94% Looper

Grade: A+ (96%)Movies like "Looper" don't come around as much as they should. Usually we get massive amounts of action where reality goes out of the window for the two hour runtime. Then there are movies where they are intelligent but lack the excitement to keep audiences interested. Writer and director Rian Johnson has found a way to mix these two genres into "Looper" a futuristic action thriller that is both entertaining and intelligent at the same time.In the year 2074 time travel will be invented and used by the mob. When they want to get rid of someone, they send them back to the year 2044 where a Looper, a paid assassin, kills them and disposes of the body that technically doesn't even exist yet. Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is one of these assassins. He is wealthy, a junky, and follows basically the same pattern everyday: wake up, kill, collect money, drugs, sleep, repeat. But when his older self (Bruce Willis) is sent back in time and escapes Joe's attempt of assassination, his life turns for the worst as he tries to kill his older self while trying to figure out what Old Joe is planning to do.What's so impressive about "Looper" is its way of being entertaining without guns blazing. When Joe and Old Joe meet in a diner in one of the scenes, there is a lot of suspense when no gun is present on screen. Joe is trying to do his job and "close the loop" while Old Joe is trying to tell his younger self why he is 30 years in the past. It's the part of the movie where the audience will choose which Joe to root for. It's one of "Loopers" great scenes.When guns do go off, its great entertainment. Blood splatters, windows are blown to pieces, and homes are destroyed. What's great about this type of action that it finds ways to blend sic-fi action with old styled action that we are use to seeing. In one instance, since Bruce Willis is in the film, it kind of became like a "Die Hard" film and Willis just kills hordes of people in seconds. It was great to watch and, most of all, it wasn't too much.The action in this film is just a plus. The story and the characters are the real highlights of the film. Granted that the action sequences are amazing, some are just magnificent to watch, but the story and the characters keep the movie going even after the final gun battle.The acting is superb mainly because of the two leads. Joseph Gordon-Levitt (The Dark Knight Rises, Inception) doesn't look quite the same as many will expect. They put on a lot of make up to make him look like a younger Bruce Willis. While they don't quite get it right and takes time to get use to, it's a good try nevertheless. Still, Gordon-Levitt's performance is exceptional. He does try his hardest to act like Bruce Willis in a lot of ways. Most of the time it works when he is talking to other characters in the film. Bruce Willis is also great as Joe. Even though he acts like John McClain from his "Die Hard" films for most of the movie, it's nice to see him play as a bad*ss in other action films."Looper" may be the best action thriller of the year. It's intelligent, gripping, entertaining, and full of action. People who want to see a unique action movie have to give "Looper" a shot. It's two hours long but you only need five minutes to realize that this is going to be one entertaining thriller.

September 24, 2012

Source: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/looper/

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