Lucy

Luc Besson wants audiences to meet Lucy (Scarlett Johansson, Under the Skin), running their eyes over her bright blonde hair, made-up face, skin-tight dress, impractical heels and leopard-print jacket – and he wants them to form an opinion. In Taipei, she fights with her boyfriend (Pilou Asbæk, A Hijacking) about delivering a locked briefcase to a hotel, looking every bit the brash American in a foreign land. When she is tricked into completing the task, coming face to face with Korean gangster Mr. Jang (Choi Min-sik, I Saw the Devil), she cries, pleads and shakes with fear. 

Besson revels in the set-up of his eponymous character and the judgments that correspond, just as he then relishes the transformation that manifests in his action narrative. That is his modus operandi, after all, the French filmmaker of many a fast-paced hit and producer of many more at his best when he presents a female archetype then pulls it apart. Think the mysterious ingénue of La Femme Nikita, the innocent child of The Professional, and the lost stranger of The Fifth Element. The women in his celluloid world subvert their initial appearances to transform into a position of power. 

In a propulsive sci-fi concoction, his latest heroine’s mob-inspired troubles see her absorb a large quantity of a synthetic compound that works wonders on cerebral function and capacity. Several races ensue: against time as the drug enhances her system with side effects, into knowledge as Lucy’s horizons expand, and away from Jang’s gun-toting minions. An expert in the field of human intellect and evolution, Professor Norman (Morgan Freeman, Last Vegas), is one source of assistance, his lectures spliced into Lucy’s awakening into her new abilities. Parisian cop Del Rio (Amr Waked, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen) becomes another offsider as her quest of understanding continues 

Comprehension and appreciation of the considerable upgrade under way is Besson’s other mission in Lucy, one as well matched to his particular style as the narrative he has been ruminating over for many years. Intercutting non-diegetic images of animals and their prey amid Lucy’s first experience in Jang’s domain might make the parallels obvious, but in reinforcing the approach and setting the scene for the chaos to come, it works. Splashing images on screen that exemplify Norman’s explanations of the limitations of living organisms follows in the same manner. Besson’s penchant for aesthetic flair is inescapable, yet the writer/director pleasingly justifies every visual interjection – shoot-outs that splatter blood, frenetic car chases through busy streets, altercations that defy physics, and traces of the interconnectivity of all things – not by his auteur preferences, but in his plot. That the film’s credits offer thanks to Monsieur Hulot, Jacques Tati’s famed character, perhaps intimates his intended juxtaposition. 

The story, coming after the likes of Crank, Limitless and Transcendence, may smack of throwing three films in a blender to see what the end product tastes like – with the added, overt seasoning of a wealth of other features such as The Tree of Life, The Matrix and 2001: A Space Odyssey; however there’s no mistaking the intrigue and energy that results. Taking the leaps in both the tale and its logic in her stride, Johansson amplifies the interest and the atmosphere, a hypnotic lead for an entertaining romp unashamed of its vibrancy, mayhem and mania, or its posturing about all things smart when silliness is the flavour du jour. She grounds all the excess in her expressions as she morphs from helpless cliché to formidable threat, the still point in the surrounding swirl of delicious delirium. Spending an off-kilter 90 minutes in her company as Lucy is an electric treat, an outcome that tests preconceptions as much as the character.

Rating: 3 ½ out of 5 stars

Lucy
Director: Luc Besson
France, 2014, 90 mins 

Release date: July 31
Distributor: Universal
Rated: MA