The Smashing Machine

Director: Benny Safdie
Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Emily Blunt, Ryan Bader, Bas Rutten, Oleksandr Usyk, Olga Dzyurak, Lyndsey Gavin, Satoshi Ishii, James Moontasri, Yoko Hamamura, Stephen Quadros, Whitney Moore
Running Time: 123 min.
Rating: R

★★★ (out of ★★★★)    

It seems odd that the biggest question going into The Smashing Machine was whether Dwayne Johnson could capably play the role of former amateur wrestler turned MMA fighter Mark Kerr. But that we still  ask given the actor's history on the mat speaks to just how far removed he's been since becoming a major movie star. It's less whether he can do it than if audiences would bite after an endless string of action vehicles had us thinking he gave up being taken seriously as a dramatic actor. Johnson came out of the gate with such undeniable charisma and early promise we knew he'd eventually jump into more challenging roles in different genres. It's only when the big paydays came and his movies kept dominating the box office that he resisted straying from his familiar formula. 

Now after stumbling with Black Adam and the PR mess that followed, Johnson's asking fans to accept this sudden shift that can best be called a calculated gamble. But while that and a depressing subject matter are potential reasons for why audiences stayed away, it isn't a reflection of the film's quality. Everything that can go right does, even as writer/director Benny Safdie crafts a somewhat familiar sports underdog story laced with tragedy. Unfolding with almost documentary-like truthfulness, how it's told and Johnson's performance help lift it, making for an emotionally raw character study.  

It's 1999 and we see grainy, VHS fight footage of UFC competitor Mark Kerr (Johnson), being interviewed about his impressive winning streak as he heads to Japan for his next fight, accompanied by trainer, best friend and fellow competitor Mark Coleman (Ryan Bader). But it's Kerr's volatile relationship with girlfriend Dawn Staples (Emily Blunt) that causes problems, especially as he becomes increasingly dependent on drugs, injecting opioids around the clock to numb the pain and continue fighting. 

Between arguing with Japanese officials about his pay and getting into locker room screaming matches with Dawn, a glassy eyed Kerr reaches the end of his rope after a devastating loss sends him home and eventually to rehab following an overdose. While he diligently commits to staying clean, rehab and recovery is a change Dawn can't deal with, especially once he begins training for his comeback under the tutelage of MMA legend Bas Rutten (playing himself). With one last shot at redemption, Kerr attempts to maintain his sobriety and career, as he and Dawn continue to lock horns, headed for a nasty collision course.  

There's this moment early on when Kerr's asked by an interviewer what he'd do if he lost and his reaction speaks volumes. It's almost as if he can't wrap his head around such an idea, much less the actual possibility, despite it being a prerequisite for every great champion. Watching, you're reminded of Ronda Rousey, a fighter so driven by her hunger to win that she couldn't psychologically process the alternative. When it came, she unraveled, just as Kerr does, going into immediate denial and frantically grasping at straws to search for a loophole that might overturn his worst nightmare. 

Of course, Kerr being high all the time doesn't help, transforming him into someone far different from the polite, mild mannered giant who befriends grandmas and kids in doctor's offices at the film's start. On the mat he's a maniac, but the loss marks a turning point in his personal life, causing him to direct much of that rage at a frustrated Dawn, who gives it right back. Nearly from the jump, Safdie plant the seed that she's an outsider in her boyfriend's world, always taking a back seat to his love of competition. 

Accustomed to being the center of attention, Dawn tries to connect with him, only pushing his buttons instead, leaving a patient, levelheaded Coleman to act as intermediary while facing media criticism his own MMA career is winding down. Ironically, it's when Kerr gets clean that things get far worse, prompting us to realize his toxic relationship with Dawn can't exclusively be chalked up to the drugs. At times it's more a symptom than a cause since there's more than enough blame to go around for both. Only when he starts making real strides in his recovery do they drift even further apart, causing an isolated Dawn to spiral.

Buried under facial prosthetics, a bigger, more jacked than usual Johnson sort of resembles a cross between Lou Ferrigno and Kurt Angle, with a little of The Rock peeking through. Claims that he's completely unrecognizable or totally disappears aren't exactly accurate, but that's a good thing, since this portrayal wouldn't be nearly as effective without the actor's real persona enhancing it. And though his skills are stretched beyond anything we've recently seen from him, it still incorporates a showmanship and intensity similar to that he displayed between the ropes. We glimpse it in scenes where he's demolishing doors and walls, but it's actually the quieter, emotional moments where he's most impressive, breaking down like a small, helpless child as his character crumbles. 

Eyes rolled when it appeared Blunt would be saddled with another suffering wife role, but Dawn has a meatier arc than that, particularly in the film's second half, mostly due to the actress and a certain level of awareness in Safdie's script. And while Kerr's pairing with her is marred by addiction and mental instability, it strays from the usual template of a abusive relationship, creating a murkier than usual dynamic. MMA fighter Ryan Bader is also excellent in his acting debut, bringing a grounded believability to pal and cornerman Mark Coleman while Bas Rutten's brief but memorable appearance is as crazy as you'd want. 

The ending notably diverges from the "final fight" sports biopic trope in that there's no victory, at least in a traditional cinematic sense. What Kerr achieves is subtler, less tangible and only achievable through continued progress. The very last scene is a keeper, delightfully showing us the real Kerr out and about in the present day. But for those blaming the film's perceived failure on no one knowing who this guy is, it's best to remember all characters are strangers before the credits roll, whether we've heard of them or not. An actor's job is to fill in the blanks, which Johnson compellingly does from its opening minutes.  

I'll gladly take ten Smashing Machines over the projects Johnson's recently chosen, while hoping its muted reception doesn't cause him to swear off riskier parts and head straight back to the action realm. Ideally, he should do a variety of both, which would have already gotten fans used to the idea of him tackling heavier material. But he's on the right track, even if it didn't pull viewers who flocked to Johnson's other movies. Unflinchingly honest, it rarely pulls its punches, dropping us into a grittier era to tell the story of the fighter who helped put UFC on the map.                                         

Oppenheimer

Director: Christopher Nolan
Starring: Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt, Matt Damon, Robert Downey Jr., Florence Pugh, Josh Hartnett, Casey Affleck, Rami Malek, Kenneth Branagh, Benny Safdie, Jason Clarke, Dylan Arnold, Tom Conti, James D'Arcy, Dane DeHaan, Alden Ehrenreich, David Krumholtz, Matthew Modine, Scott Grimes, Alex Wolff, Michael Angarano, Macon Blair, Jack Quaid, Josh Peck, Olivia Thirbly, James Remar, Gary Oldman
Running Time: 181 min.
Rating: R

★★★★ (out of ★★★★)     

With Oppenheimer, writer/director Christopher Nolan takes what many might consider an unusual route in examining the "father of the atomic bomb." Jumping between timelines, framing the narrative around two significant court hearings and shifting from black and white to color, this isn't your standard historical biopic. And yet it is, surreally using its subject's life to explore deeper, further reaching consequences that linger to this day. Adapted from the 2005 biography "American Prometheus" and clocking in at a gargantuan three hours, Nolan doesn't hold back in examining the string of events surrounding disgraced American physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer's eventual loss of national security clearance in 1954.

While a fair amount of the story's energy is poured into the actual development of Oppenheimer's weapon of mass destruction, it's primarily gripping prologue, preparing us for the controversy to come. It isn't until his idea becomes a reality that he discovers the moral complications and lack of control he'll have over its use. You can chalk this up to hubris or naivety as his concerns aren't merely dismissed, but savagely ripped apart, leaving the renowned physicist's reputation smeared. History may have partially corrected that, but the most unsettling aspect is how it happened to begin with.

It's 1926 when American-born 22 year-old theoretical physics student J. Robert Oppenheimer (Cillian Murphy) studies at Cambridge before completing his PhD in Germany and returns to the states to teach quantum physics in California. While on the West Coast he befriends a group of U.S. Communist Party members, getting entangled in romantic relationships with troubled psychiatrist Jean Tatlock (Florence Pugh) and his eventual wife, biologist Kitty Puening (Emily Blunt). But everything changes once he's approached by General Leslie Groves (Matt Damon) in the midst of World War II.

With the Nazis and Russia suspected of working on a nuclear arms program, Oppenheimer is recruited by Groves in 1942 to lead the Manhattan Project dedicated to developing an atomic bomb. Joined by a team of scientists including good friend Isidor Isaac Rabbi (David Krumholtz) and the brilliant but disagreeable Edward Teller (Benny Safdie), Oppenheimer and his crew work around the clock in Los Alamos, New Mexico to prepare for a dangerous test detonation. As Oppenheimer's consumed with guilt over President Truman's (Gary Oldman) decision to bomb Japan into surrender, longtime rival and Energy Commission chairman Lewis Strauss (Robert Downey Jr.) schemes, pulling political strings to sideline the scientist.  

Non-linear as the film's structure appears, it actually follows a strict chronology that begins with Oppenheimer's academic years and continues through Los Alamos and beyond. There's a lengthy emphasis on his education, marveling under the learning tree of intellectual idols like Kenneth Branagh's Nobel winning physicist Niels Bohr. These early scenes, along with his personal troubles with wife Kitty and unhinged mistress Jean seem off-putting at first, but it adds up, as does his affiliation with communists. Nolan's pretty even handed with this, neither downplaying Oppenheimer's tangential involvement or how that association will be weaponized to later take him down. 

All roads lead to the 1945 Trinity A-bomb test, building up a huge amount of suspense and intrigue for the blast that clears the path for Truman's bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. While the catastrophic event itself isn't depicted, the script doesn't shy away from questioning whether Japan would have  surrendered without such extreme measures. And no one's more ambivalent than the tortured Oppenheimer, who becomes painfully aware of the door he just opened and its horrifying ramifications. 

The film's most powerful scene comes when Oppenheimer delivers a speech to an audience full of scientists and military wildly cheering their hero for ending the war. But what he sees instead are bright, blinding lights and faces of burning flesh in the crowd that will haunt him long after the celebratory magazine profiles fade. Jennifer Lame's editing and Ludwig Göransson's score provide constant, palpable tension throughout, but never more than during this sequence, which signals the psychological battle he'll now be fighting within himself.

Supposedly, the feud between Mozart and Salieri in Amadeus served as Nolan's inspiration for Lewis Strauss's hate and jealousy fueled vendetta against Oppenheimer, which is mostly one-sided. By orchestrating a predetermined sham of a hearing for his opponent, Strauss ends up revealing more about the integrity of those testifying than the accused. But between Oppenheimer's womanizing and communist links, it's not hard to discredit him, even if a worse humiliation comes while meeting with Truman, who mocks his concerns. When given the choice of falling in line or getting out of the way, he picks neither, losing his country instead. 

Cillian Murphy has played his fair share of villains and creeps, but Oppenheimer, while eccentrically flawed and narcissistic, isn't exactly that, if only because his intense regret is enough to qualify him as having a conscience. But he still did what he did and spends the rest of his days grappling with it, leaving the gravest risk to humanity in the hands of a potentially irresponsible government.

Through that lens, it's easy to view Oppenheimer as a hopelessly reckless, but the pull of Murphy's performance is that he plays him as nearly impenetrable and impossible to read right up until the enormity of what's happened sinks in. And with his sunken, hollowed face and darting eyes, the eeriest aspect to his casting is how an actor with such an unusually unmistakable look manages to be a physical dead ringer for the man himself. 

Strauss' 1959 Senate confirmation hearing for Eisenhower's Secretary of Commerce position proves to be a referendum on the former shoe salesman's shady dealings and Oppenheimer's last shot at any kind of redemption. Downey's brilliance peaks here, revealing he was actually this good at being bad the entire time, only now allowing us to catch on. The rest of this loaded cast is packed with big names filling what would otherwise be considered small, throwaway roles under the guidance of a lesser director. Some are seamlessly interwoven into the plot's fabric while others are briefly written off until reappearing later to make massive contributions. 

Matt Damon steals a portion of the film with his gravitas as the hard-nosed, practical Gen. Groves while brief, strong turns also come from Josh Hartnett and Rami Malek as physicists Ernest Lawrence and David Hill, Jason Clarke as hearing attorney Roger Robb, Casey Affleck as military intelligence officer Boris Pash, and most notably, Alden Eidenreich as Strauss' unnamed fictional aide who becomes increasingly disillusioned with his boss. Blunt isn't given tons to do as Kitty, but she nails the heavily factual interpretation, right down to her pivotal testimony ripped directly from the transcripts. Pugh makes an even larger impression with far less screen time, bringing a desperate instability and magnetic seductiveness to Jean, who's constantly a step away from falling off the deep end.

With a fairly restrained use of CGI and an emphasis on more practical effects, the only small complaint is some questionable old age makeup in the last act that's still less distracting than any digitized approach, especially in a period piece. But the film deserves major credit for what's probably the best use of Albert Einstein (magnificently played by Scottish actor Tom Conti) we've seen in a historical drama. There's this clever mystery surrounding the professional bond he shares with Oppenheimer that requires both more and less unpacking than you'd initially assume. And that's especially true of their unforgettable final scene.  

Cold and detached, this is still surprisingly accessible, with everything locking into place for Nolan in ways it hasn't before. Plagued by anxiety and impending doom, we watch the scientist simmer from the inside, realizing his greatest innovation could very well destroy the world. And that enormous weight is thrust onto viewers, making Oppenheimer a challenge to fully absorb in just a single watch, where you can only begin to unravel its numerous implications.

Jungle Cruise

Director: Juame Collet-Serra
Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Emily Blunt, Edgar Ramirez, Jack Whitehall, Jesse Plemons, Paul Giamatti
Running Time: 127 min.
Rating: PG-13

★★ ½ (out of ★★★★)
 
It's hard not to have a conflicted internal dialogue regarding Dwayne Johnson's on-screen career, which seems to grow by leaps and bounds with each new release. In case you haven't heard, he gets paid a lot of money to star in some very big movies that make serious bank and audiences seem to really enjoy. While some are undeniably better than others, it wouldn't be irrational to categorize all of them as pure escapism or entertainment with a capital "E." And that's not a dig. His projects may have little sustaining nutritional value but he has the charismatic ability to basically pull off anything, making you wonder whether he should attempt some seriously challenging material instead of continuing to elevate lesser mainstream movies that more desperately need him.

Maybe that pivot will eventually come for Johnson, but for now we're kidding ourselves if we think he's going to stop making movies like Jungle Cruise. He knows his audience, cleverly blazing a career path even the biggest stars would be envious of. In other words, if it aint broke, don't fix it. For now. This one's more of the same and pretty disposable, sharing much in common with the Disney theme park attraction on which it's based, genuinely feeling like a movie adapted from a ride. It's occasionally funny, the performances are enjoyably hammy and there's a lot happening. In fact, so much is going on that for a while I actually just started to tune out, only making a rebound of sorts toward the final act. It's a mess, though not an agressively offensive one, improved greatly by two winning leads who deserve better, but remain undeniably great together. 

After a flashback to 1556 shows a Spanish conquistador-led trek to South America in search of the mystical Tears of the Moon healing tree, Dr. Lily Houghton's (Emily Blunt) research on it is presented by her brother MacGregor (Jack Whitehall) to the Royal Society of London in 1918. Despite the siblings' claims that the tree's healing flowers can revolutionize medicine and cure disease are met with skepticism and derision, Lily steals an arrowhead artifact she believes is key to discovering its whereabouts. With that and an ancient map in hand, Lily and MacGregor arrive in Brazil as she recruits cheap jungle cruise skipper Frank Wolff (Johnson) to take them down the Amazon. 

Upon stealing his boat back from his scuzzy boss Nilo Nemolato (Paul Giamatti) Frank heads down the river with the Houghtons, unaware they're being followed by a German sub commandeered by the conniving Prince Joachim (Jesse Plemons), who's desperately seeking the Tree for his own fame and fortune. With Lily unsure she can trust the cocky Frank, he views her as a humorless, pampered princess. Even if there's a lot more to both, they'll have little choice but to co-exist to survive this trip, if they want to reap the benefits of the elusive Tears of the Moon.

Sticking strictly to the Disney playbook, anyone expecting to be dazzled by plot twists and suprises or taken aback by its unexpected edginess will be disappointed. Co-writers Michael Green, Glenn Ficara and John Requa actually bring more narrative nuance to the brief flashbacks involving Frank's backstory and that of Edgar Ramirez's embattled Spanish conquistador than a lot of main arc involving the hunt for the Tree. Most of the mission revolves around slapstick silliness and the mustache-twirling Prince's cat-and-mouse game with the Houghtons and Frank. Thankfully, none of this is completely unbearable, in no small part due to the chemistry between Johnson and Blunt, with the former having some real fun with the character's one-liners and cheesy puns throughout. 

With Johnson's overconfident con man taking center stage, it's been somewhat overlooked just how good Blunt is opposite him, showcasing some excellent comedic timing and physical chops in over-the-top sight gags they could have easily fallen flat with less game actress in the part. If there's a drawback, it's that the pair bounce off each other so naturally that their relationship seems almost asexual, strangely lacking any romantic sparks to the point that they seem more like siblings than Blunt and Whitehall do. Of course, this doesn't entirely fall on them, as bringing heated chemistry to a family film based on a kids' park ride probably wasn't high on Disney's priority list, nor should it be. 

Plemons isn't exactly miscast in the Prince Joaquim role since he's played more than his fair share of villains, but it's still odd watching him play one this over-the-top. He's compulsively watchable in a scenery-chewing kind of way, occasionally making you wonder if he stepped in after Chistoph Waltz passed on what plays like one of his trademark parts. As a sidekick character, Jack Whitewall is more entertainingly endearing than you'd expect given MacGregor was probably intended as more of a one-dimensional, snobby irritant. 

The real star might be composer James Newton Howard's clever reworking of Metallica's "Nothing Else Matters" as the backdrop to what's by far the best sequence in the entire film, where Frank's origin story is revealed in full. Skillfully constructed, exciting and well shot, you'll wish the whole film were as absorbing as these five minutes, offering up substantial proof there was potential to be mined from at least part of this premise. And it's not that the rest looks bad per se, just very artificial and effects heavy. At certain points many shots have this enticing, picaresque quality to them, until you realize it only looks nice in the superficial way you'd expect to appreciate in a Thomas Kincaid painting. And the less said about Frank's pet tiger the better, as it's about time to call a moratorium on CGI animals if this is the best they can do.

The African Queen this isn't, but it doesn't need to be, even as it deliberately draws upon the 1951 film as a blueprint, along with some added inspiration from the Indiana Jones franchise (mostly Crystal Skull though). At just over two hours it isn't a total slog and reliable action director Juame Collet-Serra keeps the story moving at a fast enough clip that you can imagine families losing themselves in all the bells and whistles, as intended. But many more will have little difficulty filing Jungle Cruise under "not my thing," acknowledging its obvious strengths while recognizing it's nothing we haven't seen before.

Edge of Tomorrow

Director: Doug Liman
Starring: Tom Cruise, Emily Blunt, Bill Paxton, Brendan Gleeson, Noah Taylor, Kick Gurry, Dragomir Mrsic, Charlotte Riley, Jonas Armstrong
Running Time: 113 min.
Rating: PG-13

★★ ½ (out of ★★★★) 

"Live. Die. Repeat." That's the catchy tagline for Edge of Tomorrow, and it's hard to accuse the studio of false advertising. But for the first half of its running time, the film feels like it's going to aspire for more than that, only to take a promising premise and one of the more interesting protagonists Tom Cruise has played, and instead settle into a routine action vehicle indistinguishable from his other recent offerings. And the set-up really is great, casting the actor in his familiar alpha male power position, only to pull the rug out and expose the character as kind of a bumbling fool, ill-equipped for the situation he's been thrust into. Initially, it could be described as Groundhog Day meets Starship Troopers meets Metal Gear Solid, as everything surprisingly fires on all cylinders for a while. At least until a key reveal that causes the movie to go on autopilot.

When a race of alien Mimics take over Europe, public affairs officer Major William Cage (Cruise) is unexpectedly ordered by United Defense Force head General Brigham (Brendan Gleeson) onto the beaches of France to suit up for combat. As a high ranking official whose position is limited to a desk job motivating those in battle, rather than engaging in it, the terrified Cage objects to the assignment, even threatening to use his media clout to blackmail Brigham. Instead, he awakens in handcuffs at Heathrow Airport, discovering he's been labeled a deserter and is now being prepped for combat under the gruff Sergeant Farrell (Bill Paxton).

It's a losing battle, not just for the inexperienced Cage, but all the humans involved in the invasion. Only he's the one who has to continually repeat it, waking up each previous morning after dying in combat, hoping to eventually gain enough experience and information to defeat the Mimics. His ally is Sergeant Rita Vrataski (Emily Blunt), who agrees to train him, immediately recognizing the rare phenomenon he's experiencing and how they can use it to claim victory.

Right away it's apparent that the film is bucking more than a few trends and at least attempting to deliver something a little different than we've come to expect from the current onslaught of overblown action spectacles. When we meet the protagonist he isn't very likable at all. In fact, he's smarmy and egotistical, fully deserving of the "transfer" he's about to receive. That he also almost wets his pants at the thought of battle is just icing on the cake. Think of it as an extended feature length episode of Undercover Boss in battle, if the supervisor in question is forced not only to do the grunt work, but demoted against his will. None of these soldiers know who this guy is and at first glance understandably find him to be a real idiot.

What's surprising here is how good Cruise is at playing against type, excelling even when not cast as the smartest, most physical guy in the room. Through this Groundhog Day scenario, Cage is suddenly given more than enough opportunities to gather information and figure out how to defeat the alien race, with the script effectively exploiting every one of them. That Emily Blunt's Rita isn't a sidekick or love interest, but a fierce warrior guiding Cage every step of the way and training him for battle. They lose a bit of that heading down the final stretch, but Blunt's believability in the role never wavers and is easily the film's most valuable asset.

To say a movie looks and feels like a video game would in most cases be disparaging, but director Doug Liman invites complimentary comparisons to that medium for a change with some excitingly choreographed action sequences. And while slugging around a heavy, armored metal suit wouldn't seem to lend itself to the most practical or mobile means of combat, it manages to look a lot less silly on screen than you'd picture it described. More importantly, it's fun, and despite doubling as a virtual advertisement for Hollywood's over-reliance on CGI, the technology at least looks good this time, making it easy to get pulled in, even while watching on the small screen.

The eventual disappointment is only that much greater when the overexplanatory reveal kicks in and Liman hits the default button, making clear his intentions to cruise (sorry) along to the finish. Really the whole last 45 minutes or so are mind-numbing, as the characters go through the requisite motions of blowing things up and getting killed over an over again to take us to the thoughtless place we feared we were going before the opening credits started rolling. While it's unfair to necessarily expect deep introspection from an action spectacle, teasing us with it, only to then cop out, is a far worse offense. The blame could lie at the feet of the source material, author Hiroshi Sakurazaka's Japanese young adult novel, All You Need is Kill, which was the film's working title before common sense (and maybe fear of a possible Beatles lawsuit) prevailed. But is calling it something as bland and forgettable as Edge of Tomorrow really that much of an improvement?

For a while there, this really looked like this was actually going someplace intriguing. It's difficult when a film has a great concept but the writing feels forced to over-explain it, causing considerable disappointment. What the approach does provide is a definitive end point with numerous explosions along the way, and despite an opening that wisely teased the opposite, an opportunity for Cruise to further extend his decades-long run as a kick-ass action star. At least this time he's spreading the wealth with a co-star capable of matching him in an arena he usually dominates. Liman probably accomplishes all he can with the material he's working with, and as far as big action blockbusters go, you could definitely do worse. Far worse.

Looper

Director: Rian Johnson
Starring: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Bruce Willis, Emily Blunt, Paul Dano, Noah Segan, Piper Perabo, Jeff Daniels, Pierce Gagnon
Running Time: 118 min.
Rating: R

★★★★ (out of ★★★★)

It's customary when talking about a time travel movie to bring up as many previous time travel movies as possible that the film you're reviewing was influenced or inspired by. But no such references need to be made when discussing Rian Johnson's completely original, one-of-a-kind Looper, the new benchmark subsequent entries in the genre will be trying to copy in the years ahead. It's no secret that I've been looking forward to this more than anything else released in the past year, and because of the talent involved and the genre it falls in, I'd be lying if I said it didn't have shorter distance to travel in receiving high praise. But at the end of the day it still had to deliver and nothing could have prepared me for how it did.

Nearly the entire first hour had me wondering how anyone could come up with an idea like this, much less be able to execute on it. The second, more methodical hour is spent trying to figure out the puzzle of how it will develop and eventually end. And there wasn't a minute of either where I wasn't on the edge of my seat.  More amazingly, Johnson does this without necessarily having to concern himself, the characters, or audiences with the intricacies or complications of the plot. Rarely has such a high concept been presented so smoothly, allowing us to quickly get to the meat of the story, which is a dark morality struggle between two men who are exactly the same person in every way but age, yet also entirely different. It's all set against the backdrop of a future that looks and feels so alarmingly authentic it's downright scary. All the other movies released this year, sci-fi or otherwise, can be shown the door. It's that good and relentless, with expert writing, directing and acting carrying it straight through to its brilliantly realized conclusion. 

The year is 2044 and America's economy is in collapse as the organized crime rate soars. Thirty years later in 2074, time travel will be invented, but not legalized, only available on the black market for crooks looking to dispose of bodies since tracking technology has made it impossible. They send the intended target back in time to 2044, where someone called a "looper" is waiting, blunderbuss in hand, to kill them and collect their silver payout. But a looper's services must eventually be terminated and when that day comes they're sent back to be killed by their past self. It's referred to as "closing the loop" and failing to do, or even hesitating, could hold disastrous consequences for both.

Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) a skilled, but drug addicted looper in Kansas who's working for Abe (Jeff Daniels), a kingpin sent from the future to oversee operations.When his friend Seth (Paul Dano) fails to close his own loop he gives Joe some disturbing news from the future, just as as he's looking forward to a comfy thirty year retirement. There's just one thing left for him to do: Kill his future self so he can close his loop and cash out. But Future Joe (Bruce Willis) isn't about to to make it easy for him as a cat-and-mouse game unfolds between the two, with the crime syndicate hunting them both. Caught in the middle is a young mother named Sara (Emily Blunt) and her little boy Cid (Pierce Gagnon), who may be more important to the future than they know.

Just about the only concern I had going into this was the decision to have JGL wear facial prosthetics to more closely resemble a younger version of Bruce Willis. Scenes from the trailers and commercials did little to alleviate those worries, as it appeared out of context to be distracting, given that the two actors could never closely resemble one another no matter how much make-up work is done. What I didn't count on when the film got underway was how little this issue would matter. There's nothing to say other than you just completely forget about it and accept without thinking that these two men are present and future versions of the same person. That's only partially due to the make-up, as the praise should primarily go to Johnson and his two leads for never letting us doubt for a second that these two are the same person. It also helps that they're not. Each have completely different goals and personalities, as they should since they've been forced into a situation where they're sworn enemies.

Surprisingly, Willis doesn't show up until a good 40 minutes in, but when he does, Johnson has all the cards lined up so we accept him in the role immediately and without question. In one of the film's most thrilling sequence, we see a montage depicting the evolution from Young Joe into Old Joe and the events that eventually send him back to meet his younger self. It could have been such a mess, but Johnson gets it done in under 10 minutes, visually mapping it all out with no dialogue. But the real turning point comes when the two Joes come face to face during a diner conversation. There's almost a father-son dynamic at work between them, as the older, more experienced Joe tries to lecture his younger counterpart, who he sees as really just a young punk who hasn't lived yet. Unfortunately, Old Joe's clock is running out and the only person truly in control of his destiny is sitting across the table from him. From that point on everything you think you thought this movie was going to be gets completely turned on its head as this whole thing ends up being much bigger than both of them.

Johnson takes a huge risk in the second half of the picture, taking a story that started as one thing and turning into something else by bravely shifting the narrative's focus. In that sense, the real star of Looper ends up being the unusual structure with the entire last hour essentially taking place entirely on a farmhouse.  It really does almost feel like two different movies, but in the best way possible way, with each half answering the film's mysteries. Without spoiling too much, most of it focuses on this mother and the child she must protect when Young Joe arrives on her farm. What she has to protect him from and how she has to do it should be enough to make viewers' brains explode, yet Johnson somehow makes it completely comprehensible. It's complicated, heady stuff that shouldn't necessarily be easy to follow but strangely not a minute goes by where we don't know what's happening or feel lost. Not nearly enough praise is being heaped on JGL who accomplishes the impossible in believably pulling off a young Bruce Willis. While it's tempting to single out the voice inflection and imitative aspects of the performance (and they are spot-on), his biggest acting coup is guiding us through Joe's journey without us even noticing them. It's very much Young Joe's story as he must give up his hedonistic ways to step up and take responsibility for not just his actions, but his future self's. 

For Willis, this is basically the most functional supporting role he's ever had and his China montage scenes, as well as those opposite JGL in the diner, easily ranks among his most exciting work. Old Joe is a man on a mission and the unrelentingly dark places that mission ends up taking him are surprising, even to him. But the entire second half of the movie belongs to a revelatory Emily Blunt and 5 year-old Pierce Gagnon, who gives a child performance that has to be seen to be believed, and even then, you still might not believe it. Blunt's role as Sara is shrouded in secrecy from the start. We're not sure what her purpose is or how large or important the part will be and the thrill is in witnessing how she answers those questions as the film heads into the final stretch. It's such a tricky, complex part and she just kills it, conveying the desperation and sadness of this woman trying to trying to protect a child who's unusually difficult to protect.

Johnson also gets a superb performance out of young Gagnon, who's unsettling work here deserves to join the pantheon of great creepy child performances. We've seen this type of role before and it's a story element we're familiar with yet it feels completely fresh and terrifying with the emotion he brings to table. Reunited with his Lookout co-star, a bearded Jeff Daniels is given a rare villainous role and his scenes as crime lord Abe crackle with intensity precisely because he subtly and quietly plays him counter to what we'd expect. Dano and Noah Egan each ooze a pathetic desperation and incompetence as Joe's fellow loopers while Piper Perabo keeps the oldest profession alive in the future with her role as his hooker girlfriend Suzie, who's basically a symbol of the life he's about to leave behind.

This isn't one of those action movies with some sci-fi thrown in. It's hard science fiction with big ideas, containing a concept is so original that it's hard to believe it wasn't adapted from a short story in some lost classic sci-fi novel by Ray Bradbury or Philip K. Dick. The clues were there that Rian Johnson was more than capable of creating an entire universe from scratch with Brick and The Brothers Bloom but even the incredible promise displayed in his first two efforts couldn't have forecast he was capable of something like this, his darkest film yet.

This dystopian future is one we've never seen before, avoiding falling into the trap of so many other filmmakers who misstep by trying to depict a society that's too "futuristic" or has little relevance to our present. He wisely doesn't go too far, crafting a world that feels both retro and contemporary at the same time, yet also one with an unmistakable look and feel that seems unlikely to be laughed at when the film is revisited years down the line. It's far enough from our present to see it's the future, yet not removed enough to see aspects still linger. The glimpses we get of it, in conception, production, set and costume design are not only wondrous to witness, but frighteningly credible when taken on their own terms.

Obviously a major achievement on every creative level, what's most impressive is how Johnson spins such a complicated story with such a clear, concise precision. As it head into the final act, I ran what seemed like five to ten scenarios through my head as to how it could end. Of course, all of them were wrong. Looper saves its best trick for last, somehow still finding a way to close its own loop.               

The Adjustment Bureau

Director: George Nolfi
Starring: Matt Damon, Emily Blunt, Anthony Mackie, John Slattery, Anthony Ruivivar, Michael Kelly, Terence Stamp
Running Time: 106 min.
Rating: PG-13


★★★ (out of ★★★★)

Remember that sequence in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button when a series of events line up in such a way that causes Daisy to be hit by a taxi and break her leg? Almost as if it were fate or destiny because if it wasn't then she simply wouldn't have been out on the street at that time for it to happen. Every decision causes a ripple effect. The Adjustment Bureau is that sequence explored and stretched out over an entire film, which isn't such a bad thing since the idea that every action can have life-altering consequences is a popular one in science fiction, specifically in time travel films such as The Butterfly Effect, The Sound of Thunder and Back To The Future. Despite being adapted from Philip K. Dick's short story "Adjustment Team," the film's biggest strength is that it doesn't feel like straight sci-fi through a good portion of its running time. Then when it absolutely needs to, it doesn't, and in the final minutes has problems sticking the landing, favoring a more conventional resolution that undercuts what preceded it. Still, it's a fascinating idea that an adjustment team oversees our destinies, giving us a nudge every once in a while to stay on course, and first-time writer/director George Nolfi (in a really impressive debut) deserves credit for not squandering it, getting this about 80 percent right. Meticulously put together much of the way through and carried by two talented leads, greatness was within this film's reach, but slips away due to a third act that could have benefited from a little adjustment itself.

Bad boy New York Congressman David Norris (Matt Damon) finds himself at the losing end of a Senatorial bid amidst another scandal when he meets the enigmatic Elise (Emily Blunt) while practicing his concession speech in the bathroom. After delivering a dynamic, off-the-cuff speech he meets up with her again on a city bus after a mysterious man named Harry Mitchell (Anthony Mackie) falls asleep on a park bench, failing to spill coffee on him at exactly 7:05 AM. It turns out he's a caseworker for The Adjustment Bureau given orders by his boss, Richardson (Mad Men's John Slattery) to prevent their reunion because it deviates from the "plan," This "plan" is a predetermined chain of events overseen by the "Chairman" who helps steer the course of individuals' lives for the supposed betterment of humanity. Elise wasn't supposed to be part of David's but Harry's screw-up changed that and despite successfully separating them for three years and being threatened with a "re-set" (essentially a lobotomy), David still won't give up on being with her. When all else fails, The Bureau brings in Thompson (Terence Stamp), known as "The Hammer," to take care of business and make sure David's relationship with Elise is terminated by any means necessary.

The first hour of the film is electric, cleverly disguising itself as a political thriller and revealing just enough information at just the right pace to build up a considerable amount of suspense and intrigue. When it revealed why these mysterious men in suits and bowler hats are trailing David and what they want from him, the story gains rather than loses traction as details about the Bureau and their purpose and history spill out.  The most intriguing thing about them is how normal and businesslike they are about altering lives, as if it were just simply a 9 to 5 job. With each caseworker armed with a notebook full of moving coordinates, they make an impact not by reading people's minds but by literally stopping them without their knowledge. Whether it's cutting phone lines, creating an external distraction, or even going as far as to cause a car accident to change the course, they use doors as a portal to travel between locations as quickly as possible. They clearly have supernatural powers but the film is very proficient at making their work look threatening while still being grounded on some level of reality, much like 1998's great Dark City, which shared a similar concept, but an entirely different tone. Only that film had the guts to see its vision to the bitter end without compromise.

It helps to have two characters worth caring about as Matt Damon is completely credible as an up-and-coming politician with a chip on his shoulder, but a strong idealistic desire to do right. At this point, it's tough to imagine Damon not completely nailing any role and this is just the latest in a long line. You'd understand why the Bureau would care about every decision David makes and Emily Blunt makes it easy to understand why he won't let anything stand in the way of him being with Elise. Blunt's an interesting presence as an actress. While not necessarily fitting everyone's textbook definition of beautiful, she has this strangely intriguing look to her and carries herself with a class and grace onscreen that demands full attention whenever she does or says anything, and that quality has never served her better than here. Damon and Blunt are so good together on screen and share such strong chemistry that the film's biggest weakness turns out to be getting carried away with their romance and letting it overcome the more intriguing sci-fi elements in the story. That's difficult to admit, considering how flawlessly everything flows in the early going. By overplaying his hand in the romance department in third act, Nolfi ironically loses grip on the doomed circumstances that made their relationship so riveting.

After cleverly being left in the dark for much of the picture as to why David shouldn't be with Elise (and even doubting whether the Bureau knows themselves) there's a great scene in a parking garage with David and Terence Stamp's villainous Thompson where we get some insight into why it might not be such a great idea for the two of them to be together and paints this organization in a different light. This leads to bigger questions, then even bigger ones, before settling into an unbearably suspenseful, expertly choreographed action finale. It's just too bad the revelations that come in the closing minutes are a letdown. It wouldn't be a stretch at all to say that that it unintentionally makes the finished product feel more like a "date movie" than a mysterious sci-fi action thriller. It's still good, just not great, and certainly not nearly as impactful as it should be considering the circumstances. If ever a story called for a tragic finale it's this. Unfortunately, you're instead left wondering whether this story was really as smart as it seemed to be from the beginning and if concessions were made post-production so it could make more bank at the box office.

There's nothing wrong with aiming to make a crowd pleaser, even if I'm disappointed it didn't reach for a level higher rather than fall back on the more conventional romance aspect. Still, this is one of the better films from the first half of 2011, with a first time director blending two entirely different genres successfully at least three quarters of the way through. Whether it was studio interference due to poor test screenings or an eleventh hour re-write, the last few crucial minutes (and boy are they crucial) don't work, which is a shame considering just how much else does, especially the fleshing out of a gripping premise and the two great performances carrying it. I guess you can blame me for grading on my level of expectation rather than enjoyment, since anyone looking for a well-made romantic adventure could certainly do a lot worse than The Adjustment Bureau.