Lucy

Lucy is currently streaming in Australia on Netflix and BINGE, and in the US on Netflix, and it earns its premise rather than just borrowing genre trappings. It knows exactly what kind of film it is from the opening scene, and never loses that thread. 17,167 people have weighed in on TMDB, and the verdict leans heavily positive. Scarlett Johansson's performance is the anchor the more ambitious scenes need. Available now on Netflix — press play and find out why people keep recommending it.

Lucy is not trying to be everything to everyone, and that focus is exactly what makes it work. Lucy treats its concept seriously enough to follow it all the way through. A woman, accidentally caught in a dark deal, turns the tables on her captors and transforms into a merciless warrior evolved beyond human logic. Scarlett Johansson and Morgan Freeman lead a cast that makes the ambitious moments land. It hit screens in 2014. The world-building is meticulous enough to sustain multiple rewatches, with details early on that only make sense later. It knows exactly what it is, and does not try to be anything else.

Viewers burned by ambitious sci-fi that could not sustain its premise should give Lucy a chance. It has built its own audience without needing a direct comparison. The complete film is available and best experienced without too much prior knowledge of where it goes. Scarlett Johansson grounds the bigger ideas in something human. Once you are in, you will want to talk about it.