Now that we're midway through the summer season, we're sort of champing at the bit for the arrival of the fall: "The Dark Knight Rises" and "The Bourne Legacy" aside, there's not a lot in the coming months that's really floating our boat, unless something like "Total Recall" or "The Watch" proves to be a pleasant surprise. And in part, it's because the fall is looking so promising — long before the heavy hitters at Christmas, even the normally dead zone of September looks chock full of pleasures, with "Lawless," "Gangster Squad," "End Of Watch" and "Killing Them Softly" all looking tantalizing to one degree or another.
But perhaps our most anticipated is "Looper," the third film from Rian Johnson, director of "Brick" and "The Brothers Bloom." The helmer's one of the most exciting young talents out there at present, and is painting on a far bigger canvas with his third picture, which we've been dying to see ever since reading the outstanding script a couple of years ago.
The film stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt as a low-level gangster in the near future who works as a 'looper,' executing victims sent back in time by the organization in the future, so the bodies can't be traced. But his world is turned upside down when he finds his latest kill is… himself, as an older man (Bruce Willis). Things go very bad, very fast from there, as is demonstrated by the latest trailer, a U.K. version, which just debuted over at MSN (via The Film Stage).
It continues to look as though Johnson has pulled off his ambitious premise: the world looks fully realized and original (arguably more so than something like the upcoming "Total Recall," which cost many times as much), the action looks exciting, and the film's impressive supporting cast, which includes Emily Blunt, Paul Dano, Jeff Daniels and Garret Dillahunt, get showcased better here than they were in the teaser. Be warned though; if you want to go in virginally pure from spoilers, you might want to avoid this clip, as it does give away one or two of the later twists (although there's plenty more to be revealed too).
This isn't the only trailer we'll be seeing this week: the domestic cut, which is promised to be very different, hits tomorrow, so check back then for a look at that too. In the meantime, you can watch the clip below, and start counting the days to the film's opening on September 28th (which surely makes a Toronto bow likely, right?…).