Looper

So, is it possible to have an original idea these days? Yes. Case in point: Looper. I was more than expecting to love this movie. In fact, it would have taken a complete meltdown of story, acting, and effects for me to not have enjoyed it. Exactly the opposite happened. It is coherent story telling at its finest. There are tons of ins and outs, and what have yous, and I cannot believe how perfect it was. Anyone who owns a TV should know the premise of this film. Loopers are assassins in the year 2044. "Marks" are sent from 30 years in the future to be wiped out by the looper. Loopers are paid well in a mostly poor economy. They live well, they love their drugs and women, and as long as their record remains at 100%, life will remain good. That is what the trailers have fed us. We also know that one day, Old Joe (Willis) appears in front of 2044 Looper Joe (JGL), and JGL fails to do his job. This is only the tip of the iceberg of all the different aspects of this film. It goes in so many directions, yet is so engaging, it is almost impossible to not follow along. There was one point when I thought to myself, what the Hell is happening, then it plays out very well. There is also one aspect before the Joe/Joe situation happens that shows where this can go when failure occurs. I won't ruin it, but it was hard to watch, yet so over the top brilliant in its delivery. Where the story goes after Joe lets Joe get away is absolutely mind boggling. It goes forward and back. It is constantly edge of your seat good, and what is introduced, which becomes the main plot point really, caught me off guard. It was a twist of sorts. I was under the impression it would be about a battle against one's own self, but what it evolved in to is way better. It is deeper, and at times, hard to watch due to subject matter. Old Joe has his own agenda, while Looper Joe is trying to figure out what he needs to do. The writing of this in depth story very well could have derailed and become crap in a can. Instead it ultimately becomes the most original, most enjoyable film since Inception. The always gorgeous Emily Blunt plays a very good character, and Piper Perabo (Remember her? Coyote Ugly) seems to have a small part that turns out not to be that small. I cannot get the film out of my head, which proves how imprinting it is. Films that do that become legends and eventually get remade due to the lack of originality in Hollyweird. Rian Johnson who wrote and directed Looper was born by indie film cred. Looper is no different for him. The only difference is he got a bigger budget to make this film. The film, at times, looks as indie as they come. No soundtrack, no background music, no frills. I was a little concerned, as a lot of folks were, about JGL's prosthetics. I will say, it actually played well. It was not distracting and I appreciated the dedication to make this more real. I did find it hard to believe people in 2044 are still driving 2011 Smart Cars (33 years old), 1998 F 150's (46 years old), and late 2000 model Chevy Silverados (mid 30 years old), but at the same time, I appreciate budget money not being spent to make futuristic props that would have no bearing on the story itself.  That was the only thing I questioned in this futuristic, Sci-Fi Thriller. Everything else was fantastic, and I know why I LOVED it, but I am curious to see how other audience members feel. I did hear some grumbles when the credits rolled, yet I laughed it off and grinned ear to ear at what I had just seen. I already want to watch it again. That is saying something with the ridiculous ticket prices these days.

NBM rates Looper - A Work of Cinematic Art

Lawless

I was really anticipating this film, and probably not for the reasons you may think. My #2 reason was content. I love watching stories from this era and the fact it is based on true events doesn't hurt either plus it had that gangster quality about it, but the #1 reason is Tom Hardy. I'm not sure anyone in Hollywood commands the screen as he does right now. He plays Forrest Bondurant. A bootlegger in Franklin Virginia during prohibition. Luckily for him and his outfit, he lives in a small town and local authorities pay him no mind. Probably because they appreciate the shine he produces as much as the next person. Forrest is a no frills guy. He lives quiet as long as he is not pushed. His crew consists of his two brothers, Howard and Jack(LaBeouf). Jack has bigger dreams than what Forrest is allowing, but Jack must choose his own path. Forrest tries to keep a level head about Jack, but knows jack may have to learn the hard way. Things are fine till Forrest declines to give new officials a kick back on profits he earned, so he finds ways to run around them. When Special Inspector Rakes (Guy Pearce) shows up to crack skulls things begin to change. He is as ruthless as he is ugly. The slicked back hair with a strange middle part that spreads a good 3/4 of an inch apart to his sadistic sociopath attitude, and I think what made him look more scary are the lack of eyebrows. He feels he is above the law in enforcing the law, and he frightens people, but not Forrest. This is a great story of family ties, illegal business, and the lengths some will go to protect what they hold dear. Beautifully filmed and violently gruesome. It reminded me of gangster films of yesteryear, and I LOVED it!!! It was better than I expected it could be and for fans (Male) of Jessica Chastain, you are in for a treat. She is glowingly elegant. Beautiful as can be and she delivers a little treat that I didn't see coming. As much as Tom Hardy takes over, even at second billed behind LaBeouf, it is actually Pearce who steals the show. Totally demented and brilliant. Could get him Oscar Gold. And for those of you excited to see another brilliant performance from Gary Oldman, you will not be disappointed. With that said, I expected more from him than 3 small scenes that really had very little bearing on the bigger picture of things. All around fun film that I recommend.

NBM rates Lawless - Phenomenal