“Limitless”: What a Little Pill Can Do

Eddie is down on his luck. He’s a struggling writer with an advance to make good on. But people who run into him on the street think he’s homeless when they see his tangled hair and scraggly beard. His apartment is a dump, his girlfriend has flown the coop…then he runs into his former brother in law and things start to change. It’s all from a little clear pill. “Take this pill, it will make you feel great,” he says. Boy does it ever!

First the apartment is cleaned. The novel is written—all 400 pages. His agent is on the phone, so amazed. He begins to learn Mandarin while listening to tapes, same with Italian. Whenever he pops this mystery pill, he becomes the smartest guy in the room, and the most powerful. Fueled by the clear pills, called NZT, he takes over the world. He gets into stock picking, and blows the minds of Wall St. He makes cool new friends who take him to the beach–in France on a private jet. He gets unlimited women who find him strong, sexy and so, so smart. He’s the guy at the party who everyone listens to, just like those old EF Hutton TV commercials.

How long can this last?  Well, how many pills does he have?  The pills attract the attention of a Russian bad guy who once lent him money and is now out for revenge. In a struggle, Ivan pops one too and can’t believe how great he feels. Inside his criminal mind, that clear elixir of pure wisdom fuels his desire to have more once it wears off.

Robert DeNiro pops up as the rich Wall St. tycoon, with big plans for Eddie who he sees as a savant, a clairvoyant of the market. He wants to groom him into successor, a partner, despite his lack of training in finance. He’s a natural yet he hasn’t had to jump any hurdles, just pop NZT. This can’t end well, can it?

I guess it’s best for me to say that the ending is as fascinating as the beginning. In the spirit of Christmas I won’t give it away. I am looking for my own supply of NZT so I can write my book.