Rian Johnson, yet another purveyor of the meta-genre film that lures in the young and cynical with an efficiency that would shame most marketers, has put all his eggs in one basket with upcoming sci-fi action movie,
Looper. Having burst onto the scene with break-through high-school pseudo-noir, Brick, Johnsons much anticipated follow-up, The Brothers Bloom, was at best a mediocre work that managed to lose money at the box-office in an era where doubling ones money is the minimum qualification for a success. And so, with his third film featuring a whos who of anyone who is someone- or in the case of
Bruce Willis, was someone- Johnson maybe fighting for his big budget career. In addition to the aforementioned Willis,
Joseph Gordon-Levitt leads as a Looper the name of the profession of low-rent hitman who send their marks back in time to be executed. When he recognises himself as an older man (Willis) he hesitates to complete his task.
Paul Dano is a fellow looper and
Emily Blunt supports. Filming of Looper has been ongoing for some weeks, and recently
this footage from the shoot, including the aging action star upon what appears to be a criminally unimaginative hover bike:, has been released online; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YO9CBTwbzkI http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gp-omEPfwE0 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AKZffQwzkxk The rickety vehicles of the near future world in which a criminal gang send use time travel to eliminate rivals earlier in their lives- no prizes for pointing out parallels with more than one other sci-fi action movie- Johnson appears keen to pursue the self-aware affectations of his previous work. It doesnt appear especially inviting at first glance, but there is a possibility, in the meantime, that an aging actor may fall off a hover-bike. Seriously though, the movie sounds cool and we imagine (and hope) we have a cerebral sci-fi thriller in the making.