LOOPER v LOCKOUT

WATCH THIS NOT THAT

This weeks contestants are..

LOOPER (available at the cinema)

v

LOCKOUT (available at Braintree Library)



First up..
LOOPER, with the guy who figured out Batmans true identity in the DARK m.KNIGHT Shyamalan multiple twist endings RETURNS, because as a young orphan he remembered Bruce Wayne arriving at a party with a hooker on each arm. It's just good science people.
That guy is Joseph Gordon Levitt and he plays a young Bruce Willis. Bruce Willis plays an old Bruce Willis in this Sci-Fi, time-traveling action caper.
NOW, many have compared this to the Matrix for its style and invention.
Many are wrong.
The slightly more academic critics will compare this to Source Code with Jake Gyllenhaal.
Even they are wrong.
What this film is closer to is From Dusk Til Dawn, and here's why.
Without spoiling either film, there is a distinct similarity in the mashing of genres that both films undertake. In From Dusk Til Dawn, Director Robert Rodriguez fuses an intriguing modern day western with an exploitation B-Movie vampire flick. Looper goes down a similar path, though with more subtlety and without Salma Hayek shoving her foot in Tarantino's mouth during an erotic dance.

Don't worry too much about the laws of time travel. Jeff Daniels is on hand to explain everything with one line of dialogue;
"This whole time traveling business just fries your brain like an egg."
I personally prefer Christopher Lloyd scribbling out lines of alternate reality onto a chalk board to a confused looking Micheal J. Fox, but the lack of exposition does not subtract anything from this film.

I can't remember the last time I was in the cinema constantly thinking, 'oooooh, I like that."
There's a lot of good ideas crammed into this, and it gets quite nasty in places.

As does LOCKOUT

With Guy Pierce. I remember when Guy Pierce was in Neighbours AND Home and Away at the same time. Back then I recalled thinking, 'This guy is in everything'. And he's banging Rebekah Elmaloglou, (she played Sophie Simpson, ...anyone?) It's not fair I cried, I want to bang Rebekah Elmaloglou!!

I digress.

The point is nearly 20 years on and nothing has changed. Guy Pierce is STILL in everything.
Sadly for him he has yet to emulate his earlier roles as the rookie cop in LA Confidential, or even better as the mentally inhibited and permanently forgetful 'Lenny' in Memento. (Another Nolan classic).
In this he plays a quick witted maverick on a rescue mission to a space prison.
I found this film had many layers of bullshit, and get the feeling the script plus plot, was made up during the filming itself. That said, I kind of liked it.
It is shit, but the fun kind of shit. It reminded me of a dog shit I once saw whilst in London. It was upright, almost like a mini gherkin. A complete one-off and almost had to be seen to be believed. I took a picture of it because it was funny looking.

On a side note this film was an idea by Luc Besson. Can I just remind you all that the same guy directed Leon. I miss that guy, where has he gone?

Infact you should all watch LEON by Luc besson and NOT LOOPER, or LOCKOUT.