Lucy is a wildly overreaching sci-fi action movie: part sleek revenge thriller, part pseudo-philosophical brain-power sermon, part absurd Besson spectacle. It’s often ridiculous, but the pace, imagery, and Scarlett Johansson’s committed performance make it more entertaining than its reputation suggests.
Lucy
Where to watch: Buy
Movie · Action · Science Fiction
Fri · 1h 29m
Director: Luc Besson
Starring: Scarlett Johansson, Morgan Freeman, Choi Min-sik
Overview
A woman, accidentally caught in a dark deal, turns the tables on her captors and transforms into a merciless warrior evolved beyond human logic.
Director
Luc Besson
Cast
Scarlett Johansson, Morgan Freeman, Choi Min-sik
Curator Review
Verdict
Lucy is a wildly overreaching sci-fi action movie: part sleek revenge thriller, part pseudo-philosophical brain-power sermon, part absurd Besson spectacle. It’s often ridiculous, but the pace, imagery, and Scarlett Johansson’s committed performance make it more entertaining than its reputation suggests.
Best for
Viewers who enjoy glossy, high-concept action with a pulpy edge
Fans of movies that get progressively stranger and more ambitious
People in the mood for a fast, silly, visually flashy sci-fi ride
Skip if
You want rigorous science or coherent worldbuilding
You dislike heavy-handed narration and self-serious philosophy
You prefer grounded action over increasingly surreal escalation
Overview
Lucy is one of those movies that feels like it is sprinting away from its own premise. It starts as a revenge-and-escape thriller, then keeps mutating into a bigger, stranger, more self-important sci-fi fantasia until it lands somewhere between comic-book absurdity and cosmic lecture. The result is messy, but rarely dull.
Worth noting
Luc Besson stages the action with real confidence, and Scarlett Johansson sells the transition from vulnerable victim to hyper-competent force of nature. The movie’s biggest problem is that it wants to be profound about consciousness, evolution, and human potential while also tossing out lines and images that invite laughter more than awe.
Bottom line
If you like your genre films polished, propulsive, and a little unhinged, there’s enough here to enjoy. If you need the ideas to hold together, the film will probably lose you long before it reaches its final, famously out-there destination.
Top Letterboxd reviews
Gonzo (1.5★) · 3936 likes
jvince's 2014 Movie Rankings What happens when Scarlett Johansson reaches 100%? She turns into a flash drive. A fucking USB flash drive.
russman (2.5★) · 3849 likes
Good thing this only required 1% of my brain capacity to watch
Danny (5★) · 2334 likes
A little bit of Besson in my lifeA little bit of Akira by my sideA little bit of Odyssey is all I needA little bit of ScarJo is what I seeA little bit of Oldboy in the sunA little bit of crazy all night longA little bit of Freeman here I amA little bit of Lucy makes me a big fan. Mambo No. 5 (stars)!
aaron (4★) · 2146 likes
scarlett johansson really out here playing a usb
sree (1.5★) · 2041 likes
"i am everywhere" first of all, fuck you
Themes
transformation, revenge, human evolution, expanded consciousness, body horror, female empowerment, crime thriller, science fiction spectacle
Topics
sci-fi action, high-concept, revenge thriller, body transformation, mind expansion, stylized violence, philosophical, surreal, pulpy, 2010s