#5 Movie Seen - Limitless

I decided to go see this movie on the spur of the moment, it wasn't well publicised and isn't on my list of must-see movies for 2011 (which is still an upcoming post).  I'm not familiar with the director's previous work either (biggest claim to fame was directing The Illusionist, which unfortunately suffered from that Hollywood affliction of two movies coming out on the same thing at the same time - The Prestige had a bigger director and stars and was the one I saw).  However the vague sci-fi premise and prospect of spending that much time with Bradley Cooper got this across the line.
A writer whose life is falling apart (losing girl, writer's block, appearance convincing others he's homeless(yeah right, long hair and five o'clock shadow = homeless)) stumbles across a pill that he's told will allow him to acesss 100% of his brain's capacity and change his life, having recently been approved by the FDA.  The first turns out to be true, the second untrue, but the side effects take a while to appear.  In the meantime, our hero Eddie has managed to get a haircut, new suit and leather jacket (!) which apparently addresses the homeless issue, finished his book, learned to beat the stock market and make money, and pull the chicks.  So far, so shallow.  There is a brief comment that Eddie is only making the money so he can finance a plan to make the world a better place.  I really would've liked more exploration of his plans so that you could sypathise with him a little more.  However, as his troubles pile up with the escalating health effects of the drug and shady characters following him to get hold of the drug themselves, you do get on his side.  The movie is quite suspenseful but stays on the realistic side with the action scenes so you can believe this could all happen.  The special effects are limited but well used.
I think the best thing about this movie was the debate that it sparked between Ben and myself afterwards.  It really raises issues such as whether such a drug is possible (Ben reckons that LSD was the government's attempt at such a thing but did not work out, I'm not familiar with the issues around it to have my own opinion) but more whether it is needed or whether "success" is more about your learning style and self-belief and using those to open up your brain's full potential.  And what is the definition of success anyway?  This movie is probably a good springboard for a deep and meaningful conversation as it is left fairly open.  I'd be keen to hear other people's thoughts on the concepts and ending if you go see it.  And ladies, Bradley Cooper is well worth spending an hour and a half with in this film.  It also has the plus of being Robert De Niro's best supporting role in quite a while.