I had some moderately high expectations going into this one; I had heard good things, read a couple of positive reviews, and the movie currently sits at a 93% rating on Rotten Tomatoes... So, while I'm not saying the movie is terrible by any stretch of the imagination, I do think it is a bit overrated.
Also, like I often do when reviewing a new film, I'm going to avoid any plot points that may spoil the movie and, instead, offer up my overall impression of the movie.
Now, while I do love the X-Men comic book characters, I have always been pretty critical of the big screen adaptations but, the one consistent positive is Hugh Jackman. Like so many good and bad X-Men films that came before (all of which I've ranked in a previous post that you can check out by clicking here) it's hard not to love Hugh Jackman as Logan/Wolverine. It is one of the all-time best live-action/comic book character castings, and Jackman doesn't disappoint in this one. And the same can be said for most of the acting throughout, I generally enjoyed most of the performances. Patrick Stewart is pretty solid as always and the girl who plays 'X-23' was good as well.
The overall look and feel of this film is a bit different than all the previous X-Men movies; It has a somber tone and a bit of a Western feel (which I liked), and also carries an R-rating which seemed necessary to tell this particular story. It's easy to feel some superhero fatigue with as many of these comic book movies that come out now but, this one felt like something fairly fresh in a formulaic genre. There are some great action scenes but, there are also a few times when the film drags a bit and the 137min runtime could've been cut down slightly. I didn't find the film's villain all that interesting , and there is at least one character that could've been completely cut from the film without it really affecting the plot at all. The first and third act I enjoyed but, it was the middle of the film that started to run on a bit. Additionally, if you are familiar with all of the previous X-Men movies then you may end up with a few unanswered questions throughout the film.
Also, like I often do when reviewing a new film, I'm going to avoid any plot points that may spoil the movie and, instead, offer up my overall impression of the movie.
Now, while I do love the X-Men comic book characters, I have always been pretty critical of the big screen adaptations but, the one consistent positive is Hugh Jackman. Like so many good and bad X-Men films that came before (all of which I've ranked in a previous post that you can check out by clicking here) it's hard not to love Hugh Jackman as Logan/Wolverine. It is one of the all-time best live-action/comic book character castings, and Jackman doesn't disappoint in this one. And the same can be said for most of the acting throughout, I generally enjoyed most of the performances. Patrick Stewart is pretty solid as always and the girl who plays 'X-23' was good as well.
The overall look and feel of this film is a bit different than all the previous X-Men movies; It has a somber tone and a bit of a Western feel (which I liked), and also carries an R-rating which seemed necessary to tell this particular story. It's easy to feel some superhero fatigue with as many of these comic book movies that come out now but, this one felt like something fairly fresh in a formulaic genre. There are some great action scenes but, there are also a few times when the film drags a bit and the 137min runtime could've been cut down slightly. I didn't find the film's villain all that interesting , and there is at least one character that could've been completely cut from the film without it really affecting the plot at all. The first and third act I enjoyed but, it was the middle of the film that started to run on a bit. Additionally, if you are familiar with all of the previous X-Men movies then you may end up with a few unanswered questions throughout the film.
Overall, this is a movie that I really wanted to love and, while it is enjoyable as a whole, it's far from perfect. Maybe this one is worthy of the high praise it has received thus far, but I found it to be a slightly below what I was hoping for.
I give it a 3.5 out of 5.
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