Lucy

We all love films with a good vs. evil premise to them--this must be true since the vast majority of movies are created this way. And I also believe that we inherently like to see good overwhelming evil, otherwise most films would not be made with this train of thought. As with many past films, "Lucy" carries on that tradition of good vs. evil, however this has a bit of a twist to it.

It was a simple job. Richard (Pilou Asbaek), the boyfriend of Lucy (Scarlett Johansson) could not have explained it any easier: all she had to do was deliver a mysterious briefcase to Mr. Jang (Choi Min-Sik), unbeknownst to her was basically a drug lord. But Lucy is immediately caught up in a nightmarish deal where she is captured and turned into a drug mule for a new and powerful synthetic drug called CPX-4. When the bag she is carrying inside her stomach leaks, Lucy's body undergoes unimaginable changes that unlocks her mind's full potential ultimately to 100%. With her new-found powers Lucy turns into a merciless warrior intent on getting back at her captors. Along the way, she receives invaluable help from Professor Norman (Morgan Freeman), the leading authority on the human mind, and French police captain Pierce Del Rio (Amr Waked).

Others to round out the cast are Julian Rhind-Tutt as The Limey, Analeigh Tipton as Caroline, Nicolas Phongpheth as Jii, Jan Oliver Schroeder as French Mule and Luca Angelett as Italian Mule.

This was effectively directed by Luc Besson ("Subway" '85, "The Big Blue" '88, "La Femme Nikita" '90, "Leon: The Professional" '94, "The Fifth Element" '97, "The Messenger: The Story of Loan of Arc" '99, "Angel-A" '05, "Arthur and the Invisibles" '06, "Arthur and the Great Adventure" '09, "The Extraordinary Adventures of Adele Blanc-Sec" '10, "Arthur 3: The War of the Two Worlds" '10, "The Lady" '11, "The Family" '13). When Besson is serious, he's serious, but when he's able to showcase his characters in a somewhat comical way, those characters can still exude a seriousness in their demeanor in order for that character to react in a realistic manner. This was also written by Besson which is where the fun really is. This guy has the innate ability to take an otherwise common premise, such as this premise, and turn it around and make something fun, refreshing and entertaining and this is what I deem as 'slick' writing. Some of the films he's written scream this: The Transporter films, The Taken films, earlier this year "3 Days to Kill", recent "Brick Mansions" and, of course, this film. Unlike other films, the best thing about a Luc Besson film IS the writing, which, when I see his name on the film, means I will definitely go see it since solid writing is something I love.

If you're into a film that quite literally cuts to the chase with taught writing, interesting characters, great stunts with an entertaining bent to it, have I got the film for you. Have fun with this ride.

Out of 4 Stars: 3                              Rated: R                                88mins.