Entertainment
Scarlett Johansson’s R-Rated Sci-Fi Thriller Is Sexy, Kinetic, And Brutal
By Robert Scucci
| Published
By now, the myth that we only use 10 percent of our brains has been proven false, but when it’s used well as a movie trope, I’m willing to embrace the lie. In the case of 2014’s Lucy, they refer to potential brain usage as “cerebral capacity,” allowing Scarlett Johansson to lean into the idea that if she’s able to tap her full potential, the world as we know it would be forever altered. Often compared to 2011’s Limitless, Lucy occupies similar thematic territory to the Bradley Cooper-starring film. The distinction that needs to be clocked, however, is how reaching full cerebral capacity is handled.
Limitless tells a story about how one man’s endless cognitive abilities can only serve him so much if he becomes hooked on a substance that’s difficult to synthesize, potentially leading to his downfall. Lucy, on the other hand, takes a more global approach to its storytelling, suggesting that humanity operates at 10 percent cerebral capacity because mankind isn’t meant to see, hear, feel, and experience so much. Too much of everything happening all at once could send us back to the stone age because the entirety of the universe is beyond the reasonable scope of human comprehension.
Lucy grapples with this notion of evolution through its titular protagonist, who, once she passes a certain threshold of sensory perception, realizes that no human being should possess that much mental power because it’s simply too much to handle. What’s more, if that kind of cognizance falls into the wrong hands, there’s no telling how damaging it could be to our species.
From Drug Mule To Singularity
Scarlett Johansson’s Lucy finds herself in a predicament when her boyfriend sets her up in what is, by all measures, a nightmare scenario. He forces her to unknowingly deliver a briefcase full of a synthetic drug known as CPH4 to a South Korean drug lord named Mr. Jang (Choi Min-sik). Mr. Jang’s full intentions aren’t made clear at first, but we do know that he’s trying to transport the highly potent and extremely valuable drug all over Europe, sewing bags of the substance into the stomachs of his couriers so they can smuggle it across various borders undetected. What Mr. Jang doesn’t plan for, though, is Lucy getting kicked in the stomach, causing the bag to rupture and leak into her body.
Suddenly supercharged by the drug, Lucy quickly realizes that it’s made her super intelligent. From this point forward, we get scene breaks that reveal what percentage of her brain she’s using as she seeks answers about her condition, leading her to Professor Samuel Norman (Morgan Freeman), who’s devoted his life to studying the potential of the human brain. This all seems convenient, but junk science aside, it tracks. Lucy’s physicality, and the choices she makes, work in lockstep with her increased brain power as more of the drug titrates into her system.
Professor Norman has no clue what will happen when Lucy’s cerebral capacity hits 100 percent, but he’s willing to risk everything to help her find out since she’s already well on her way to reaching that target anyway. As they grapple with the science and its global implications, Mr. Jang closes in on Lucy, who’s hightailing it to Paris in a last-ditch effort to procure more bags of CPH4. Possessing superhuman abilities at this point, anybody who gets in Lucy’s way is pretty much signing their own death notice as her intelligence, awareness, and reflexes continue to increase exponentially.
Along the way, there are philosophical debates in Lucy. The running theme is that human beings only use a fraction of their brain because there’s no reasonable way to live with infinite knowledge of the totality of everything. At least not at this current phase in our species’ evolution. Lucy knows this, because she knows everything, and it’s up to her to figure out how to pass her knowledge on before she collapses under the existential weight of knowing everything about everything.
Similar To Limitless, But Stays In Its Own Lane
The best part about Lucy is how every single story intersects. Much of the first act highlights Lucy coming to terms with what’s happening to her. All of the junk science necessary to tell the story is laid out by Morgan Freeman’s Professor Norman. We literally get the lecture hall treatment as he discusses his research to his class, then we get smash cuts back to Johansson leveling up, realizing that Professor Norman’s research is instrumental to her evolution, forcing her to track him down and allowing the stories to intersect.
While these threads converge, we’re met with B-roll of nature, the animal kingdom, and the universe, allowing viewers to subconsciously absorb the implied scope of what 100 percent cerebral capacity in a human being would mean.
Once things really get cooking, there’s plenty of stylized action to keep the story engaging because Lucy becomes a powerful being, possessing telekinetic abilities that play well off her antagonists when they realize what kind of power they accidentally unleashed. With a flick of the wrist, several armed henchmen get tossed into the ceiling, for example. It’s a lot of fun to watch Scarlett Johansson shift from a damsel in distress to the ballsy heroine whose brain possesses magnitudes of information that could explain the very origin of intelligent life as we know and presently understand it. It’s even more fun when she has to make crucial, split-second decisions in order to subdue the very dangerous people who are trying to capture her.
The question, though, is what she’s going to do with that information. Will she go on the ultimate power trip, destroying everything in her wake? Or will she use her powers to educate the masses, allowing humanity to reach its next evolutionary step? You can find out by firing up Lucy on Netflix. If you’re worried about this movie insulting your intelligence, don’t. None of this is real. But it’s still fun to play pretend every once in a while.
Entertainment
Chuck Norris' Insane, R-Rated 80s Action Flick Is Exploitative, Violent, And Awesome
By Robert Scucci
| Published
1985’s Invasion U.S.A. Holy crap, what a movie. Chuck Norris doesn’t kill terrorists. Terrorists kill themselves when they learn that Chuck Norris is coming for them. This movie was made possible by Cannon Films, the studio that also brought us 1987’s Masters of the Universe and 1989’s Cyborg. The latter was famously written in a single weekend by Albert Pyun after Masters of the Universe underperformed, its sequel plans fell apart, and Cannon needed to repurpose expensive sets and props in a last-ditch effort to recoup their losses.
In case you’re wondering what caliber film Invasion U.S.A. is, the above paragraph is all the explanation you need. It was written by Chuck Norris and James Bruner, and directed by Joseph Zito, best known for classic punishers like 1979’s Bloodrage, 1984’s Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter, and 1984’s Missing in Action, another powerhouse Chuck Norris vehicle that sits with a 19 percent critical score on Rotten Tomatoes but is revered as a cult classic.
One Lone Badass Against Every Single Terrorist
Chuck Norris is retired CIA Agent Matt Hunter in Invasion U.S.A., and before things truly heat up, he’s totally fine with his quiet life. He rides around on his airboat with his best friend John Eagle (Dehl Berti), wrestles alligators, and rocks a full Canadian tuxedo like it’s standard issue. What Matt Hunter doesn’t know yet is that he’s about to be forced out of retirement when he learns that his old rival Mikhail Rostov (Richard Lynch) is back to his old tricks.
And what are Mikhail Rostov’s old tricks, you ask? It’s a bit convoluted, but here’s what I picked up after watching Invasion U.S.A., not knowing what I was getting into. Rostov, a Soviet terrorist, wants to create civil unrest in the United States. He first leaves his mark by posing as the Coast Guard and murdering a group of Cuban refugees. He then walks into a flop house, shoots a random dude in the dick, and throws a cocaine-addicted woman through a window.
By themselves, these sequences are unintentionally hilarious, but they also establish exactly what kind of menace Rostov is. These incidents are just the tip of the iceberg, because what he plans next is total anarchy. Rostov, haunted by nightmares of Matt Hunter finally delivering brutal justice, decides to assassinate him so he can finally stop looking over his shoulder. He screws it up, misses his target, blows up Hunter’s swamp house, and kills John Eagle in the process. That’s enough to bring Hunter out of retirement so he can make Rostov’s nightmare come true after all.
Rostov and his goons, thinking they’ve eliminated Matt Hunter, show up in suburban neighborhoods with bazookas and start blowing up random houses. They hit a mall with enough explosives to blow the Santa display into the stratosphere. They show up at public spaces and mow down people coming out of church. All of these acts of terror build toward race wars and full societal collapse. Chuck Norris drives around in his truck wearing driving gloves, because he needs to keep his hands fresh for combat.
More Collateral Damage Than You Could Ever Reasonably Count
Everything explodes in Invasion U.S.A. There is a very clear bad guy and good guy here, and Rostov has a very specific, very insane calling card. He shoots multiple people in the crotch as if it’s his signature move. He literally pulls down the waistband, inserts the muzzle, and starts blasting. Right in the family jewels. He does this a lot. It’s a perfect action movie if these are the kinds of thrills you seek. As Matt Hunter gets further into his crusade for justice, he stays stoic, confident, and ready to tell the higher-ups exactly what they need to do to make sure America rebuilds and remains a dominant world power.
It’s all so stupid, but it’s such a great flick to throw on with friends. The rewind-and-laugh-your-ass-off value on this one is off the charts, making it perfect for a group setting. If you want to celebrate one of Cannon’s most insane clunkers from the 80s, you can stream Invasion U.S.A. for free on Tubi as of this writing.
Entertainment
How to watch Atletico Madrid vs. Real Sociedad in the Copa del Rey final online for free
TL;DR: Live stream Atletico Madrid vs. Real Sociedad in the Copa del Rey final for free on ITVX. Access this free streaming platform from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.
Atletico Madrid are fresh from beating Barcelona in the quarter-final stage of the Champions League. They’re going to come up against Arsenal in the next round, but first they face off against Real Sociedad in the final of the Copa del Rey.
Atletico Madrid are comfortably above their opponents in La Liga, but Real Sociedad possess the quality to beat any side on their best day. The likes of Mendez and Oyarzabal will likely cause problems for Diego Simeone’s team this weekend.
If you want to watch Atletico Madrid vs. Real Sociedad in the Copa del Rey final from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.
When is Atletico Madrid vs. Real Sociedad?
Atletico Madrid vs. Real Sociedad in the Copa del Rey final kicks off at 3 p.m. ET on April 18. This fixture takes place at the Estadio de La Cartuja.
Mashable Top Stories
How to watch Atletico Madrid vs. Real Sociedad for free
Atletico Madrid vs. Real Sociedad in the Copa del Rey final is available to live stream for free on ITVX.
ITVX is geo-restricted to the UK, but anyone can access this free streaming platform with a VPN. These tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in the UK, meaning you can unblock ITVX to live stream the Copa del Rey for free from anywhere in the world.
Live stream Atletico Madrid vs. Real Sociedad in the Copa del Rey for free by following these simple steps:
-
Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (like ExpressVPN)
-
Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)
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Open up the app and connect to a server in the UK
-
Visit ITVX
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Watch Atletico Madrid vs. Real Sociedad for free from anywhere in the world
$12.95 only at ExpressVPN (with money-back guarantee)
The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but most do offer free-trials or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can access free live streams of the Copa del Rey without actually spending anything. This obviously isn’t a long-term solution, but it does give you enough time to stream Atletico Madrid vs. Real Sociedad in the Copa del Rey final before recovering your investment.
What is the best VPN for ITVX?
ExpressVPN is the best choice for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport on ITVX, for a number of reasons:
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Servers in 105 countries including the UK
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Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more
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Strict no-logging policy so your data is secure
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Fast connection speeds free from throttling
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Up to 10 simultaneous connections
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30-day money-back guarantee
A two-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $68.40 and includes an extra four months for free — 81% off for a limited time. This plan includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for just $12.99 (with money-back guarantee).
Live stream Atletico Madrid vs. Real Sociedad in the Copa del Rey final for free with ExpressVPN.
Entertainment
How to watch Verona vs. AC Milan online for free
TL;DR: Live stream Verona vs. AC Milan in Serie A for free on BBC iPlayer. Access this free live stream from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.
Serie A showcases a number of interesting matchups this weekend, including Verona vs. AC Milan. These teams are at either end of the table, so most fans will be expecting a comfortable victory for the visitors. There’s always the possibility that the slim chance of survival will drive Verona on to do something special at the Marcantonio Bentegodi.
If you want to watch Verona vs. AC Milan in Serie A for free from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.
When is Verona vs. AC Milan?
Verona vs. AC Milan in Serie A kicks off at 9 a.m. ET on April 19. This fixture takes place at the Marcantonio Bentegodi.
How to watch Verona vs. AC Milan for free
Verona vs. AC Milan in Serie A is available to live stream for free on BBC iPlayer.
Mashable Top Stories
BBC iPlayer is geo-restricted to the UK, but anyone can access this free streaming platform with a VPN. These handy tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in the UK, meaning you can unblock BBC iPlayer from anywhere in the world.
Live stream Verona vs. AC Milan for free by following these simple steps:
-
Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (like ExpressVPN)
-
Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)
-
Open up the app and connect to a server in the UK
-
Visit BBC iPlayer
-
Live stream Verona vs. AC Milan for free from anywhere in the world
$12.95 only at ExpressVPN (with money-back guarantee)
The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but most do offer free-trials or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can watch Verona vs. AC Milan without committing with your cash. This isn’t a long-term solution, but it does give you enough time to live stream select fixtures from Serie A before recovering your investment.
What is the best VPN for BBC iPlayer?
ExpressVPN is the best choice for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport on BBC iPlayer, for a number of reasons:
-
Servers in 105 countries including the UK
-
Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more
-
Strict no-logging policy so your data is secure
-
Fast connection speeds free from throttling
-
Up to 10 simultaneous connections
-
30-day money-back guarantee
A two-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $68.40 and includes an extra four months for free — 81% off for a limited time. This plan includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for just $12.99 (with money-back guarantee).
Live stream Verona vs. AC Milan in Serie A for free with ExpressVPN.
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