Loopin the Loop

Rating: 5/10 (4 October 2012)

What's the all-purpose standby time-travel plot? Yeah - guys getting sent back from the future to assassinate someone and alter future history. "Looper" comes up with an alternative: guys from the future getting sent back to be assassinated by regular schmoes in the present. Brilliant, only maybe they didn't quite think it through, and half way (I'm not spoiling anything here am I?) they revert to plan A - one of the guys from the future who's evaded his assassin (it's his younger self so he remembers it's gonna work) decides to bump off some kid who's going to grow up to be Mr Nasty in the future. Not a heartwarming little angel kid of course, that wouldn't be right, not even one of those cynical wise-ass sort of kids either, people love them too. What other sorts of kids are there? Oh yes, malevolent psycho kids with satanic powers - that's our plot! Remember the first time you saw Star Wars? It'll be like that, only more confusing. And probably less sequels.