Rated
R (Strong Violence, Language, Some Sexuality/Nudity and Drug Content)
Running
Time: 1 Hour & 58 Minutes
Cast-
Joseph
Gordon-Levitt-Joe Simmons
Bruce
Willis-Old Joe Simmons
Emily
Blunt-Sara
Pierce
Gagnon-Cid
Jeff
Daniels-Abe
Paul
Dano-Seth
Noah
Segan-Kid Blue
Piper
Perabo-Suzie
Qing
Xu-Old Joe's Wife
Tracie
Thoms-Beatrix
Garret
Dillahunt-Jesse
Frank
Brennan-Old Seth
Directed
by Rian Johnson
Note: There may be some unintentional spoilers contained within this review.
 |
| Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Bruce Willis battle for their own future in Rian Johnson's futuristic sci-fi thriller, "Looper," one of the best films of 2012. |
If
you had the power to go back in time and prevent a terrible event from
happening, would you do it despite the consequences? It's the kind of heady question
that is explored in Rian Johnson's "Looper," a twisty sci-fi mind
bender in which a young man confronts his future self. Films involving time
travel are a dime a dozen in Hollywood but without a skilled writer and/or
director at the helm, the story can quickly devolve into a confusing mess of
unanswered questions and gaping plot holes. Fortunately, Johnson rises to the
challenge with aplomb and while "Looper" tackles some familiar
themes, it remains a thought-provoking and compelling character study that
transforms a tired sci-fi concept into something truly original, earning its
place as one of 2012's best films.
Opening in the middle of an empty field in
Kansas, a young man named Joe Simmons (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) silently waits
with his Blunderbuss in hand. A man wrapped in a hooded sack appears out of
thin air a few feet away and without any hesitation, Joe kills him. He then
loads the body onto the back of his beat-up truck and rips open the sack,
revealing four bars of silver. Driving to an industrial furnace, Joe disposes
of the body and explains via voiceover that time travel will be invented thirty
years from now in 2074. Outlawed almost immediately, only the most powerful
criminal organizations use it by sending their victims backward in time to the
year 2044, where a specialized assassin known as a 'looper' eliminates them and
gets rid of the body, which is impossible to do in the future due to advanced tagging
techniques. After killing his target, Joe cashes in two of his silver bars in a
heavily-fortified pawn shop and drives to Club Belle, encountering a fellow
looper named Seth (Paul Dano) on the way. Unable to start his slat bike (a
hover bike), Seth asks for a ride. During the drive to the club, it is revealed
that Seth possesses rudimentary telekinetic abilities. Dubbed as 'TK,' these
people were once believed to be the next step in human evolution but it ended
up being nothing more than a cheap party trick. Joe and Seth arrive at the club
to learn that one of their own has 'closed his loop,' which means a looper has
unwittingly killed his future self and earned thirty years of 'retirement,'
until that predetermined point where he will be sent back in time to be killed
by his younger self. After spending the night getting 'dropped' (using eye
droppers filled with drugs to get high), Joe returns to his job as a looper.
Some time later, a frantic pounding outside his apartment window wakes him up
from his sleep. It is Seth, who has 'let his loop run' and is now being chased
by the mob's 'gat-men.' Joe reluctantly agrees to let him hide out at his
apartment but is forced to give him up after a tense meeting with his boss, Abe
(Jeff Daniels), who was sent from the future to manage the loopers and uses the
gat-men as enforcers. A rumor begins to spread of a powerful crime boss in the
future called 'The Rainmaker' ordering the closure of all loops. Joe is
confronted by his older self (Bruce Willis), locking them onto a path that will
have widespread consequences in both the present and the future.
Despite its
sci-fi premise, "Looper" follows in the same vein of Rian Johnson's
previous work, where the director would take a familiar genre and inject new
life into them. His 2005 directorial debut of "Brick" (also starring
Joseph Gordon-Levitt) was a thriller that utilized elements of film noir but in
a high school setting. Following the mixed reception of 2008's caper flick
"The Brothers Bloom," Johnson has bounced back with his best film
yet. Utilizing a what-if time travel scenario that involves changing the future
through a single act (e.g. killing Hitler when he is just a child), Johnson's
script explores the philosophical and moral implications that come with
committing such an action. In the film, Bruce Willis' Joe escapes from the year
2074 to 2044 with the intention of killing the child who will grow up to be the
Rainmaker but does the ends justify the means? What of the child himself? Is
his fate set in stone or can he be changed through a positive influence? There
are so many questions that
"Looper" presents and not one of them is about an unresolved plot
hole but about exposing our true selves through a seemingly impossible
situation. Sure, the overall story won't come as a total surprise to sci-fi
veterans yet Johnson manages to hold our interest with several twists and his
attention to detail, taking a very 'indie' approach with his vision of the
future. At first glance, 2044 feels remarkably similar (four-wheel vehicles
remain the chief form of transportation) to 2012 but you soon notice some
subtle differences. Hover bikes are now common place, cell phones are little
glass touch-screens, drugs are now taken as eye drops, and crop dusters are
programmable drones. It does contain shades of Ridley Scott's seminal
"Blade Runner" with its downtrodden masses and omnipresent police but
the effects used to bring the future to life never descend into the flashy mess
that most Hollywood productions suffer from; it is simply a backdrop in which
the film's ideas are presented. The trailers are somewhat misleading, promising
an abundance of action when this is really a slow-burn feature that focuses on
character drama and big ideas. However, there is one scene in which Old Joe is captured by Abe's gat-men and to
escape, he guns them all down in a bloody showdown that had the crowd roaring
with applause.
Johnson has gathered an impressive cast and it's one of the
reasons why "Looper" works so well. Delivering a nuanced performance
and cementing his status as one of the most talented actors working today, Joseph
Gordon-Levitt may not look quite like
Bruce Willis in his younger days despite the make-up but he perfectly captures
his mannerisms, including that trademark smirk and chuckle, with uncanny
detail. He imbues Joe with a cold-blooded nature yet maintains a strong sense
of morality, making him an anti-hero. The choice of giving up his friend to his
boss is clearly a hard one and we see him later filled with regret. Bruce
Willis is just as good, if not better, as Old Joe. His screen-time is limited
but he taps into a sense of world-weariness and self-loathing that allows us to
sympathize with him even as he commits some terrible acts of violence. Levitt
and Willis share this amazing scene in a roadside diner, with both voicing
their clear contempt for each other. Emily Blunt is suitably tough as a
shotgun-toting farmer caring for her only son Cid, played by Pierce Gagnon, who
weaves between moments of cute precociousness and a frightening rage. Paul Dano
and Jeff Daniels have small roles that help fleshes out the world that Johnson
has created.
Premiering at this year's Toronto International Film Festival, "Looper"
was released on September 28, 2012 to widespread critical acclaim with 93% on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics hailed
it 'as thought-provoking as it is thrilling, [the film] delivers an uncommonly
smart, bravely original blend of futuristic sci-fi and good old-fashioned
action.' Unfortunately, the advance screening I attended had one too many noisy
patrons, with some laughing at inappropriate moments or making comments that
was neither funny nor clever. You always get the dregs of society at these free
events sadly. A number one debut at the box office was never in the cards for
"Looper" due to its competition from Sony's animated flick
"Hotel Transylvania" but it should gross a solid $20 million and turn
a healthy profit since its production budget was only $30 million. Sony wins
either way as Johnson's film was distributed by their subsidiary TriStar
Pictures. When I left the theater, I thought "Looper" was merely a
'great' film due its somewhat predictable story but what really elevates it is
the approach. Johnson breathes new
life into a well-worn subgenre, creating one of the most interesting films of
the year, one that will likely be talked about for years to come.
Final
Rating: 4.5 out of 5
Joe:
We both know how this has to go down. I can't let you walk away from this diner
alive. This is my life now. I earned it. You had yours already. So why don't
you do what old men do and die?
Old Joe: Why don't
you just take your little gun out from between your legs and do it, boy?
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