Film Review: LOOPER (2012)

Writer/Director: Rian Johnson
Running time: 119 mins (approx)
Certification (UK): 15

Genre: Action/Sci-Fi/Drama
UK Release date: 28^th September 2012

Watched on Sky+ Sunday 23^rd June 2013.

PLEASE NOTE: THERE MAY BE UNINTENTIONAL SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

I must admit I do like a decent science fiction movie; sadly, filmmakers seem to think that an action movie set in the future will suffice; sadly, for me, no. What I want is something that will make me think; I don’t want it all explained to me throughout; let me work some of it out for myself. And so we come to ‘Looper’. You’ll be glad to know it does tick many of the right boxes, although not quite all. Still, it does do many of the things I’d want from a science fiction movie. Here’s a very brief summary (the set-up really) before I give you my thoughts.

Set thirty years in the future where a group of men called ‘loopers’ exist to clean up for the mob 30 years further into the future. In that era, time travel has been invented and immediately banned but the crime bosses use it illegally to deal with people they want out of the way. They send them back where a looper will wait for them and kill them as soon as they appear. The body, which has the looper’s payment attached to it, is disposed of and so it goes on. When a looper is to be ‘retired’, his future self is sent back, he kills his future self and is allowed to live peacefully for the next thirty years with a fat bonus. That is, until he’s sent back to be killed by his younger self, hence closing the loop. With me so far? Well our story involves a looper, Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) who, when confronted with his future self, Old Joe (Bruce Willis), is thrown into a web of intrigue. Old Joe overpowers him and escapes. Young Joe has seen the consequences of not killing your older self; he has plans for his future and so sets of after him. When they finally meet, Old Joe tells him of a future boss called ‘The Rainmaker’, who has taken over and is closing all the loops. Old Joe had a wife and he wants that life back so he plans to kill the Rainmaker before he can grow up. He has a clue to his identity; he could be one of three children living in the area. Young Joe wants nothing to do with it, but you know that’s not the end of it.

A very well made film with many practical effects used instead of relying on CGI all the time; hats off to the filmmakers for taking that route. Performance-wise, everyone did a great job with Joseph Gordon-Lovett and Bruce Willis getting that majority of the screen time. I also liked Emily Blunt as Sara, Jeff Daniels as Abe and the young Pierce Gagnon as Cid. Although it did many things right I did feel it was a little unevenly paced in places. It seemed to get a little bogged down in the dialogue which slowed it down a little too much a couple of times. Other than that I found it quite enthralling and one I’d happily watch again sometime.

SteelMonster’s verdict: RECOMMENDED

My score: 7.6/10.

IMDb Score: 7.6/10 (based on 232,707 votes when this review was written).
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1276104/

MetaScore: 84/100: (Based on 44 critic reviews provided by Metacritic.com at the time of going to press).

Rotten Tomatoes ‘Tomatometer’ Score: 93/100 (based on 246 reviews counted at the time of going to press).

Rotten Tomatoes ‘Audience’ Score: 87/100 (based on 104,336 user ratings counted at the time of going to press).
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/looper/

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LINKS:
(Note: All were working at the time of going to press)
Official Site: http://www.loopermovie.com/
Trailer:

Film Review: THE ADJUSTMENT BUREAU (2011) - REVISITED

Writer (Screenplay)/Director: George Nolfi
Running time: 102 mins (approx)
Certification (UK): 12

Genre: Drama/Romance/Sci-Fi
UK Release date: 4^th March 2011

Watched on Sky+ Monday 23^rd January 2012.

PLEASE NOTE: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

This is the second time I’ve seen this one; it didn’t really stick in the memory that well first time around so I thought I’d give it another look. What follows is an ‘adjusted’ version of my original review from last year.

Based on a short story called ‘The Adjustment Team’ by Philip K. Dick, the ideas behind this film intrigued me from the moment I first heard about it. Imagine a world where your fates are determined for you and if you stray from your prescribed path, an adjustment is made to put you back on it. The ‘people’ responsible for making the adjustments are, of course, ‘The Adjustment Bureau’. Now you know that, I can write a brief summary and I’ll tell you what I thought about the film afterwards.

David Norris is a young ambitious politician; he is running for the Senate, representing New York, when his campaign is de-railed by a scandal from his past. Resigned to defeat, he retires to the men’s washroom to practice his speech. There he meets dancer Elise Sellas who he instantly falls in love with. She gives him the confidence to give a brilliant speech that galvanises the public enough to call for him to stand for election at a later date… but that’s in the future. He is so enamoured with Elise that, when he meets her again the very next day, he asks for her number, which she gives him. Now, the path that has been prescribed for David Norris does not include a relationship with Elise Sellas. In steps the Adjustment Bureau in the guise of a group of agents led by a character known as Richardson. They do all they can to keep the couple apart and even reveal themselves to David in an effort to make him see sense. Unfortunately for them, he is determined to be with her and eventually the case is sent up to the next level and Thompson takes charge. He gives David a choice, either continue on this path and ruin both of their lives, or take the path prescribed for him. It’s a tough decision, but David has an ally in Harry Mitchell, who has been following him for a long time. And it’s here I’ll have to leave my summary or the ‘Adjustment’ Police will be altering my prescribed future (again).

This is a very well made film with some great special effects, but it is the story that drives the action and not the other way around. It is very much a love story, but a love story with a rather cunning twist and one that I quite enjoyed (with a few reservations). All of the leading cast were excellent; Matt Damon as David Norris, Emily Blunt as Elise Sellas, John Slattery as Richardson, Michael Kelly as Charlie Traynor, Anthony Mackie as Harry Mitchell and Terence Stamp as Thompson.

I love the premise of this film but I felt the execution lacked energy; it’s not until the final scenes that the pace it picked up sufficiently to make the audience prick up their ears and take notice. Maybe it’s just me, but I never really felt there was enough chemistry between the two lovers to warrant the effort put in by the David Norris character. I also found it quite hard to identify with either of them. In the end though, it’s a perfectly watchable entertaining film, without being particularly mind-bending or spectacular. I’ve given it a very slightly higher score than last time because I felt that, on a second viewing, the plot made better sense. Over all: better than average and recommended.

My score: 7.3/10

IMDb Score: 7.1/10 (based on 81,341 votes at the time of going to press).
http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt1385826/

Rotten Tomatoes ‘Tomatometer’ Score: 72/100 (based on 240 reviews counted at the time of going to press).

Rotten Tomatoes ‘Audience’ Score: 67/100 (based on 88,725 user ratings counted at the time of going to press).
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/adjustment_bureau/

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FAVOURITE QUOTES:
Elise Sellas: Were you just looking at my legs while I slept?
David Norris: I was helpless against the dress.
Elise Sellas: It's a skirt.
David Norris: It's a belt!

Harry Mitchell: [talks to David] You're going to look for her, aren't you? You won't find her. They'll make sure of it. Even if they weren't trying to stop you, there are nine million people in this city. You'll never find her. Forget about her. Move on with your life.

Richardson: Very few humans have seen what you've seen today. And we're determined to keep it that way. So, if you *ever* reveal our existence, we'll erase your brain. The intervention team will be sent, your emotions, your memories, your entire personality, will be expunged. Your friends and family will think you've gone crazy. You, well, you won't think anything...

LINKS:
(Note: All were working at the time of going to press)
Official Site: http://www.theadjustmentbureau.com/index.php
Trailer:

Film Review: THE ADJUSTMENT BUREAU (2011)

Writer/Director: George Nolfi
Running time: 105 mins (approx)
Certification (UK): 12A

Genre: Drama/Sci-Fi
UK Release date: 4th March 2011

Watched at the Cinema Saturday 5th March 2011.

PLEASE NOTE: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

Based on a short story called ‘The Adjustment Team’ by Philip K. Dick, the ideas behind this film intrigued me from the moment I first heard about it. Imagine a world where your fates are determined for you and if you stray from your prescribed path, an adjustment is made to put you back on it. The ‘people’ responsible for making the adjustments are, of course, ‘The Adjustment Bureau’. Now you know that, I can write a brief summary (summary haters and those that don’t wish to know anything about the plot please try on some stylish hats while I write the next paragraph).

David Norris is a young ambitious politician; he is running for the Senate, representing New York, when his campaign is de-railed by a scandal from his past. Resigned to defeat, he retires to the men’s washroom to practice his speech. There he meets dancer Elise Sellas who he instantly falls in love with. She gives him the confidence to give a brilliant speech that galvanises the public enough to call for him to stand for election at a later date… but that’s in the future. He is so enamoured with Elise that, when he meets her again the very next day, he asks for her number, which she gives him. Now, the path that has been prescribed for David Norris does not include a relationship with Elise Sellas. In steps the Adjustment Bureau in the guise of a group of agents led by a character known as Richardson. They do all they can to keep the couple apart and even reveal themselves to David in an effort to make him see sense. Unfortunately for them, he is determined to be with her and eventually the case is sent up to the next level and Thompson takes charge. He gives David a choice, either continue on this path and ruin both of their lives, or take the path prescribed for him. It’s a tough decision, but David has an ally in Harry Mitchell, who has been following him for a long time. And it’s here I’ll leave my summary… don’t want to give too much away.

This is a very well made film with some great special effects, but it is the story that drives the action and not the other way around. It is very much a love story, but a love story with a rather cunning twist and one that I very much enjoyed. All of the leading cast are excellent; Matt Damon as David Norris, Emily Blunt as Elise Sellas, John Slattery as Richardson, Michael Kelly as Charlie Traynor, Anthony Mackie as Harry Mitchell and Terence Stamp as Thompson.

I love the premise of this film and, although I enjoyed it very much, I felt there was a little too much focus on the love story and not enough on the bureau. Maybe it’s just me, but I never really felt there was enough chemistry between the two lovers to warrant the effort put in by the David Norris character. In the end though, it’s a perfectly watchable entertaining film, without being particularly mind-bending or spectacular. Better than average and recommended.

My score: 7.2/10

LINKS:
(RT = Rotten Tomatoes)
IMDb Page: http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt1385826/
RT Page: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/adjustment_bureau/
Official Site: http://www.theadjustmentbureau.com/
Trailer: http://uk.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi2215418393/

Film Review: SUNSHINE CLEANING (2008)

Director: Christine Jeffs
Running time: 88 mins (approx)
Certification (UK): 15

UK release date: 26th June 2009

Watched on Sky+ Saturday 23rd October 2010.

PLEASE NOTE: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

The title of this movie gives very little away. We know it’s about a cleaning company, but that’s about it. Well, the company specialises in crime scene clean-ups. That’s all the mess that’s left after the body has been removed and the police have finished their investigation. This engaging independent film tells how two sisters in New Mexico got into the business and what happened as a consequence.

The sisters in question are Rose and Norah Lorkowski. Rose has a son, Oscar and Norah still lives with their father, Joe. Oscar gets expelled from school and Rose has to make more money to get him into another one. She is having an affair with a cop, Mac, who suggests she goes into the lucrative crime scene clean-up business. Having looked into it she ropes Norah in and they start cleaning up after all kinds of deaths, quite badly at first. Then they meet Winston who runs a store that sells cleaning supplies. He takes pity on them and helps them with paperwork and the like. During this tale we learn a lot about the girls and their lives and some of the reasons they turned out the way they did.

This is a pretty well made film which has quite a slow pace. It does tend to wander off on a tangent now and then, but I didn’t find that too distracting. Excellent performances all round, particularly from Amy Adams as Rose, Emily Blunt as Norah and Alan Arkin as Joe. Honourable mentions should also go to; Jason Spevack as Oscar, Steve Zahn as Mac and Clifton Collins Jr. as Winston.

Over all I found the gentle pace of this film quite refreshing. It allows the audience to absorb what’s going on rather than have it thrust at you like some crazy 3D piranha. The film is very much about feelings, sorry, no blood and guts here, unless it’s already on a wall, of course. I guess it will be enjoyed more but female viewers, but still, as a male in touch with his feminine side (she made me say that), recommended.

My score: 7.1/10

LINKS:
IMDb Site: http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0862846/
Official Site: http://www.sunshinecleaning-themovie.com/#/home
Trailer: http://uk.imdb.com/rg/VIDEO_PLAY/LINK/video/screenplay/vi144572953/