The most stunning thing about this movie (aside from Scarlett Johansson) is the deep spiritual meaning that comes near the end. Yes, amid all the mayhem, the shoot 'em ups, the science impossible there is something very redeeming about this and it has to do with what it means to be alive and to be human.
What Lucy is able to do cannot possibly come about from taking substances into her system as in the movie. However the incredible power, knowledge and freedom she achieves is something that may be possible for humans some distant day--or rather possible for our intelligently designed descendants who will be cyborgs or something beyond that.
The story itself and the way French born director Luc Besson ("Léon: The Professional," "La Femme Nikita," etc.) moves the plot along with action that keeps us enthralled amounts to a first rate sci fi thriller. Johansson who plays Lucy and whose countenance dominates the film is wonderful. And I don't mean merely from the fact that her face is mesmerizing but also because she does such a great acting job in a demanding role.
I am giving this film only 9 stars because of the rather lame idea that we use only ten percent of our brains. That idea was disposed of decades ago. Of course as a metaphor it works okay. However it could be better said that we are currently achieving only ten percent of what we could achieve.
I also don't think Besson, who also wrote the script for the film, has the right notion about time. He has Lucy say, "Time is the only true unit of measure. It gives proof to the existence of matter. Without time, we don't exist." However, time like other units of measure really just compares two or more things, in this case events. Many scientists believe that time per se does not exist and is an abstraction, or as I see it time is a mathematical point.
But much of the philosophy and/or psychology in the film is if nothing else interesting and worth thinking about. For example Lucy says, "We've codified our existence to bring it down to human size, to make it comprehensible, we've created a scale so we can forget its unfathomable scale." This is true in a practical sense but I believe it is also true in a philosophical and a spiritual sense.
I will be seeing this film again.
--Dennis Littrell, author of "The World Is Not as We Think It Is"
What Lucy is able to do cannot possibly come about from taking substances into her system as in the movie. However the incredible power, knowledge and freedom she achieves is something that may be possible for humans some distant day--or rather possible for our intelligently designed descendants who will be cyborgs or something beyond that.
The story itself and the way French born director Luc Besson ("Léon: The Professional," "La Femme Nikita," etc.) moves the plot along with action that keeps us enthralled amounts to a first rate sci fi thriller. Johansson who plays Lucy and whose countenance dominates the film is wonderful. And I don't mean merely from the fact that her face is mesmerizing but also because she does such a great acting job in a demanding role.
I am giving this film only 9 stars because of the rather lame idea that we use only ten percent of our brains. That idea was disposed of decades ago. Of course as a metaphor it works okay. However it could be better said that we are currently achieving only ten percent of what we could achieve.
I also don't think Besson, who also wrote the script for the film, has the right notion about time. He has Lucy say, "Time is the only true unit of measure. It gives proof to the existence of matter. Without time, we don't exist." However, time like other units of measure really just compares two or more things, in this case events. Many scientists believe that time per se does not exist and is an abstraction, or as I see it time is a mathematical point.
But much of the philosophy and/or psychology in the film is if nothing else interesting and worth thinking about. For example Lucy says, "We've codified our existence to bring it down to human size, to make it comprehensible, we've created a scale so we can forget its unfathomable scale." This is true in a practical sense but I believe it is also true in a philosophical and a spiritual sense.
I will be seeing this film again.
--Dennis Littrell, author of "The World Is Not as We Think It Is"