Great sci-fi cinema doesn’t necessarily have to cost 200 million dollars: “Star Wars 8” maker Rian Johnson tells a gripping story in impressive images in “Looper” – which you can see tonight from 8:15 p.m. on Nitro.
Science fiction films come in all imaginable forms – explosive or philosophical, minimalist or spectacular, thought-provoking or simply amazing. A quick look at our list of the best science fiction films of all time shows how diverse the genre can be, where you’ll find everything from “2001: A Space Odyssey” to “Total Recall”. Among them are: „Looper“ from 2012.
A quick look at the FILMSTARTS reviews of his films shows that “Star Wars 8” maker Rian Johnson is a great screenwriter and director – three of them narrowly missed the top rating with 4.5 out of 5 possible stars. And one of them can be seen on free TV tonight (the other two are “Brick” and “Knives Out”):
Nitro will be showing “Looper” today, September 4, 2024, from 8:15 p.m. However, it will only be shortened! We have a clear recommendation for the time travel thriller, but only for the uncut version. If you want to enjoy the uncut version, tune in to the repeat on the night of September 6th to 7th at 12:40 a.m. or you can currently find it in the MagentaTV streaming subscription and on the Filmtastic channel on Amazon Prime Video. You can test the latter for free for 7 days:
“Looper” at FILMTASTIC on Amazon Prime Video*
That’s what “Looper” is about
The year 2040: Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) works as a so-called looper – and kills people who have been sent back in time for money. In the future, however, time travel is forbidden and is only carried out by criminal organizations in order to erase the existence of their victims forever.
Joe takes his job very seriously and has earned a reputation over the years as one of the best loopers ever. He is conscientious, disciplined and doesn’t allow for any mistakes – until one day his future self (Bruce Willis) stands in front of him…
Neo-noir vision of the future with depth
“Rian Johnson’s ‘Looper’ was probably not at the top of most people’s lists,” says our review of the science fiction thriller, which entered the 2012 cinema year as an underdog compared to blockbusters such as “Marvel’s The Avengers,” “The Dark Knight Rises” or “Prometheus.”
“Looper” is ultimately on a different scale, costing just 30 million dollars to produce and, considering that, grossing a respectable 176 million dollars. Sure, it’s far from being a billion-dollar hit – but the time travel thriller still remains in our memory as a very special highlight of its year.
“Looper” is a well-thought-out vision of the future that thrives on its emotional depth, a thriller that is not only well acted (including Emily Blunt and Paul Dano), but above all is grippingly and originally told, and a story that, especially towards the end, develops a sheer force that is almost impossible to escape. The conclusion of our 4.5-star review is therefore a practically unconditional recommendation:
“With his masterful time travel thriller “Looper,” director Rian Johnson succeeds in creating an exciting and intelligent lesson on complex moral questions and makes his science fiction film in neo-noir garb a universal and timeless character drama at its core.”
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*The link to the Amazon offer is a so-called affiliate link. If you make a purchase via this link, we receive a commission. This has no effect on the price.
This is an updated re-publication of an article that previously appeared on FILMSTARTS.
