Viewed – 16 October 2012 Cinema
The trailer sold me on this. The ticking pocket watch, a great concept and frenetic action. This follows the story of ‘Looper’ Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) a sort of hired assassin who kills mob targets who are sent back in time so there is no trace of them in the future. Joe makes a living this way, quick executions, clean disposal and lots of silver bars to add to his savings. Only one problem – one day a target is sent back, and it’s him – 30 years older. Can he kill his future self (Bruce Willis), or choose not to and face the wrath of those he works for?
This is an intelligent and superbly played sci-fi thriller. Gordon-Levitt may have a slightly odd Willis impersonation going on, but as a particularly gifted actor, still manges to pull it off, handling action, emotion and some brain-melting plot developments with ease. Veteran Bruce Willis is also good; determined and somewhat ruthless in his quest … of which I wont spoil for you here, but just to say – he came back for a very good reason. Additional support is also decent, with a sexy but wasted Piper Parabo as a hooker and Brit actress Emily Blunt almost steeling the show in the later stages.
Director Rian Johnson has delivered a damn clever and resoundingly fresh take on the age-old time travel subject, injecting shades of Mad Max, The Terminator and to some extent Cronenberg’s Scanners, whilst still retaining his own identity and flavour. The action throughout is shot with attitude and style, and I even found some elements disturbing (telekenesis … shudder), making events really get under my skin – not expected.
One of the finest movies of the year.
Verdict: 5 /5
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Craig's Movie Report 
Good review. There’s a lot to like here, but there’s also a lot to notice that just doesn’t quite gel so well in the end. I didn’t fall in love with the characters as much as the film wanted me to, but I was interested and entertained by where they and the story itself were going, and that was enough for me to be like.
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