Looper: Time Traveling Assassins

Most sci-fi movies start out as successful books that are then translated to film. It is then to Looper's credit that it feels as complete and well-thought as a work of literature even though it is a completely original screenplay from the mind of writer-director Rian Johnson.

Looper tells the story of Joe Simmons (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) who is an assassin (known as a looper) in the year 2044. 30 years in the future, time travel will be invented, but it is deemed dangerous and outlawed. The only people who use it are criminal syndicates, who send their enemies to a predetermined location 30 years in the past, where a looper is waiting with a gun to instantly kill the target and dispose of the body. Body disposal is nearly impossible in the future where everyone is closely tracked and monitored, which is why mobsters came up with the loopers. Of course, criminals can't afford to have their hired assassins running around free either, so every looper has the following stipulation in his contract - eventually, the target he kills will be himself, i.e. his future self, and that is called "closing the loop." After that, he is released from his contract and free to enjoy the next 30 years before his inevitable death.

The conflict arises when Joe meets his future self (played by Bruce Willis) and fails to kill him. Turns out Old Joe has a few tricks up his sleeve and won't let the mob or his past self kill him before he accomplishes his ultimate goal. He needs to track down a certain person called the Rainmaker who is wreaking havoc in the future, because he believes that killing this individual will allow him to continue his future life without any reprisals. Young Joe is desperate to kill Old Joe because failure to "close the loop" means that he might be killed by his bosses. And so begins a twisted and dangerous plot as the two loopers chase each other while being chased by the mob.

Movies about time travel are always complex and require a set of rules and regulations to explain how everything works. Looper does an excellent job of explaining the rules without making it feel like a lot of wearisome exposition, and the plot is thrilling and unpredictable. The finale is shocking and helps close a lot of problematic loopholes that the topic of time travel must invariably open. The movie also features moments of ultraviolence, but given the movie's scope and setting, that is only to be expected. And the acting is great, with Joseph Gordon-Levitt doing a credible job of playing young Bruce Willis with the help of some prosthetic make-up that can sometimes be distracting but at other times is disconcertingly convincing.

Looper is a reminder that Hollywood can still come up with original high-concept stories that are both thought-provoking and entertaining. This movie may not be for everyone, but fans of sci-fi and/or time travel should give it a try. This is a fresh take on an always fascinating topic and has been executed almost flawlessly.