Joseph Gordon-Levitt stars in The Lookout , a crime drama that combines elements of Memento with the bank heist genre.
While not perfect, the movie properly blends character drama with suspense to create a compelling story about a mentally damaged young man who is seeking to find his place in the world - and some cash.
Levitt, who despite being known from the sitcom "3rd Rock from the Sun", is quite an impressive actor, especially when he chooses darker, smaller films. Last year''s Brick was all but a masterpiece, and his follow-up is also quite good. Levitt plays Chris Pratt, who used to be one of the most popular, athletic and intelligent boys in school until a tragic accident left two of his friends killed, his ex-girlfriend without a leg and his brain permanently damaged. Now, he holds a janitorial job at a small bank and struggles to remember even the simplest of tasks. He helps himself by writing instructions down, but his guilt and frustration hamper his development.
The Lookout is never slow, but half of the running time is spent developing the character. More of a character study than anything else, the movie examines how Chris deals with his disability, his family and friends, namely his blind roommate (played by Jeff Daniels). Even the first half is quite good, though, as writer/director Scott Frank (writer of The Interpreter and Minority Report , among other good films) slowly and steadily builds tension. When Chris is befriended and ultimately recruited by a group of bank robbers, the movie picks up the pace and the excitement. The best thing about The Lookout is that it continually gets better as it goes along, and never lets up.