Lucy combines bang bang with Big Bang

Movie Title:  Lucy

Grade:  B+

PG-13 in the U.S.A. or R in Europe

In a Nutshell:   The evolutionary Big Bang theory meets Bang Bang.  As long as you remember that this is a summer popcorn movie and not a documentary, you’ll be fine.  Audiences proved they were more interested in brains than brawn, as Lucy outsold Hercules in box offices around the U.S.A. on opening night.   

Surprisingly, this action thriller is filled with comedic moments.  There are also a lot of bloody, violent ones.  Fans of this spring’s Transcendence movie will enjoy this flick in similar fashion, as both combine elements of science, philosophy, and flying bullets.

Uplifting theme: 

The lights fade and you hear Lucy explain “Life was given to us a billion years ago.  What have we done with it?”  At the end she says “Life was given to us a billion years ago.  Now you know what to do with it.”  (You have to watch the movie to find out and even then, it's not exactly clear…)

Things I liked:

• Scarlett Johansson does a great job effortlessly serving up bullets to the head with cold sass.  Scarlett is great at releasing tears without her voice breaking up or her nose turning red like when I cry.  Not a pretty site (me, not Scarlett).
• I love little details like Lucy’s chipped fingernail polish in the beginning to show how her life was messy and trashy. 
• With a glass of Champagne, Lucy toasts “to knowledge!”  I feel the same way, except with a Virgin Pina Colada in my hand.
• I loved it when Lucy’s eyes changed colors and shimmered.
• 2 Michelangelo/finger of God moments.  You’ll see.
• Who doesn’t love Morgan Freeman?  A friend of mine recently pointed out how President Obama has gone from a Denzel Washington hero to a Morgan Freeman character during his two terms in office.  Interpret that however you want.

Things I didn’t like:

• It’s never explained why the other “mules” went straight to the airport, but Lucy was beat up and thrown in jail in Taipei.  Did I miss something?
• I thought it was interesting that the more knowledge Lucy gains, the more robotic and less human she becomes.  I’d like to think that with greater wisdom comes greater compassion and understanding for others…
• Suspend your disbelief and don’t think too logically.   
• Many viewers were surprised by the turn the movie makes in the end.  

Did you know?

• Ever wonder how old Morgan Freeman is?  He’s 77!  A recent video went viral of Morgan Freeman sucking helium with Jimmy Fallon on the Tonight Show.  Hilarious.   
• The only living being that uses its brain better than us is the dolphin:  20%.
• The drug featured in the film is called CPH4.  They say that pregnant women create it in their 6^th week of pregnancy, but in very tiny amounts.
• The first thing Lucy does when her brain capacity is enhanced is get free of her captors, eat a bunch of food, and then stock up on weapons.  Hmmm….is there a message there?

Interesting lines:

• “With movement, interesting things begin to happen.”  - Professor Norman
• “Humans are more concerned with having than being.”  - Professor Norman
• “For primitive beings like us, the soul purpose is time.” – Professor Norman explains that when the conditions are good, man is in a state of reproduction, but when conditions are not good, self-sufficiency is the key objective.  Later he says, “It’s up to us to take action to go from evolution to revolution.”
• “We never really die.”  - Lucy says as she nears 100% brain capacity. 
• “Time gives legitimacy its existence.”  - Lucy
• “Ignorance brings chaos, not knowledge.”  - Lucy

Funny lines:

• “Did you know that the first woman’s name was Lucy?”  - Richard    (The camera then zooms in on a pre-historic ape trying to drink water out of a pond.)
• “Hablo poco espanol.”  - Lucy
• “If you lost the key, you don’t have to chop off my hand; you can just cut the chain.” – Lucy
• “It’s not dangerous.”  - a bad guy says to Lucy while the tough body guards all around him crouch in fear behind bomb shields.

Tips for parents:  There are images of animals mating and giving birth, as well as some sexual innuendo.  There is a lot of violence with a variety of weapons, blood spurts and puddles, and destructive car crashes.

Interesting facts about your brain:

1. The belief that humans only use 10% of their brains is incorrect. Each part of the brain has a specific function and the average person uses all the various parts of the brain.

2. The brain is the fattiest part of your body by about 60%. 

3. We think about 70,000 thoughts a day.  

4. Most people dream about 4-7 dreams a night. Fifty percent of those dreams are forgotten in the first minutes after waking.  

5. The brain creates 23 watt of electricity while awake, enough to light a light bulb. 

6. The human brain has more 'wrinkles' and crevices than those of other animals. In this way, the brain gets more surface space, while staying at around the same size, and it is part of the reason for our increased intelligence.

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