I was surprisingly impressed with the movie that the class went to see in theaters a few weeks ago - Limitless. The question is immediately posed in the title; what is the unlimited “thing” that the movie will introduce to the audience. We soon find out, though, that it is the human brain that is “limitless” when under the influence of a special pill called NZT.
There are several main themes that can be found in this particular film. Power is one of these themes as the characters go in and out of having power over the things happening in their lives. The movie begins with the main character, Eddie, about to be broken up with by his girlfriend while at the same time being on the verge of losing his job as an author because he can't seem to focus enough to write the rest of his book and meet his deadline. He has completely lost control and the has no power over the things going on in his life. As the movie progresses and he encounters the drug NZT, he discovers that he can, for once, control his status in life. He goes from being a loser to someone who people respect and, ultimately, need. This movie was interesting because, while I did think it was “cool” that he was able to use 100% of his brain activity, it also made it seem as though someone is only useful and worth anything if they have help from an outside, and often illegal source. Eddie gained power. He got money, he got respect, he got a job, he got his girlfriend back, and all because he was taking this drug. His status changed from being a nobody to being a somebody, but why would the film show him as a powerful man because of doing something illegal?? I wonder.
Another one of the themes in this movie dealt with the idea of understanding good and evil. The way that the film is produced, the audience is meant to believe that Eddie, even though he is participating in an illegal act, is the “good guy” and all others are the “bad guys.” He is shown stealing and embezzling and manipulating all so that he can get ahead. When any type of law enforcement tries to apprehend him, he gets away. In these parts of the movie I found myself proud and excited that he was able to stay alive and out of trouble with the law. In reality, though, he is the kind of person that I would have wanted to be arrested for his illegal activity. I thought it was ironic at the end of the movie when he is trying to get out of his apartment but the “bad guys” are trying to break in, the audience is rooting for Eddie, not the other party. Since when did we start rooting for the “lesser of the two evils?” Shouldn't it have been that we wanted both of them to get caught and arrested and sent to jail? One would think so, but in this case, that wasn't the way it works.
All in all, I thought the movie was great. I walked away thinking about how cool it would be to take a pill that would allow me to use all of my brain instead of just 20% like the average person. I thought about how it would be even better if there were no side effects like there were in the movie. It was a great performance and the actors and actresses did a wonderful job. I was, however, displeased that there was no resolution. At the end of the movie, Eddie gets a haircut, becomes Senator, and goes on about his way without ever being caught. There was a short encounter at the end with a man whom Eddie used to work with, but other than that, Eddie was never found out. I liked the way the movie ended, but it seemed as though it would have been better morally to have him get caught and punished for his actions.
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