Looper

Films that pertain to time travel have that common problem with a thing called paradoxes, so it's really difficult to find a well delineated script which has little or no paradoxes in them. Well, I must say that if "Looper" has any paradoxes in it, I'm hard-pressed to find them.

In the year 2044, a man, Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) working for a group of killers headed up by Abe (Jeff Daniels) called "Loopers" (they work for the mob and kill people who are sent blindfolded back in time from the year 2074 by their bosses) recognizes a victim as himself 30 years in his future (Bruce Willis). He hesitates resulting in the escape of his older self.
While trying to escape from his boss, Abe, because he didn't kill his target, Joe runs into Sara (Emily Blunt) and her son, Cid (Pierce Gagnon), but this isn't just any chance meeting, for there is a connection with Joe's being this Looper and with Sara and her son and with his older self is certainly planned.

Others to round out the cast are Paul Dano as Seth, a fellow Looper, Noah Segan as Kid Blue, a henchman of Abe's, Piper Perabo as Suzie, Summer Qing as older Joe's wife, Tracie Thoms as Beatrix, Frank Brennan as Old Seth, and Garret Dillahunt as Jesse.

This was intensely written and directed by Rian Johnson ("Brick" '05, "The Brothers Bloom" '08). One thing I can say for Johnson is that even though he doesn't produce that many projects, the ones that he has done are fresh, original, and entertaining. For an over done topic for films as time travel has been in the past, this certainly has been the most original take on that topic bar none!

If you're really into time travel in a thrilling format with tons of originality, this film will be the right ticket for you. Even the certain Bruce Willis squints that Levitt conveys even adds that much more to the belief that they could be one and the same person 30 years apart. This has it all-- suspense, entertainment, action, some romance, in a great cat and mouse chase.

Out of 4 stars: 3.5                 Rated: R                     119mins.