Dir: Rian Johnson
Starring: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Bruce Willis, Emily Blunt
Synopsis: In 2074, time travel exists and is used primarily by the mob as a means to dispose of a body by sending it back 30 years where assassins known as Loopers are hired to kill and dispose of them. When his future self is sent back to have his loop 'closed', Joe ends up fighting himself and the mob to try and fix both present and future.
Verdict: Whenever a film comes along with a time travel plot, especially a plot where one's future self meets a past version of themselves, I end up with a massive headache. Time travel makes great sci-fi, but is one of the most complex things to get your head around as a viewer, and when the film tries to explain the physics behind it, the headache gets worse.
Therefore, Looper gave me this headache - wondering how many times this had happened, trying to think of the possible outcomes and, though you get Willis' Joe tries to explain it and how his own memories are affected and re-written to his younger self (Gordon-Levitt), it still remains one of those things that bugs you.
However, once you accept that you can't in all honesty get your head around the logic behind the science, you can enjoy the film for the story. While Johnson's explanation of time travel and its effects on the same person and their respective memories and the fate of the future aren't perfect, the story itself is well written, taking into account the various timelines and coming to an altogether satisfying conclusion.
Gordon-Levitt's portrayal of the Looper, Joe is brilliant, especially when you think about the antithesis between him and Willis' older version -their different views on how to 'correct' the future. The portrayal is made all the more impressive when you get to grips with the amazing effects used to make him look like a younger Willis - the three hours of effects make up and prosthetics (done by make-up artist Kazuhiro Tsuji), that make him look like that, the end result is uncanny, and causes a double take to say "is that really him or another actor?".
On the subject of the effects, the CG is impressive throughout the film, from the city-scape, action sequences and futuristic vehicles, to the brilliant effects on young Joe, they are bound to impress.
Willis is also on form, playing the type of character we know from previous work, he does his guns-blazing act brilliantly and, thanks in part to Gordon-Levitts Joe as well as Willis' Joe, he creates a character that you don't know whether to think of as the villain or a misunderstood anti-hero - a trait which take the film up a notch or two.
As it seems to be with any film Gordon-Levitt has worked on recently (Inception, Dark Knight Rises) this is definitely one to go and see.
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