Looper's Plot Does and Doesn't Make Sense

Looper is a film I've enjoyed ever since I first saw it. Directed by Rian Johnson (Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Brick, and Knives Out), he brought us a pretty interesting and hugely entertaining time-travel action thriller that was mind-blowing for its time.

But like most time-travel films, Looper leaves open more gaping holes and logic than one could imagine. This wasn't even noticeable when I first saw the film, but as my brain developed and I've seen more films in the intellectual field, Looper can only been seen now as a ride if you don't think about how many rules it breaks: which is A LOT. Taking a deep breath:

So in the year 2074, crime mobs will utilize time-travel by sending their targets back in the year 2044 to be killed by Loopers since time travel is illegal 30 years from then.  Loopers are special assassins that kill targets that are brought back from the future to be killed. Loopers' jobs are officially done when they close their loops, which are their older selves. Now if you think about it, this entire system is completely circular, as this happens again and again and again.

Joseph Gordon Levitt plays Joe, a young Looper that eventually has to close his own loop when his older self is brought back in time for him to kill. When he kills his older self and closes his loop, he enjoys the next 30 years of his life in China. 30 years later when he grows old, 2074 marks the ruling of the Rainmaker, who is closing every single existing loop. Older Joe's love of his life is killed by accident by a mobster, and he's sent to a time machine. When there, he retaliates and plans his vengeance by escaping captivity and going back in time to kill the Rainmaker and prevent him from ever rising.

Now this is when the plot raises countless questions but I'm going to pinpoint the essentials:

1. Why didn't Joe originally plan this before he got killed? What exactly changed from that exact SAME moment when he went back in time to his younger self? This is never explained because we don't know what happened in 2074 to the Joe that was killed. This would imply the Rainmaker doesn't exist in this timeline.

2.  We learn that Older Joe is responsible for creating the Rainmaker but how can he both the creator and victim of the Rainmaker? He was in freaking China for 30 years. This is also a huge question when he describes the Rainmaker and we see he was responsible for those very descriptions.

3. When both Joe's meet at their favorite diner, Older Joe mentions that his memories are possible outcomes that balance on being more apparent than not. This eludes to other possible time streams. But these possibilities are swept under the rug to the point of being forgotten when

he says he remembers what Younger Joe does in the moment he does it. But how is this possible? How can he remember what his younger self does if he was in FREAKING CHINA for 30 years? He would have a completely different set of memories. Once again this could lead to this 2044 being a different timeline but he was the one that manipulated this timeline, which ends up being the only timeline where the Rainmaker can exist because he did exist for Joe to go back and create him unintentionally.

So as you can see, the plot and rules they establish make NO sense at all. But the beauty of this is that they keep these ridiculous paradoxes contained to where you don't fully
think about it and if you do, you're still engrossed in the craziness of it's story and plot.

It's a film about doing everything you can to prevent fate. It's about being a better person when you see the worst of yourself. It's about taking responsibility for what you've created or begun, accidental or not. Looper is a highly enjoyable time-travel film that seems self aware enough to know it's breaking rules, but at the expense of trying new things. Typical Rian Johnson, but that's what makes him a unique, yet still flawed filmmaker.

Did you like Looper? Did you notice anything inconsistent about the plot? Hit me with comments below!