"Looper" will be a strong contender for sci-fi movie of the decade.

Rating: 9/10 (13 October 2012)

Along with Edgar Wright, Rian Johnson is one of the top modern directors breathing life into original and accessible projects. Brick is one of the best neo-noirs of the last decade and The Brothers Bloom is potentially better and certainly funner. He has an excellent grasp of intertwining characters and style, particularly highlighted with his work on the less active but just as explosive episodes of Breaking Bad, my favourite TV series. From the concept to the talent, Looper always looked like a guaranteed winner and it definitely delivered. It's a brilliant blend of unsettling (often brutal) and creative ideas with an elegant and gritty style. The cinematography is definitely a highlight, with robotic movement in the panning and disorientating angles. After the whirlwind first hour, it settles down to a warmer second half where it becomes surprisingly powerful, with a sensitive yet bleak emotional core that provided some really heart-wrenching moments that matched its unrelentless thrills.
Although its science-fiction ideas are thoroughly fascinating, the most interesting part of the writing is how it handled the anti-hero(s) of present-day Joe and older Joe. With their conflicting motivations and differing risks the characters will take, there's a very organic and fierce rift that divides them, something I was skeptical on how that could be created but is justified in the film (in a scene where the consequences are shown in an implicated but graphic way). The moral compass switches around in a great subtle way. One scene, Joe is the bad guy and Older Joe has the good intentions and it effortlessly turns in a way that really resonates with the viewer, despite the fact that he is a somewhat despicable character. It's a film built on inner flaws and unconscious desires and there's a lot more implicated than shown which makes for a richer experience. There are many twists throughout, but unlike some films which boast them, Looper allows the twists to be unexplained for the audience rather than the characters.
However, it does have some messy elements. The action sequences are at their best when it's short and sharp, as Johnson doesn't know how to handle longer shootouts as they feature jarring editing and cinematography. The comedic moments feel too silly and out of place for a sincere film like this and if they were going for laughs, they should've gone for a different style of humour. Paul Dano and Jeff Daniels, while good, aren't sinister enough for their roles, though it is great seeing Garret Dillahunt, who's one of my favourite bit-part actors ever. None of these aspects hold the film back which is a good thing, but they could have been trimmed for an even tighter film even though the film does wind down for the 'farm half,' I thought it fit the pace rather than ruined it like some others feel it did.
As well as time travel, the film also has the science-fiction aspect of human telekinesis, known as TK, which while at times it feels unnecessary and almost turns the film into the special demon child type movie which has been overused in horror for the past few years, this was executed in a fresh and emotionally charged way that suggests the next step of evolution for both technology and humanity and how the human condition will deal with them which is a very interesting concept. While any time travel film suffers from logical problems and plot holes let alone articulating its own rules adequately, Looper delivers its exposition very well and even leaves enough room to offer a wide range for audience speculation on other details, rather than pre-occupy the viewer with logic problems throughout the film. Many have been left unsatisfied but I absolutely loved it and it's a strong contender for sci-fi film of the decade.
9/10