Saw the film last night. Well, time for my review. I don't usually like to write reviews - I usually prefer to discuss films back and forth as they are, but this is an exception. Mainly because I'm rarely in the X-Men boards and I have a lot to say regarding the continuity and future of the franchise. Even in this review though, I won't go as in-depth into things like themes and character arcs as much as I will in the things that specifically impressed me.
First I'll give a general overview on what I thought of every film in the franchise.
X-Men - It's an alright/average film. Not much to say. I do think it's overrated. I've been hearing it get so much praise over the years, when I think it's just ok.
X2: X-Men United - I'd love to give it a 5/5, because I freakin' loved this movie. It was one of my favorite CBM's. The problem is that I haven't seen it in almost a decade (last time I saw it was probably in 2005), so I don't know how it holds up today. Hopefully I don't go back and be disappointed by it like I was with Spider-Man 2 (although I still think it's a good movie, it wasn't the masterpiece I remembered from childhood).
X-Men: The Last Stand -
X-Men Origins: Wolverine - I had fun while watching it, but didn't really think about it much. It's another one I have to go back to.
X-Men: First Class - Loved this film. It has some huge continuity issues (which I now dont mind as much due to DOFP) and a bit of gaps in logic, but it works great as a stand-alone film. More specifically, it works great as an Xavier/Magneto story. The period piece setting is also used incredibly well and offers great social commentary.
The Wolverine A good solid movie. Its a classic and fun-yet-gritty Wolverine adventure brought to life. I think that sums it up very well. It also has the perfect Wolverine characterization that I was waiting for in the movies.
My opinion on these films may overall seem generally positive, but there were still specific trends that bugged me about them. Trends that I mostly associate with Bryan Singer, thus not really being thrilled with his return. Those trends are: making Wolverine the protagonist, underdeveloping other X-Men or reducing them to glorified cameos, generic black leather costumes, and screwing up the continuity further and further. Going in, I expected a great stand-alone film but for those trends to continue.
And to my surprise, those trends either werent there or were present but totally worked. This film REALLY puts the X-franchise not just back on the right back, but on the best track its ever been on IMO.
Much like First Class, this is a Xavier/Magneto story and character study, despite having X-Men in the title. And it is a fantastic at being just that. This really is Xavier and Magnetos movie, though much more Xaviers. This is the best usage Ive seen of Wolverine in all the X-Men films. Ive seen people describe him as the films Han Solo while the other films tried to have him be both Han and Luke, and I couldnt agree any more with that. The film still has Wolverine in the spotlight as a protagonist, but the spotlight is entirely on Xavier. I wish the original trilogy could have incorporated him in this same style.
As I said, this is a Xavier/Magneto story. But unlike First Class which was a Xavier/Magneto story that still had the X-Men in the background, this is
literally just a Xavier/Magneto story. There are no X-Men here other than Beast, which plays into Xaviers character arc, his dynamic with Erik and even the time period. You could argue the future X-Men still get shafted and turned into glorified cameos, and thats a totally fair point, but I was fine with it due to them having already appeared in a film trilogy. It wasnt like when they introduced characters in the OT or in First Class, where it was the first time we were introduced to them and they got the shaft nevertheless. Speaking of Xavier, I freakin loved him in this. McAvoy plays a pitch-perfect beaten, hopeless, broken, burned out Xavier and I can totally see his take on the character grow into Patrick Stewarts portrayal.
The future scenes were incredible. I love how bleak and horrifying it looked. The way the Sentinels adapt and kill mutants characters weve spent multiple films with was very disturbing. It actually felt like there was no place to hide. Like there was no hope. Complete despair. The black suits worked well with that, so I didnt mind them as much in this film. One of my complaints going in was there were no good costumes in the 70s, but as I said, it works because theres no X-Men in the 70s.
Finally, to my surprise, the continuity is actually fixed. I
really wasnt expecting that going in. I doubted it over and over again. Now to be fair, the film continuously screws with the continuity up until the very end. Theres no explanation how Xavier is back, how Wolverine got his adamantium back, how Trask can exist in both present time and the 70s, etc. That annoyed me throughout the film. However, none of that matters by the end because every previous film save for First Class is erased from continuity and since nothing in here contradicts First Class, it works. Also things like Xavier being alive and Wolverine having adamantium work fine if you look at it as just a sequel to First Class. Not fixing the continuity was my biggest beef with this franchise and Im glad to see Fox & Singer have acknowledged and fixed it.
This is something I said in another thread, but First Class and DOFP feel like a two-part prequel to an X-Men reboot to me. First, they're both more of an Xavier/Magneto centered film as opposed to X-Men films, about them during their younger years, which took place before Xavier formed the X-Men as we know them. Second, First Class spent its entire screentime contradicting the previous films and establishing a different world. Then DOFP comes out and actually makes it a different world with different events, given the ending. Third and finally, the final scene is clearly meant to pay a tribute to the original trilogy and cast, and we know the next film will be a sequel to the Past events with a young Scott/Jean/Storm, which is how you would generally start an X-Men reboot.
My biggest criticism with the film is with some of the gaps in logic and science. I get this is a comic book movie, but theres a LOT of things that I just dont buy. First Class had that problem too, but this has it just as much or even more. How exactly can Kitty send people back in time? How did Wolverine survive in the water so long when I was pretty sure his healing factor couldnt help him with drowning? Where did Magneto get the Sentinel blueprints and how did he know where to find them? Most importantly, how does Trasks plan work? Mystique cant mimic powers, she can only mimic shapes and forms. That absolutely made no sense to me. I would love to hear some explanations regarding what I missed.
Overall, this is a great movie. I think Id rank it a bit over First Class as the best X-Men film. Again, Im not sure how it holds up X2 since I havent seen X2 in almost a decade.
This is a fantastic year for superhero films. All three films this year for a 5/5 from me. Last time I gave three CBMs a 5/5 was in 2008. I hate to compare them since theyre all good IMO, but I think they were all roughly around the same ballpark and had the same amount of effort put in them. Guardians has a lot to live up to.