his ex-brother-in-law Vernon (played by Johhny Whitworth). Eddie’s brother-in-law gives him a magic pill that enables him to access 100% of his brain memory, as opposed to the normal 20%. As a result, Eddie’s life becomes transformed. Initially, Eddie, an author who had taken so long to complete a long-overdue novel, can now write an entire book in 4 days. He had also been abandoned by his girlfriend who considered him a loser, but following the newly found success in his life, she returned to him. He completes writing his novel very fast, claims victory at poker, and proceeds to invest in the market, where he achieves much success with the yields running to millions.

Carl Van Loon notices Eddie Mora and hires him to help him make billions. However, Eddie Mora experiences a declining supply of the pill, and, coupled with the side effects, his world disintegrates. Also, other people are willing to go as far as to eliminate him to get the pill for themselves. Eddie has to remain strong and standing to continue enjoying the benefits of the pill. However, as will be revealed in this essay, some scenes reveal that action is being driven by the plot and not the characters, probably in the director’s effort to maintain focus on the limitless opportunities of a 100% functioning memory.

The Plot of the Movie

According to the plot, Eddie is required to find money and the pills at Vernon’s apartment - take the pills, feel the impact, and use the money to rebuild his life. Whereas this is what Eddie does, it leaves questions on how the police could not search him and find the pills even after taking him for questioning. The most common thing after a police arrest is a search and it is hard to understand why they do not do it to Eddie.

Another issue is that Eddie forgets to repay some money that he had borrowed and used to make a lot more. Considering that his memory capacities have been enhanced by the pill, it does not make sense that he forgets something so important in his success (Kohn).

Also, Atwood’s lawyer is supposed to steal the pills from Eddie, thereby causing him to lose the supposed memory capacities. However, it appears far-fetched that the lawyer goes all the way to kill a woman, frames Eddie as the murderer to cause him (Eddie) to hire him as his lawyer so that he can get close to him and thus access the pills. It is actually not clear how the lawyer gets to know that Eddie has the pills, considering that he would carry them in a hidden pocket.

Lastly, the movie director Neil Burger intends to convey the limitless opportunities that would be at the disposal of a person should he or she be able to access his or her entire memory. However, this whole idea appears to overlook the fact that intelligence is more valuable than memory (Kohn). Notably, the director perhaps created the movie by his self-proclaimed knowledge of New York, including its class cultures, the kind of artists found there, and its world of finance (IMDb Inc.). This is true because the movie revolves around these aspects. Unfortunately, Neil’s desire to create a piece that depicts New York life is also the one that appears to cause him to drive the plot as opposed to letting the characters drive it.

Movie Critique Analysis Conclusion

In conclusion, even though Limitless is thoroughly entertaining, some scenes leave the audience with more questions than answers. These include how Eddie manages to escape the police search, the action of Atwood’s lawyer - to kill a woman to get close to Eddie, - and that Eddie, the super-smart man, forgets that he owed someone money. Notwithstanding, Neil considerably showcases his prowess through the piece.

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