The saga to X-Men continues as we get closer and closer to the release of Logan. Luckily, Origins: Wolverine didn't see to the end of this franchise. This new trilogy mixed in with The Wolverine was able to infuse energy back into the X-Men we know and love and those are the films we'll be discussing. Here's Part 2 of the X-Men Retrospective:
X-Men: First Class (2011) -
Folks, this is how you do a prequel. This is one of the best prequels of all time and definitely was one of the best in the entire franchise. Like the original trilogy, the casting is still flawless. James McAvoy as Charles Xavier, Michael Fassbender as Magneto, Nicholas Hoult as Beast and Jennifer Lawrence as Mystique were all brilliant resembling the characters we know and love, but they also brought something new and different as younger versions of these characters. I think an unsung hero, well, really a villain, was Kevin Bacon as Sebastian Shaw, who gave his character great screen presence and decent motives. Might not have been the most layered villain, but still enough to carry this movie. I thought the spectacle of this film looked pretty excellent. Baffles me to say it’s a near 6-year-old film as I’m writing this, but the CGI for today’s standards still hold up. The action sequences were also very well handled and full of energy.
Of course, this outstanding creative vision was not at the helm of Bryan Singer, but Matthew Vaughn. Vaughn does a great job of tonality keeping this film in vain of the original X-Men films in regards to its grit but also does a great job of putting the viewer in the 60s time period. The period piece aspect couldn’t have been done any better. What I also loved about this film was that the heart and soul of this plot was about Magneto/Erik's story seeking vengeance for his past against Shaw. It was a very strong aspect and also made the film pretty riveting at the same time. Also, there was Charles trying to maintain that balance with Erik and showing these younger mutants the amazing things they can accomplish as mutants. If I only had one issue I’d say there are a few inconsistencies connecting this film to the original trilogy and a few plot holes in just this singular film, but other than that this was an excellent comic book movie. I loved First Class as its own standalone film with an equally talented cast as seen in previous films. It was very entertaining with its spectacle and expanding this film universe of the X-Men we know and love.
X-Men: First Class (2011) -
Folks, this is how you do a prequel. This is one of the best prequels of all time and definitely was one of the best in the entire franchise. Like the original trilogy, the casting is still flawless. James McAvoy as Charles Xavier, Michael Fassbender as Magneto, Nicholas Hoult as Beast and Jennifer Lawrence as Mystique were all brilliant resembling the characters we know and love, but they also brought something new and different as younger versions of these characters. I think an unsung hero, well, really a villain, was Kevin Bacon as Sebastian Shaw, who gave his character great screen presence and decent motives. Might not have been the most layered villain, but still enough to carry this movie. I thought the spectacle of this film looked pretty excellent. Baffles me to say it’s a near 6-year-old film as I’m writing this, but the CGI for today’s standards still hold up. The action sequences were also very well handled and full of energy.
Of course, this outstanding creative vision was not at the helm of Bryan Singer, but Matthew Vaughn. Vaughn does a great job of tonality keeping this film in vain of the original X-Men films in regards to its grit but also does a great job of putting the viewer in the 60s time period. The period piece aspect couldn’t have been done any better. What I also loved about this film was that the heart and soul of this plot was about Magneto/Erik's story seeking vengeance for his past against Shaw. It was a very strong aspect and also made the film pretty riveting at the same time. Also, there was Charles trying to maintain that balance with Erik and showing these younger mutants the amazing things they can accomplish as mutants. If I only had one issue I’d say there are a few inconsistencies connecting this film to the original trilogy and a few plot holes in just this singular film, but other than that this was an excellent comic book movie. I loved First Class as its own standalone film with an equally talented cast as seen in previous films. It was very entertaining with its spectacle and expanding this film universe of the X-Men we know and love.
Verdict: A
The Wolverine (2013) -
In preparation for this post I actually decided to watch the Extended R-Rated Cut of this film because, after some further research, it seemed this was director James Mangold's definitive version of the film. Whether it was that specific cut or the theatrical version I had an absolute blast watching this movie. In fact, I'd go as far as to say I loved it. Wolverine is actually my favorite character in this entire series and is starting to become one of my top 3 favorite comic book characters, so to see this film done with such care done with the character and this X-Men world, it was completely rewarding to see that on screen. I loved that it expanded the universe more, culturally for that matter. Now, I might not know everything there is to know about Wolverine and to be honest I haven't read many of the comic books, but you could tell from Mangold's direction of this film that he deeply understood this character and in this movie was able to showcase him in a more grounded fashion. Not to say the film itself is grounded. It's a comic book film, so of course, there'd be weird and fantastical elements.
In terms of character depth, I thought what was done with Wolverine and the rest of the characters couldn't have been done any better. I love that this was where we saw Wolverine at his weakest considering he was poisoned. You felt his pain and also dealing with past drama with Jean Grey. This was a character who had weight. Not just some action hero that kicks butt and calls it a day. I cared so much about this character and the pain he went through and also experiencing throughout the film that it made me appreciate and adore the character more. In terms of issues, the villain wasn't all that impressive to me, without spoiling anything, and even though I really liked watching the end climax with its great set pieces and special effects, there's one moment that has a lot of CGI work done to the point where it looked very artificial. It was almost like an early 2000s CGI effect. Looking past those issues, this was an incredibly entertaining film with unbelievably fun action sequences. The scene on the bullet train, you know the scene I'm talking about, was so incredible to watch. The Wolverine, I feel, is a great, fun and very underrated comic book film that knew how to handle its main hero and gave us a fast-paced, energetic action film that I couldn't have enjoyed watching more.
Verdict: A-
With the return of Bryan Singer, this turns out like the films we loved previously, right? Is it just as good as X-Men and X2? I wouldn't say just as good. It's better than any of the X-Men films I've seen. Yes folks, after pondering it I do think that Days of Future Past still remains to be my favorite X-Men movie. X2 came close and I still really love that film, but I think for me where this film has the upper hand is the story itself. This wasn't just another comic book film where characters are dealing with certain things in present day society. Not to discount those films at all, a majority of those I love. What is so brilliant is that this movie took advantage of utilizing time travel that would affect their present state or even future state. This is by far one of the best time traveling films I've ever seen and one of the best comic book films I've ever seen. Seeing this X-Men universe go full on science fiction with how it incorporated time travel and the use of Sentinels as the enemy was nothing short of amazing. I was in awe and I loved that Wolverine was the one who took the reigns for most of this film. Like I said he's my favorite character in this entire franchise, but since Wolverine has a lot of time to shine that doesn't discount the other characters in this movie. Young Xavier's conflict with Magneto is still strong and so believable. That aspect added to the emotional core of the film and the fact that this was also Raven's story and how broken she felt taking care of life by herself from an abandoned past.
Also, the inclusion of Evan Peters as Quicksilver was just perfect. His big scene in the film was one of the best scenes I've seen in any comic book film (which might be topped in the next film). I loved how all these characters were handled, which leads into my biggest positive about this movie. There was a fine balance with all these characters even though a deeper focus on the characters in 1973, but each character in the past and future still had their moments to shine. There were some characters in smaller roles, but there was still enough there to gravitate towards emotionally. When horrible things go down in the film, it really hits you like a ton of bricks. This film couldn't have been done any better. The special effects were some of the best displayed in the entire franchise. I loved the time traveling aspect, every character had a proper moment to shine and made for a great defining chapter in this X-Men saga that was presented in the best possible way.
This was honestly one of the most underrated comic-book movies I've ever seen. Bryan Singer did a great job continuing this franchise after changing the timeline in Days of Future Past. I love that the previous film was able to pave way for Apocalypse because this movie, in my opinion, was another great time in the X-Men series. It was incredibly entertaining with more excellent, no pun intended, spectacle and top notch action scenes. I loved seeing the younger versions of these characters and newer characters partake in said action. It was just awesome finally see Cyclops, Nightcrawler, Jean Grey and Storm in this full-on action and such a great climax. Of course, it's easy to say how awesome they were in the action, but the characterization, for the most part, was pretty impressive. Tye Sheridan as Cyclops was a great addition, Sophie Turner completely owns it as Jean Grey and Kodi Smit-McPhee in my book was perfect as Nightcrawler. Seeing these three band together at one point in the film was a lot of fun to watch. Like the original cast, everyone in this new cast completely embodies these characters and gives them so much personality and weight that we as the audience can grow a deep attachment towards them. It was also interesting to see how Charles was more vulnerable in this film when at the hands of Apocalypse, who's also portrayed very well by Oscar Isaac. Erik's story in this film was by far one of the best aspects of this film. It was such a tragedy that just left me in tears. Michael Fassbender couldn't have done a better portrayal of that character. Out of the 3 films, I think this film was his best effort as the character. He really grounded this character in his performance and it blew me away.
Jennifer Lawrence as Raven/Mystique in this film gets a lot of hate and honestly, I don't get it. I loved what they were going for with Raven because of how she wanted to bury the past as Mystique. I see people say, "Oh because she didn't want to wear the make-up and just acted as is. She phoned it in." I saw that being her role in this movie and when the time came she was her true self and completely did a solid job in those specific scenes. Like I said earlier that Oscar Isaac as Apocalypse was well done and I thought when that villain was on screen, he completely owned it in those scenes. I think if there were more layers to that character in regards to why his motives were the way they were, he probably could've been a better villain. I think the motives themselves were striking and how they manipulated the Four Horsemen were strong, but what lead to that kinda left me so-so. I still liked the character and Isaac's performance for what it was. Speaking of the Four Horsemen I mentioned Magneto already, but as far as Angel (Ben Hardy), Storm (Alexandra Shipp) and Psylocke (Olivia Munn) went, the motivations that Apocalypse manipulated them for were good, but the characters themselves I felt were rather flat. I didn't find them all that interesting, but all that aside I really had a great time with this movie. After seeing it 3 times now I think it got better seeing it a few more times and I think it'll get better and better the more times I watch it. Also, a couple of my favorite scenes involve Quicksilver, which was better than his scene in Days of Future Past, and with a cameo I won't spoil if you haven't seen the film.
X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014) -
With the return of Bryan Singer, this turns out like the films we loved previously, right? Is it just as good as X-Men and X2? I wouldn't say just as good. It's better than any of the X-Men films I've seen. Yes folks, after pondering it I do think that Days of Future Past still remains to be my favorite X-Men movie. X2 came close and I still really love that film, but I think for me where this film has the upper hand is the story itself. This wasn't just another comic book film where characters are dealing with certain things in present day society. Not to discount those films at all, a majority of those I love. What is so brilliant is that this movie took advantage of utilizing time travel that would affect their present state or even future state. This is by far one of the best time traveling films I've ever seen and one of the best comic book films I've ever seen. Seeing this X-Men universe go full on science fiction with how it incorporated time travel and the use of Sentinels as the enemy was nothing short of amazing. I was in awe and I loved that Wolverine was the one who took the reigns for most of this film. Like I said he's my favorite character in this entire franchise, but since Wolverine has a lot of time to shine that doesn't discount the other characters in this movie. Young Xavier's conflict with Magneto is still strong and so believable. That aspect added to the emotional core of the film and the fact that this was also Raven's story and how broken she felt taking care of life by herself from an abandoned past.
Also, the inclusion of Evan Peters as Quicksilver was just perfect. His big scene in the film was one of the best scenes I've seen in any comic book film (which might be topped in the next film). I loved how all these characters were handled, which leads into my biggest positive about this movie. There was a fine balance with all these characters even though a deeper focus on the characters in 1973, but each character in the past and future still had their moments to shine. There were some characters in smaller roles, but there was still enough there to gravitate towards emotionally. When horrible things go down in the film, it really hits you like a ton of bricks. This film couldn't have been done any better. The special effects were some of the best displayed in the entire franchise. I loved the time traveling aspect, every character had a proper moment to shine and made for a great defining chapter in this X-Men saga that was presented in the best possible way.
Verdict: A+
X-Men: Apocalypse (2016) -
This was honestly one of the most underrated comic-book movies I've ever seen. Bryan Singer did a great job continuing this franchise after changing the timeline in Days of Future Past. I love that the previous film was able to pave way for Apocalypse because this movie, in my opinion, was another great time in the X-Men series. It was incredibly entertaining with more excellent, no pun intended, spectacle and top notch action scenes. I loved seeing the younger versions of these characters and newer characters partake in said action. It was just awesome finally see Cyclops, Nightcrawler, Jean Grey and Storm in this full-on action and such a great climax. Of course, it's easy to say how awesome they were in the action, but the characterization, for the most part, was pretty impressive. Tye Sheridan as Cyclops was a great addition, Sophie Turner completely owns it as Jean Grey and Kodi Smit-McPhee in my book was perfect as Nightcrawler. Seeing these three band together at one point in the film was a lot of fun to watch. Like the original cast, everyone in this new cast completely embodies these characters and gives them so much personality and weight that we as the audience can grow a deep attachment towards them. It was also interesting to see how Charles was more vulnerable in this film when at the hands of Apocalypse, who's also portrayed very well by Oscar Isaac. Erik's story in this film was by far one of the best aspects of this film. It was such a tragedy that just left me in tears. Michael Fassbender couldn't have done a better portrayal of that character. Out of the 3 films, I think this film was his best effort as the character. He really grounded this character in his performance and it blew me away.
Jennifer Lawrence as Raven/Mystique in this film gets a lot of hate and honestly, I don't get it. I loved what they were going for with Raven because of how she wanted to bury the past as Mystique. I see people say, "Oh because she didn't want to wear the make-up and just acted as is. She phoned it in." I saw that being her role in this movie and when the time came she was her true self and completely did a solid job in those specific scenes. Like I said earlier that Oscar Isaac as Apocalypse was well done and I thought when that villain was on screen, he completely owned it in those scenes. I think if there were more layers to that character in regards to why his motives were the way they were, he probably could've been a better villain. I think the motives themselves were striking and how they manipulated the Four Horsemen were strong, but what lead to that kinda left me so-so. I still liked the character and Isaac's performance for what it was. Speaking of the Four Horsemen I mentioned Magneto already, but as far as Angel (Ben Hardy), Storm (Alexandra Shipp) and Psylocke (Olivia Munn) went, the motivations that Apocalypse manipulated them for were good, but the characters themselves I felt were rather flat. I didn't find them all that interesting, but all that aside I really had a great time with this movie. After seeing it 3 times now I think it got better seeing it a few more times and I think it'll get better and better the more times I watch it. Also, a couple of my favorite scenes involve Quicksilver, which was better than his scene in Days of Future Past, and with a cameo I won't spoil if you haven't seen the film.
Verdict: A-
Well folks, there you have it. I have reviewed every single X-Men film before the release of Logan and my goodness am I excited for that one. I'm pumped out of my mind to see it and revisiting these films reminded me how much I love this franchise and how that will excite me to see Logan. I can't wait and my review for that film should be up the weekend of its release. Updates shall be posted soon on my social media sites:
Twitter and Instagram: @alexjcorey
Thank you all so much for reading! It was an absolute blast writing up this retrospective and I will continue to do more for as long as I can. Again, thank you and be sure to see some movies and all that good stuff.
Take care. :-)
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