Looper (2012)

Directed and written by: Rian Johnson

In 2074, when the mob wants to get rid of someone, the target is sent into the past, where a hired gun awaits - someone like Joe - who one day learns the mob wants to 'close the loop' by sending back Joe's future self for assassination.

---

I went to see Looper when it came out in Finland, and I was in love with it since then. 

I've always liked the idea of the story. It's complicated in the way time travelling stories are always complicated. Still the plot is mostly straight forward and it's clear what people want. Also it's brutal just in the right way.

Of course if you're serious about the time travel aspect, sometimes the time travel paradox doesn't seem to make awful lot of sense, but if you're just in it for an action thriller then you're going to be fine.

One of the weirdest things in this movie is to see Joseph Gordon Levitt look like Bruce Willis. Like he pulls that off, and it's not completely awful, but it just look odd. You could've made that happen some other way too, not just make JGL copy Bruce Willis completely... 

I'm usually not a big fan of science fiction, but when it comes to only small doses of science fiction, I might love it. With Looper the only doses of sci-fi are the time travel element and the telekinetic abilities possessed by some of the characters. Even if time travelling is a key element in the story, it doesn't make the story feel too futuristic. The weapons look pretty regular and there are only few futuristic looking vehicles in the world. 

This makes it possible for the story not explain the world too much. It looks and works pretty much like ours apart from the few details that are explained very clearly. It's not necessarily only a good thing: you might want to know more about the world, but you can't. You can only see the slightly dystopian aspect on how there are clearly wealthier people partying and then there's so much poverty on the streets and all that.

If I absolutely hate something about this movie it's the sound mixing. Sometimes watching this movie is painful because the characters talk quietly but then there's all that action noises and shouting... It's easier if you have subtitles on, then you don't have to blast the movie on full volume. I often stop paying attention to it, but there's that one diner scene where I always pay attention to it, it's just super annoying.

It's always a risk to rewatch a movie you used to like 5-6 years back, because you might ruin it, but also can you be neutral in reviewing it if you already like it? The thing about Looper is that while it's a good action movie, watching it too many times doesn't make it good, unfortunately. It's still alright, and there are still some scenes that are breath-taking, but everything between those few amazing scenes feels dull. 

☆☆☆☆☆☆☆

7 / 10