Looper

Movie Name: Looper
Year of Release: 2012

Director: Rian Johnson

Stars: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Bruce Willis, Emily Blunt, Paul Dano, Noah Segan, Piper Perabo, Jeff Daniels, Pierce Gagnon, Frank Brennan, Garrett Dillahunt, Nick Gomez

Genre: Action, Sci-Fi, Thriller

Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 8

Synopsis:

Rian Johnson's third feature, "Looper" is again an original screenplay from the young director, who previously directed the fantastic "Brick" and the interesting and flawed "The Brothers Bloom". "Looper" follows the story of Joe, a young man in 2044 who is basically a killer for hire. Joe eliminates people who are sent from the future by a crime syndicate - this sort of job is called a "looper". All these "loopers" eventually have to kill themselves. When the Joe from the future is sent back, he manages to escape, sending the life of his younger self on a downward spiral. The younger Joe attempts to escape retaliation for the unfinished job and also understand a larger crime plot taking place in the future. On his quest to escape, the younger Joe comes to know Sarah and her young son Cid, who both change his life forever.
After "The Brothers Bloom", director Rian Johnson is back with a stunning and intelligent science fiction film. The director manages to create a future that is bleak, and yet recognizable and not totally removed from our current reality. The characters are fully explored, in particular the young Joe, played fantastically well by Joseph Gordon-Levitt (under prosthetics to make him look like a younger Bruce Willis). The film utilizes the concept of time travel to smartly create  a notion of interconnection throughout the main characters and their fates, giving the film more than just an extra layer of action set pieces. This ends up giving the film it's pulse and heart, differentiating it from any standard action film. A great film waiting to be seen.