Looper

            Despite taking a month off to recharge my batteries and prepare for the fall movie season, I'm still not actually ready for it.  Not only do I not have a backlog of Wednesday reviews, I managed to take on more writing challenges.

            But I'm glad to be back!

            On to the review!

            Back in little ol' 2005, the most impressive film of the year was a little nowhere film from a nobody guy.  It was called Brick, and it was written and directed by Rian Johnson, a relative unknown who, at the time, only had 2 short films under his belt.  Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, it completely reworked the old noir detective story for modern audiences.  Also, it was freaking amazing.

            Now it's 2012, and not only is Mr. Johnson back, but he's also brought Gordon-Levitt with him.  Hopefully this will be a long and beautiful friendship.  In fact, I'll even go so far as to hope that Rian Johnson becomes the next Christopher Nolan.

            His new film is Looper, and it's one of the most well-written, fun, interesting, and surprising sci-fi action movies I have ever had the pleasure of seeing.  Not as confusing as Primer, and not as crazy as Twelve Monkeys, it nonetheless manages to entertain you even as it unspools its plot until the very end of the film.

            Gordon-Levitt stars as Joe, an assassin in the year 2044 who volunteers to shoot people sent to him from the future.  In return, he's well-paid enough to have all the fun and drugs he wants.  However, there is one tiny downside.  The contract he signed promises that someday he'll be forced to 'close the loop.'  That is, he'll have to assassinate his future self.

            This being a movie, things go horribly wrong.  When he finally faces Old Joe in the guise of the well-aged Bruce Willis, he is unable to close the loop, no matter how much he would like to.

            "But I saw all that in the trailers!" you moan, thinking I'm just going to rehash what you already obviously know about the movie.  So here's something for you to consider:  Everything after that is batshit insane in a good way. 

            The trailer would have you believe it's a simple chase film.  The trailer tried to make you look like a dumbass. 

            Joe is perfectly willing to take out Old Joe.  Old Joe has better things to do than get shot dead.  The syndicate Joe works for isn't interested in giving him another chance.  Old Joe has a plan to fix things.  Joe doesn't want to hear it.

            This is where things start to go absolutely, fantastically off the rails.  The movie is well-written, and you can stay one step ahead of the characters only if you're seriously paying attention.  References become plot points, and things that seem important can become irrelevant.  It's that kind of movie.

            The acting is phenomenal.  Gordon-Levitt continues his streak of impressing the shit out of me, and I think I'm developing a man-crush.  Bruce Willis delivers his finest performance in a very long time, and even the secondary characters are convincingly real.  Emily Blunt, Paul Dano, Noah Segan and Jeff 'Fuck Yeah' Daniels all deliver their roles perfectly, helping to flesh out the world that Looper wants so hard to convince you could be a very real future.

            The movie does a great job in the makeup and wardrobe department as well, making Gordon-Levitt actually look like a young Bruce Willis (because come on, nobody is going to put makeup on Bruce Willis).  The clothing and styles are all pretty cool, as are the little hints that this really is a dystopian future. 

            Many of the vehicles have either solar panels or what look like some sort of fuel recycler hooked up to them.  The buildings and streets have a strange, futuristic run-down look going on; Think Back to the Future Part II only with a bigger budget.

            The only downside is the special effects.  Wisely, Looper keeps them few and far between, but when they occur, they tend to be cheesy.  The one scene that really looks out of place involves a jet bike and a cornfield.  Trust me, if you don't notice it, you're not paying attention.

            However, a crappy greenscreen effect is absolutely no reason to avoid seeing Looper.  After leaving the theater, I decided then and there to buy it when it comes out on Blu-Ray.  While that may not mean much to you, keep in mind that I purchased a total of one movie released in 2011 and am the proud owner of not a single damn film from 2012 so far.

            Go do yourself a favor and watch Looper.  If you end up liking the action but find that you wanted a little more realism in your time travel, go home and blow what's left of your mind with Primer.  

50/50

50/50 is the sort of movie that I don't mind giving my money to.

It's also the sort of movie that I will not regret recommending.  So what are you waiting for?  Check it out!

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Well....assuming you're still here....

On to the review!

            If you've seen the trailer, then you have a decent idea of what's going on.      Adam (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) has been diagnosed with cancer and has about a 50% chance of survival.  What you may not know is that the script loosely autobiographical, based on the real fight with cancer undergone by screenwriter Will Reiser.  Also, Seth Rogen is Will's real life friend, so I really have no idea why they even bothered having Seth play a guy named Kyle when he's really playing Seth Rogen.

            The rest of the plot is pretty simple, really.  Adam's got a girlfriend, Rachael (seriously, guys?  Do we HAVE to spell names the silly way in movies?) played by Bryce Dallas Howard who is kinda....weird.  He also has a very flightly, worry-wart mother in Diane, gamely played by Angelica Huston and a father with Alzheimer's.  As you can surmise, these relationships do not get any better for him once he tells them about his cancer.

            That's it for friends and family, but there are a few more characters that make fantastic, impactful impressions during the film.  First, Adam starts to see a therapist, Katherine, to help him deal with the mental anguish of fighting cancer.  Anna Kendrick plays the role of graduate-school therapist perfectly, even channeling what appears to be a little Michael Cera at a few points, to good effect.  Also, she is freaking adorable.  Even though I was supposed to be emotionally invested in what was happening on-screen, I just wanted to hug her.  Wait...is...is that weird?

            Finally, Matt Frewer and Phillip Baker Hall stop by to play fellow chemotherapy patients and, though they appear far too infrequently for my taste, they may be the best, most fleshed-out minor characters I have ever seen in a film that wasn't a crime drama. 

            50/50 finds a perfect level of balance between humor and drama.  Frewer, Hall and Rogen are the three people mainly responsible for the humor, but Mizz Huston does have a few really funny parts that all hinge on the realistic desperation of an overprotective mother.  Whenever the movie threatens to get too serious for too long, one of those characters pop up and diffuse the tension, but their welcome is never overstayed.

            Honestly, I think that's what makes this film work so well.  It's not so dramatic as to be overbearing, and it treats cancer like real  people would treat it.  Yes, there is depression and anger and sadness in this film.  BUT there is also joy and joking and friends trying to keep friends from freaking the fuck out. 

            That's what made this movie so enjoyable -- the realism.  This movie realistically explores a man's journey through a potentially painful, fear-filled, deadly problem and makes sure not to go too far either way.  Yes, there is doom and gloom and parts where people will cry.  But it's not all doom and gloom, and the humor is natural and easy even if some scenes are still a bit contrived.

            As for the theater....holy shit do I regret going to a movie on a Monday.  I actually thought that it would be nice and quiet, but I forgot about how weekdays are more likely to bring out the type of people who have no problem seeing a movie.  I mean really, who sees a movie on a Monday?

            That is how I ended up sitting in a nearly empty theater with three morbidly obese teenagers who were either incredibly high or incredibly stupid.  They giggled at all the wrong times, wouldn't shut the hell up even when threatened with having the manager called, and had a friend with them who was somehow even more idiotic.  How, you may ask?  Their fourth friend brought a 5 year old to a damn R-rated film.  Just old enough to understand, too young to not jump on every damn stair several times during the film when going to the bathroom.

            So...go see it in theaters anyways!  I still recommend it, but if you just don't wanna to out for this film, please rent it or put it in your Netflix queue the moment it's available on DVD.  It has been a long time since I've seen a good comedy/drama (I refuse to call anything a dramedy.  Ever).  I will say it's much better than Observe and Report or Aventureland, two movies that I did like but didn't love.  In fact, it's very difficult to think of a film that balanced the two genres so well.  The Specials, maybe?  Maybe, but that was more farcical than dramatic....hrmm...

              Well, guess you'll just have to see this and tell me what you think still tops it.