Looper

The director/writer of the indie fave Brick, Rian Johnson once more teams up with Joseph Gordon Levitt for a thought provoking sci fi time traveling thriller. Where most tales of this genre manages to give the audience a headache from some twist of paradox, Looper manages to feel like it could have happened.

It's the year 2044 and time travel hasn't been invented yet. Not for another 30 years and of course it become illegal thus a tool for criminals and the mafia. Loopers are hit men and cleaners for targets in the future who are sent back in time to be eliminated. In the future it's difficult to dispose of a dead guy due to body tags. The target is sent to a predetermined spot for a particular looper dressed in the same jacket and a hood over their face. The looper shoots them as soon as they appear and the payment is made in gold bars stuck to the victims back. Joe has been doing this job since he was discovered by Abe (Jeff Daniels). Abe was sent back in time to run the operation of Loopers and also controls the city. He assigns Joe to “close his loop”. That is his future self will be sent back in time to be taken out leaving no trace in the future. Joe hesitates a fraction when the victim appears without a mask and he realizes it's himself 30 years older. Old Joe (Bruce Willis) manages to knock out young Joe and flees leaving a note telling him to run.

This movie could have just become just a chase movie with the new Joe trying to close the loop and become financially stable and quit being a Looper with all the stash of gold bricks from his past jobs. He know what will happen when you don't finish the job as his best friend (Paul Dano) lets his older self get away and it's not pretty. Old Joe has an agenda. He's lost something in the future and he wants to change the past to save the future. There's a new leader called The Rainman. No one nows where he came from or have seen him up close and personal. The Rainman is responsible for all the loops being closed. Old Joe only has a number written on his hand which he manages to figure out that it means the Rainman as a child is currently alive.

The actions switches from the city to the country when Old Joe sends his counterpart to check out the coordinates on the map that marks an isolated farm where Sarah (Emily Blunt) lives with her young son Sid (Pierce Gagnon). Their relationship is someone strained as the small child was raised by Sarah's sister and grandmother when Sarah abandoned him as a baby. Sarah is wary of young Joe but seems to know he's a Looper. While Old Joe is tying loose ends to accomplish his , Young Joe is coming to grips with Old Joe's ultimate plans.

Joe looks like a slick young punk of a looper. Confident, arrogant, he's known to be the best shot with their weapon of choice the “blunderbusters”. They are only efficient up to 15 feet away from the target.
His weakness is his compassion which he doesn't acknowledge until it's too late. The make up to make him look like Willis, but not entirely perfect but the scenes work so that one is not staring at the differences. Willis playing the typical Willis character makes the scenes with his younger self with that famous sarcastic attitude.

The near future is similar to the our world now with some interesting technology like hover motorcycles and clear cell phones. Society is somewhat apocalyptic where poverty reigns and death common. Interestingly the story includes the concept of about 10% of the population has TK – telekinesis but only strong enough to do bar tricks to impress your friends. Looper doesn't bog the story down with time travel mumbo jumbo but touches on some moral ground. It's the perfect thinking person's scifi adventure.
(Review by reesa)