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Plot Summary
In the futuristic action thriller Looper, time travel will be invented but it will be illegal and only available on the black market. When the mob wants to get rid of someone, they will send their target 30 years into the past where a looper, a hired gun, like Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is waiting to mop up. Joe is getting rich and life is good until the day the mob decides to close the loop, sending back Joe's future self (Bruce Willis) for assassination. The film is written and directed by Rian Johnson and also stars Emily Blunt, Paul Dano, and Jeff Daniels.
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Rotten Tomatoes Movie Reviews
TOMATOMETER
93%- Reviews Counted: 247
- Fresh: 230
- Rotten: 17
- Average Rating: 8.1/10
Top Critics' Reviews
Fresh: Yes, it's a B movie sci-fi thriller, but not many prestige pictures have this much going on underneath the surface.
Fresh: The reasoning behind all this may not reward prolonged inspection, but Johnson is smart enough to press onward with his plot, leaving us with neither the time nor the desire to linger over the logic ...
Fresh: That first hour cooks. And the second hour brings Emily Blunt into the story, which is a fine thing for any second half to offer.
Fresh: Johnson doesn't explain too much, but he explains just enough about how two people can be one person, and how the younger entity's actions, in real time, can affect the memory of the older entity.
Customer Reviews
THE BEST SCI-FI FILM OF THE YEAR!
As far as time travel films go, "Looper" not only revitalizes the genre, it redefines it. By far, one of the most profoundly imaginative and immaculately crafted sci-fi thrillers I've seen in a long time, it manages to tell a story that's as mind-bending as it is emotionally powerful, solidly carving out a cast of characters whose fates you genuinely grow to care about. It also doubles as a brutally intense crime noir, filled with some of the most violent and stylishly gory action sequences ever captured on film. With its fully realized vision of the fictional future, and the incredibly committed performances of its cast, "Looper" is an astounding cinematic achievement, both visually and intellectually.
The film is set in the year 2044, but also 30 years ahead than that. In 2074, time travel has already been invented and, though outlawed, is secretly used within the black market. When the mob wants to get rid of someone, they send their target three decades into the past where a looper, a hired assassin like Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), is waiting to erase the crime from ever happening. But there's a catch. The killers are known as "loopers" because one day, they must "close the loop" and eliminate themselves. So when Joe makes the big mistake of letting his next victim, his future self (Bruce Willis), escape, he's forced to track himself down and finish the score before it's too late. Confused yet?
The complex premise may go over some viewers' heads at first, but once the film finally dives into the central story after setting itself up, that's when everything starts to make sense. I won't talk much more about the plot, since I'd probably give too much information away, but let's just say that it's a lot to take in, especially during the first thirty minutes. Director Rian Johnson's screenplay is both precisely detailed and emotionally tense, building its characters in a way that makes them feel like real humans. One of the movie's biggest surprises is clearly Joseph Gordon-Levitt's incredible turn as the lead. He owns his role as a cold-blooded killer, and yet, it's truly difficult not to feel empathetic for him as the flick moves along. Even more of an astonishing feat is the way Gordon-Levitt is able to channel Willis through the same character. Comparing them side by side, the similarities are uncanny. Willis on his own manages to turn in one of the most deeply complex and nuanced performances in his entire career. It reminded me that he's actually an actor with huge talent and not just some mindless action star, which he's most often portrayed as these days. Luckily, that's far from the case here, as Willis proves his own as both a merciless butt-kicking machine and a tragically tormented soul in a desperate mission to save the one person he loves most. In addition, Emily Blunt brings her A-game as the overly protective mother of a son with a mysterious set of powers, with Jeff Daniels also delivering a top-notch supporting performance as the ruthless mastermind of the mob young Joe works for. As a whole, the cast is absolutely phenomenal. In fact, their acting is so impressive, it's almost enough to carry the film on its own.
With its energetic performances, unpredictable plot twists, and thrilling action sequences, "Looper" is one of the most remarkably original movies to come out in a long time. What Rian Johnson has created here is nothing short of game-changing; a flick that successfully blends different elements of the sci-fi genre in a way that feels exciting and timeless. My only slight issue with this film is the fact that its pacing feels a bit uneven at times, but that only occurs when the story changes directions. For the most part, though, I loved watching nearly every minute of "Looper". From the gorgeous cinematography to Nathan Johnson's compelling score, I was blown away by just how incredible this movie was, and I can't recommend it enough! If you're a fan of ambitious sci-fi action and imaginatively potent storytelling, you won't be disappointed with this mind-blowing epic!
It's was so awesome
Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Bruce Willis are both great performance of this sci-fi films. The action sequence was awesome, the visual effects was great, the story was very good and the dialogue was just great. So the movies did great review and success at the box office.
I Love this movies go see Looper it's awesome.
Sometimes I think producers pay reviewers
I like the scene when Bruce slaps his hand on the table and said "We're not going to talk about time travel". Because if they did, this movie makes no sense what-so-ever. The premise of you can't "kill them in the future, so we send them back" is just silly. The whole thing is just a mess, from story to plot to thought out story line, etc. The love interest took 20 seconds to develop and it's key to the whole plot.
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- $12.99
- Genre: Action & Adventure
- Released: 2012
- © 2012 Looper Distribution, LLC. All Rights Reserved.