High Concept Intrigue

Rating: 10/10 (18 October 2012)

Looper seems like it's inspired by Philip K. Dick's several works. It's a Sci-Fi story that is set in the future with a quite interesting concept. The ads shows this as a typical nonstop action film. Surprisingly, it's much better than anyone would expect. It's actually a mind blowing film that tells an unpredictable story and has a great amount of thrills. The performances are strong and the directing is solid. Unlike most modern Sci-Fi films they depend on the action and the explosions. Looper is all about letting the audience intrigue all the way on the concept.
The important thing you should expect in this film is the brilliance of the concept than the action. Yeah, there's fighting and gunfights but it's mostly about the idea. The film tells it in a stylish and mind boggling way which makes it compelling. The story development is clever. The first half lets the viewers root for the film's world until the plot twists. It's great when a scene suddenly becomes confusing then it all make sense afterwards. Aside of its storytelling, Joseph Gordon-Levitt did a great job playing the young version of Bruce Willis as he imitates Willis' accent and gruffness. He still plays the role with his own style. Gordon-Levitt is energetic and striking. The rest of the cast are excellent.
The production design is decent. Its futuristic world looks magnificent and their weaponry looks awesome. The camera-work is one of the merits of the film. It makes the action look stylish and brings cool vertigo to the trippy moments. Every shot of the film is impressive. The most interesting one is when Joe was in the fields, you prominently see a cloud trail on the sky remarking the scene. The script is smart enough for explaining its concept and making things gripping.
Looper is one of those films that would stuck in your head in a long time because it's plain brilliant. It's so different to popular modern Sci-Fi films. This film is not an action movie cookie-cutter that leaves the high concept as the background of the film. This film simply narrates, mind-bends, and intrigues which makes it amazingly interesting. The idea is original with some inspiration. Looper has the art, the heart, the tension, and the brains that any science fiction fans would love.