Looper is a SciFi movie that's a weird cross between 12 Monkeys and The Terminator, which is odd since both view time travel in rather different ways.
The basic plot is that about 70 years in the future, time travel has been created and banned, leaving it only available to mob organizations who use the technology to kill and dispose of bodies. Since disposing of a body in the way future is nearly impossible, people to be killed are sent back to the future (about 30 years from now) where they are promptly killed and disposed of by a group of assassins called "Loopers." One caveat to the job is that eventually, to distance themselves from their assassins, said assassins are eventually sent back to the future to be killed by their past selves. For their work, their future selves are strapped with gold bricks for the past selves to spend however they please, as their assassination contracts are officially over, although it means that in the future they are eventually going to be sent back to be killed 30 years later. This is called "Closing the loop."
Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays Joe, a looper who is doing his job without much complaint until he notices that a bunch of loopers are closing their loops in rapid succession. Eventually, his future self gets sent back, and then things start to go wrong and a much larger plot starts to unravel, as it turns out it isn't as simple as simply closing his own loop. I can't go into too much more detail without getting into some slight spoilers so I'll leave it at that.
While I will declare that Looper is a good movie, it bewilders me a little, because I can't tell if the movie has a strong but subtle subtext in it, or if it is just not very well made. There's a number of aspects of the movie that makes me ask questions. For example, why does Joe change his appearance in different parts of the movie? In the beginning he looks like the JGL we know from movies like TDKR and Inception, while at another part he looks like he's trying really hard to do a Bruce Willis impression, and then for the 2nd half of the movie he looks like he's trying to be like James Dean. Why are numerous visual cues given attention but then never explained? This movie isn't really on the same level of complexity as something like Mulholland Drive or 12 Monkeys, although it seems to be acting like it is. Also, if this is the future, why are so many devices in the movie from 2012 and before? It was rather silly at one point when a character was moving a children's toy that was the exact same toy as one that my daughter uses.
If there's one thing that can be commended it is the performances of all the actors of the movie. JGL continues his hit streak, Bruce Willis shows he still has some good acting chops, and everyone else plays their part rather well. The plot is original, or at least is one that hasn't been done well in quite a while, as again it feels like 12 Monkeys was the last to do so properly.
In terms of whether this validates a trip to the cineplex or waiting until it comes out for home viewing, I'd have to say this is a good On Demand/Redbox type flick. Whether it deserves multiple viewings does depend on whether it comes out there is a running powerful subtext or if things really are as superficial as they seem. Either way it is still worth viewing and is a surprise bright spot of the year. I give it a B-.
The basic plot is that about 70 years in the future, time travel has been created and banned, leaving it only available to mob organizations who use the technology to kill and dispose of bodies. Since disposing of a body in the way future is nearly impossible, people to be killed are sent back to the future (about 30 years from now) where they are promptly killed and disposed of by a group of assassins called "Loopers." One caveat to the job is that eventually, to distance themselves from their assassins, said assassins are eventually sent back to the future to be killed by their past selves. For their work, their future selves are strapped with gold bricks for the past selves to spend however they please, as their assassination contracts are officially over, although it means that in the future they are eventually going to be sent back to be killed 30 years later. This is called "Closing the loop."
Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays Joe, a looper who is doing his job without much complaint until he notices that a bunch of loopers are closing their loops in rapid succession. Eventually, his future self gets sent back, and then things start to go wrong and a much larger plot starts to unravel, as it turns out it isn't as simple as simply closing his own loop. I can't go into too much more detail without getting into some slight spoilers so I'll leave it at that.
While I will declare that Looper is a good movie, it bewilders me a little, because I can't tell if the movie has a strong but subtle subtext in it, or if it is just not very well made. There's a number of aspects of the movie that makes me ask questions. For example, why does Joe change his appearance in different parts of the movie? In the beginning he looks like the JGL we know from movies like TDKR and Inception, while at another part he looks like he's trying really hard to do a Bruce Willis impression, and then for the 2nd half of the movie he looks like he's trying to be like James Dean. Why are numerous visual cues given attention but then never explained? This movie isn't really on the same level of complexity as something like Mulholland Drive or 12 Monkeys, although it seems to be acting like it is. Also, if this is the future, why are so many devices in the movie from 2012 and before? It was rather silly at one point when a character was moving a children's toy that was the exact same toy as one that my daughter uses.
If there's one thing that can be commended it is the performances of all the actors of the movie. JGL continues his hit streak, Bruce Willis shows he still has some good acting chops, and everyone else plays their part rather well. The plot is original, or at least is one that hasn't been done well in quite a while, as again it feels like 12 Monkeys was the last to do so properly.
In terms of whether this validates a trip to the cineplex or waiting until it comes out for home viewing, I'd have to say this is a good On Demand/Redbox type flick. Whether it deserves multiple viewings does depend on whether it comes out there is a running powerful subtext or if things really are as superficial as they seem. Either way it is still worth viewing and is a surprise bright spot of the year. I give it a B-.
