In a future where time travel is outlawed, a hired gun called a
​Looper faces his older self when he's sent back for termination.
ACTION/SCI-FI
Looper ​(2012)
Written and Directed by Rian Johnson
Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Bruce Willis, Emily Blunt,
Jeff Daniels, Noah Segan, Pierce Gagnon, ​Paul Dano,
​Piper Perabo, Qing Xu, Garret Dillahunt
​August 31, 2016
There is so much about Looper that relies on a well-written screenplay, one that effectively corrects any and all paradoxes. Without it, this film would be an incoherent mess of ideas and plot twists. Thanks to the skillful filmmaking of Rian Johnson, Looper emerges as a realistic depiction of Earth's future and a method of time travel that clears up confusion and makes a great deal of sense. The superb performances help as well, especially Bruce Willis who tried harder than he has in a decade.
A Looper is an assassin hired by the mob to execute targets sent from the future. All of this is explained via narration throughout the film, so as to get everyone on the same page. Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is a Looper, one of the best, who gets the shock of his life when his time-traveling target is his older self (Willis). When Old Joe escapes, Joe's entire life crumbles as the mob pursues both of them. While the film promises far more action than it actually has, the story is solid enough to make up for it. The chemistry between Gordon-Levitt and Willis is fantastic, so much so that you really do believe they're the same person. While I did enjoy the film for the most part, the ending is a bit muddled and may require several viewings to really understand.
I'd go so far as to say that Looper is one of the most intriguing sci-fi films of the decade so far and definitely has potential to one day be viewed as a cult classic. Rian Johnson wrote a killer script and directed a fantastic movie, one that doesn't try to hide the complications of time travel but instead embraces them to add more to the story. This is definitely an exciting film and warrants a recommendation.