Not entirely original but a smart sci-fi film!

Rating: 8/10 (1 October 2012)

Time-travel is a messy endeavor and making movies about time traveling usually leaves gaping plot holes. Make no mistake about it, Looper is not entirely original but it is the freshest take on time-traveling in movies since the Spanish thriller 'Timecrimes'. In fact, pay close attention and you'll see the DNA strands of 'The Terminator', NBCs 'Heroes', and yeh...even 'Timecrimes'. But that's not a bad thing. Rian Johnson manages to take his original idea and borrow small elements of those aforementioned works to make his creation that much more compelling.
Joseph Gordon-Levitt is THE go-to young actor of this generation. Not only does the incredible makeup job transform him into a younger Bruce Willis, but JGL's acting BECOMES a Bruce Willis of sorts - all the way down to his smarmy grin :-). JGL's performance alone is worth the price! Bruce Willis is perfect as a well-aged John McClain Everyman.
The mind-numbing problem of time traveling is well addressed in this movie and I thought that the loose ends tied up well enough to keep the most jaded viewer involved
(SLIGHT SPOILER) What I really liked about Looper was the blending of two separate genres into a broader set-piece: Time-travel and superpowers. I won't say anything more about the plot, but any lifelong fan of sci-fi movies will recognize a little bit of the original Terminator (thats a high compliment), and other meta-physical movies.
LOOPER was my 3rd most anticipated movie of 2012. The 1st was 'Prometheus' - which underwhelmed me. The second movie was 'Marvel's The Avengers' which was everything I was hoping for and more. LOOPER definitely delivered as a treat for the eyes and the mind. A thinking person's action film.