Rian Johnson’s name has been bandied about the blogosphere as a director to watch, all the way since he shot Brick (2005) and his follow-up, The Brothers Bloom (2009). For his third film, Looper, Johnson returns to his debut’s neo-noir roots, now adding a sci-fi time travel twist. Joesph Gordon-Levitt stars as a “looper,” an in the year 2044 employed by a mafia located in 2077. The mafia sends enemies back to Gordon-Levitt’s time, whom he murders and then disposes of the bodies. But what happens when his future self (Bruce Willis) gets sent back in time for extermination?
Looper has been drawing early rave reviews, more than matching Brick’s and far surpassing The Brothers Bloom. Here’s what the critics are saying so far:
Brian Tallerico of HollywoodChicago.com: “It is personal, dark, daring, weird, and refreshingly unique. It is also one of the best sci-fi films of the last several years.”
Amy Nicholson of Boxoffice Magazine: “The coolest, most-confident sci-fi flick since 2006’s Children of Men.”
Peter Debruge of Variety: “[Rian Johnson’s] grandly conceived, impressively mounted third feature shows a giddy, geeky interest in science-fiction, then forces it into the back seat and lets the multidimensional characters drive.”
Katey Rich of CinemaBlend.com: “Creates a world so lively and well-wrought I’d happily see a dozen more movies set there.”
So there you have it. It looks like fans of Rian Johnson and hard sci-fi have much to look forward to this month (hell, Dredd 3D also just went Certified Fresh today). Looper is out September 28 in theaters everywhere.
