‘Lucy’
Starring: Scarlett Johansson, Morgan Freeman
D
Perhaps the biggest problem with “Lucy” is that it has no actual plot. A partying American in Taiwan (Scarlett Johansson) becomes an unwitting drug mule, and when she accidentally gets exposed to the drug, she gets superpowers that develop into omnipotence.
This premise central to the film is based on the debunked myth that humans only use 10 percent of their brains. It seems that it was only the writers who were limited in this manner. The foibles of this film regrettably do not stop there.
She ends up seeking revenge on the people who exposed her to the drug in the first place. She also seeks the help of an esteemed scientist named Dr. Norman (Morgan Freeman) in the hopes some of the knowledge she has gained can be preserved.
Beyond that, the movie is an illogical mess. Powers she displays in one scene are ignored in another where they would be just as helpful. Hospitals, airports and police stations all have procedures established in opening scenes that are disregarded in subsequent ones.
Lucy rambles in ways meant to be philosophical but her dialogue comes across like poorly translated fortune cookies. Furthermore, the writers think if Lucy spouts “smart person” buzzwords such as “applied mathematics” and “quantum physics” the audience will buy that Lucy is smart.
If she were so smart, she probably could find a way to complete her goals without causing a ton of property damage and killing dozens of innocent bystanders.
It is impossible to suspend your disbelief for this movie. In fact, it seems unlikely this was ever a goal for writer-director Luc Besson. Rather, he is more interested in exploring profound concepts such as immortality, the nature of time and the purpose of life. If only he did so in a movie that was not so insistent on being insipid.
To be fair, Scarlett Johansson and Morgan Freeman are charismatic performers, and the movie is engaging for the entirety of its 90-minute running time. It has a propulsive energy to it similar to what you find in the best music videos.
None of this makes up for the paradox at the film’s heart. It wants to talk about smart things but wants none of the work required to do so. The unfortunate truth behind “Lucy,” however, is that it accesses only 10 percent of its potential as a movie.
Andrew Wurdeman
