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Here's a look at the new movies that opened last week.

Limitless

Starring: Bradley Cooper, Abbie Cornish, and Robert De Niro

Synopsis: This is an interesting and watchable film that ends up offering a confusing mixed message through the resolution to its plot. Cooper plays Eddie, a struggling writer who can't get his life together. When his girlfriend, Lindy (Cornish), sends him packing too, things really spiral downhill. Then he has a chance encounter with his ex brother-in-law and gets introduced to a new drug that offers him unlimited potential. After securing a large stash of it, Eddie begins to turn his life around, achieving fame, earning a fortune, and reconnecting with Lindy. But all his good fortune comes with a price. Eddie is soon targeted by the legitimate authorities, mobsters, and a nefarious stranger that seems to be following his every move. Oh, and his magic drug comes with its own set of dangerous side effects. As Eddie feels the walls closing in around him he's also trying to earn a windfall through a deal with a nefarious businessman, Carl Van Loon (De Niro). Arguably parts of this film seem to be anti-drug. It seems as though, rightfully so, Eddie suffers some serious consequences for trying to take a short cut to success. But then the film does a 180-degree turn at the end and, in my opinion, ends up endorsing his recreational drug use as having enhanced his life. As I said, this film is breezy and entertaining at the time, just don't think about it too hard afterward or you'll be disappointed. Director Neil Burger ("The Illusionist") does some interesting work with the camera. Personally I thought the trick was pedestrian and over used in the film, but it does add a visual edge to offer a visceral representation of the mental challenges Eddie faced. This isn't a great film, but it isn't terrible. And Cooper does a decent job anchoring the story — unfortunately the rest of the characters are too flat to seem real or relatable.

Rating: PG-13 for thematic material involving a drug, violence including disturbing images, sexuality and language.

Verdict: Two stars out of Four

The Lincoln Lawyer

Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Marisa Tomei, Ryan Phillippe, William H. Macy, and Josh Lucas

Synopsis: This is a legal thriller based on the work of author Michael Connelly. It could be argued that McConaughey's best films have been court room dramas. He was in Steven Spielberg's "Amistad" in 1997 and appeared as the lead attorney in my favorite film, "A Time to Kill." With "The Lincoln Lawyer" the case isn't as interesting and his character is more flawed, but there is still something to like about his performance and about the film. And regardless, it's nice to see McConaughey stretch himself into something more substantial than his endless string of arrested development romantic comedies. This film, like "Limitless," is entertaining but falls apart the more you think about it after the screening. There are some serious plot questions that would naturally come to mind once the film ends if you considered the way the story unfolded. That aside, McConaughey does a nice job in the lead role and many of the supporting actors do fine work too. I was a bit disappointed with Phillippe because he was somewhat one-note as the defendant in this case. Also, due to the way the plot is constructed, the truth of the actions of those involved in the case is revealed before the trial starts. Though there is still some satisfying resolution at the end, I felt like some of the pop of the sequences during the trial was sapped from the fact that you already knew the truth. This is a watchable film, an enjoyable film, but not a particularly memorable film.

Rating: R for some violence, sexual content and language.

Verdict: Two stars out of four.

Paul

Starring: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Kristen Wiig, Seth Rogen, and Jason Bateman

Synopsis: This film stars the duo responsible for "Hot Fuzz" and "Shaun of the Dead" (Pegg and Frost) as well as the star (Rogen) and director (Greg Mottola) of "Superbad." With that comedy pedigree plus solid performers like Wiig and Bateman, one reasonably expects plenty of laughs in Paul. And they come. The film may not rise to the satirical level of "Hot Fuzz" or have the sustained storytelling of Mottola's "Adventureland," but it is entertaining and fun. The film is full of genre references — including numerous allusions to "Star Wars," "Alien," and all things Steven Spielberg. It's a fun and funny movie geared toward an adult audience. One major quibble I would have is the way the film treats religion. It offers a serious atheistic bent, but the whole production is done in such a surrealistic fashion that it's hard to say they were out to make any serious statement about the nature of faith and our world. Mostly, this is about geeks on the ultimate geek quest to return an eccentric alien visitor to his home planet.

Rating: R for language including sexual references, and some drug use.

Verdict: Three stars out of four.