Movie of The Week Review: Looper
Originality in World of Remakes
R 2012-Sci-fi/Action, Run Time: 1hr 59mins
Can Be Seen On: Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, Youtube, Google Playstore Fandango at Home.
Movie Short Summary: In a future society, time-travel exists, but it's only available to those with the means to pay for it on the black market. When the mob wants to eliminate someone, it sends the target into the past, where a hit man known as a looper lies in wait to finish the job. Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is one such hired gun, and he does his job well -- until the day his bosses decide to "close the loop" and send Joe's future self (Bruce Willis) back in time to be killed.
SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!!!!
Trivia Question #1: What other movies did Emily Blunt star in that also involve characters trying to change the future?
(Answers at the bottom)
Hello, fellow watchers (still debating if I like that name for you guys or if it sounds creepy lol). This past week’s movie was Looper! Hopefully, you all have watched it, but if you haven’t, avoid going any further as there will be spoilers. Outside of the Knives Out film series starring Daniel Craig, I had never seen another Rian Johnson-directed movie. After watching Looper, I will definitely look into more of his films. In a world of remakes, Looper is a standout original concept. Although it’s a sci-fi film—which can sometimes confuse people or have too many abstract ideas—it’s incredibly easy to follow and understand.
The film starts off in 2044 in Kansas City with young Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) living his life as a contracted hitman, killing anyone sent back from the future. The future is 2074, where time travel has been outlawed, and in 2044, it doesn’t exist yet. In the future, crime syndicates use time travel to send people they want dead back to the past to be killed and disposed of. This twist on the use of time travel is the movie's original concept. A key detail is "closing one's loop," which is the movie's basis and where future Joe (Bruce Willis) comes into play. A closed loop is when a hitman in the past is paid to kill his future self to erase any connections to the crime syndicate. Hopefully, this helped explain the main concept of the movie. I still have some questions about other details, which I’ll point out in a bit.
Trivia Question #2: Even though Joe struggles learning French in the movie, who in the cast can speak it fluently?
Beyond the originality, the storyline is solid, especially with the search for the younger version of the Rainmaker, who hates loopers and wants to close all the loops at all costs. Future Joe sends himself back to kill the young Rainmaker. One of my favorite scenes is when both Joes sit down at the diner to talk about their lives. It makes you wonder what you would say to your own self in their shoes. The wisdom from someone who has lived an entire life (future Joe) contrasts with the ignorance of someone young, not willing to take advice (young Joe). It’s also funny when future Joe dismisses talking about time travel with, "Fuck that time travel shit."
Even though Paul Dano (Seth) wasn’t in the film long, I loved his performance and that of the supporting cast. He played a great example of what could go wrong when a looper doesn’t kill his future self and has to go on the run. He wasn’t over the top but showed the right amount of emotion and vulnerability. Jeff Daniels as Abe was both funny and miserable as a guy from the future stuck in the past as the mob boss. Emily Blunt (Sara) was fantastic as a self-reliant midwestern mother protecting her child from two strangers, knowing the danger he could present in the future.
Though it’s a good movie, there are multiple open-ended questions and parts of the story that keep it from being great. The facial alterations to Joseph Gordon-Levitt to look like Bruce Willis simply didn’t work for me. It felt like Gordon-Levitt tried too hard to pull off a Willis impression, especially during the scene where he meets Abe for the first time. The world of Looper isn’t fully explained. Why are there so many vagrants? Why is a lot of the population poor? Why does 10% of the population have telekinetic powers, and what’s the point of it outside of impressing chicks? These questions, while maybe not critical to the main story, would have made the world feel more complete.
Cid (Pierce Gagnon) seemed like the strongest person in this world with telekinetic powers, but there’s no background or reasoning for his strength. The character of Kid Blue (Noah Segan) could have been erased, and the story would still be intact. His role seemed unnecessary, serving mainly as a comic relief that wasn’t that funny. The romance between young Joe and Sara also felt abrupt, lacking build-up or tension. Again these might be considered small critiques but its what truly separates this movie from being great.
Trivia Question #3: What was the name of the other film that Bruce Willis and Joseph Gordon-Levitt also starred together in?
OFFICIAL SCORE: 7.3/10
Overall, Looper is a solid movie worth seeing but maybe not rewatchable after the initial twists are revealed, like young Joe sacrificing himself for Cid. If you love a fresh idea with an intriguing storyline and some action, this movie is right up your alley. But if you hate open-ended endings and missing context about the world, you might want to pass on it. This is why I gave it a 7.3 score—I liked it but understand why it splits the audience. Either way, I had fun watching it and hope you did too! See you guys Wednesday for our Movie Preview of the Week.
TRIVIA ANSWERS:
#1-The Adjustment Bureau (2011) and Edge of Tomorrow (2014). (Source: IMDB)
#2-Joseph Gordon-Levitt! (Source: CBR.com)
#3-Sin City: A Dame to Kill For (2014)