Monday, March 28, 2011

TWO NON-NON-BLONDES: I enjoyed both Limitless and The Lincoln Lawyer this weekend, a pair of films about pretty boys being forced to use their brains in new and creative ways. Each film has one pretty odd logical gap: if you've become supersmart through your supersmart pill, isn't the first thing you do ensuring an unlimited supply of the drug?  In the latter, well, there are some questionable assertions as to the power of Realtors, and I'll leave it at that.

Both films have side attractions of note: the Philadelphians among us will appreciate Limitless for its repositioning multiple local sites to New York City -- including the Marathon Grill at 18th and Market and the former AAA Building at 21st and Market (both flanking my office), Del Frisco's, Union Trust, Rittenhouse Square and The Happy Rooster; and for Lincoln Lawyer it's the deep supporting cast with folks like Bryan Cranston, William H. Macy and Frances Fisher all used well in small doses. Also, Limitless has towards the end an incredibly silly moment that had the audience tittering with anticipation (hell, I shouted "do it!"), and you'll know it when you see it.

Neither film is essential viewing; both fall under the category of "if you were thinking about seeing this movie, you'll probably like it." I can't say that either Cooper or McConaughey have wrested the That Guy crown from the other quite yet, but I think the universe has room for both.

6 comments:

  1. I thought Limitless did an uncommonly good job of doubling Philly for NYC by mixing in stuff shot in NYC with the Philly stuff, but that the "how much do I have left?" problem seemed widely variable--whenever it seemed like he was about to run out, another stash seemed to appear out of nowhere.

    I haven't seen Lincoln Lawyer, but wanted to praise one supporting cast member from Limitless--Anna Friel as Cooper's ex-wife, who's miles away from her Pushing Daisies work here, and very very effective.

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  2. Nowhereman9:29 AM

    Who needs smart-pills when you have Precious Roy's Genius-in-a-Box kit.


    http://www.youtube.com/v/8de10hR6Xho" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="170" height="140


    "I bet you don't have an 'I'm Super Smart' cape... SEE?!?!"

    "Do you even know what the Theory of Relativity is, genius?" "Yes... with fire... with...clocks are passing through fire?"

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  3. That is crescent fresh.

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  4. Seriously: if you're super-smart, the first thing you need to do is figure out how to stay super-smart.  (Also, one aspect of being super-smart is knowing that the kind of book he was writing would not make him as much money as writing in other genres.)

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  5. kepkanation1:29 PM

    Oh, yay, Lincoln Lawyer. This was a surprisingly faithful adaptation of the book, too, which I appreciated -- it did a good job of showing off L.A. in the same way that Michael Connelly did in the book (which is his best, I think).

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  6. bella wilfer2:44 PM

    I thought several things about Limitless were comical to the point of ridiculous: 
    1. As mentioned above, MAKE MORE PILLS IMMEDIATELY (you could still create some jeopardy by having him go to the scientist first thing and having the scientist go "I need 6 months" - he then runs out before the new pills are manufactured).  Was also totally confused about his "I have none left" freak-out on the day of the most important meeting of his life when then it turns out he totally has more!  What?
    2. Love that when he becomes super-smart the first thing he does is say "screw writing, I want to be a stockbroker."  Hilarious.

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