Tag: x-men

Film Review: Logan

Dark and gritty and a proper sendoff for Jackman and Stewart.

Jackman is jacked up one last time…for now.

Logan will be Hugh Jackman’s ninth (and final) appearance as the comic hero, Wolverine. Nine. Films. <<pause for effect>> In. Seventeen. Years. That’s two more movies than either Sean Connery or Roger Moore played James Bond. That’s two more than there are live action Star Wars movies, and one more than in the Fast and the Furious franchise. You know which movie won the Oscar for Best Picture in 2000 when Jackman first starred as Wolverine in X-Men? American Beauty won! Feel old yet? Yeah, me too. First, let’s give Mr. Jackman a round of applause. <<applause>> Next, let’s begin to consider Jackman for a potential Best Actor nomination come next Oscar season, as his performance in Logan transcends the casual superhero action movie performance — it is staggering, transformative, emotional and tragic. Finally, let’s admire Logan for the amazing piece of storytelling, acting, and cinema that it is. Logan is not only the darkest and grittiest X-Men movie to date, it’s also one of the most dramatic and near-perfect superhero movies, ever.

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Film Review: Deadpool

The Mad Libs of comic book movies. This one’s for the fans.

Ryan Reynolds in costume as Deadpool. No feet. Apparently this is important.
Ryan Reynolds in costume as Deadpool. No feet. Apparently this is important.

The journey to theaters for Deadpool has been a long one. Ryan Reynolds played the titular character in X-Men Origins: Wolverine as a silent but deadly killer, which misses the entire thrust of the character. This character is a wisecracking, violent character known as “The Merc With a Mouth.”  After the utter failure of Green Lantern, a Deadpool movie with Ryan Reynolds seemed as far from reality as possible, but some test footage of a possible movie “leaked,” became a viral hit, and the movie was greenlit. Would this movie be the crass, irreverent, R-rated film that the fans want?

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Film Review: X-Men: Days of Future Past

Back to the future past!

So. Damn. Magnetizing.
He’s just so…magnetizing.

The only actors seemingly capable of producing the same intense chemistry with onscreen conversations as Patrick Stewart and Sir Ian McKellan do…are Michael Fassbender and James McAvoy.  Put them all in a movie together and it’s practically a how-to on acting.  Throw in Hugh Jackman and Jennifer Lawrence and you now have one of the most talented ensembles ever.  Oh, wait, Tyrion Lannister, err… Peter Dinklage, too?!  With this billed cast, it could’ve been a biopic about the GEICO gecko and I’d get in line.  Luckily for everyone, it’s actually X-Men: Days of Future Past, one of the best entries in the X-Men series (including all spinoffs, etc.) and an insanely fun film.

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Film Review: The Wolverine

‘The Wolverine’ is 3/4 the thrilling character driven spinoff we wanted.

Yeah, he's angry, bub!
He’s angry, bub!

Rest assured, The Wolverine washes away most of the sour taste leftover from 2009’s X-Men Origins: Wolverine.  The Wolverine is not an origin story, nor is it similar to the usual X-Men fare.  Under the consistently solid, if not stellar, direction of James Mangold (Walk the Line, 3:10 to Yuma, Knight & Day), The Wolverine manages to resurrect the energy of a character who was losing appeal due to over exposure and silly effects-laden films.  The first three quarters of The Wolverine make up one of the most entertaining comic book adaptations to date.  Pardon the expression, but The Wolverine is almost ‘Nolan-esque’.  In more ways than one, the story is also filled with parallels to Greek mythology (much of the X-Men universe is), all the while maintaining a strong loyalty to the fan favorite title character.  Unfortunately, all comes tumbling down in the final act.

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