X-Men | PowerUp Online

The X-Men film franchise is one of the most lopsided film series out there. The first two films helped to define modern superhero cinema. Origins was mediocre at best, terrible at worst. First Class helped to restore my faith in the franchise, while Apocalypse was a massive letdown. I’ve come to learn that it may be best to go into an X-Men film with no expectations to help lessen any potential disappointment. I forewent that that rule with Logan. I’ve been 100% hype for that film since the very moment rumors of an Old Man Logan film started making their way to the internet. I was not disappointed.

The timeline in the X-Men films is so convoluted and filled with inconsistencies that it almost doesn’t matter when or how this film takes place. It’s 2029, mutants are a thing of the past, Logan is a bitter old man and a heavy drinker, and Charles is kept locked up in a collapsed water tower. It’s a tragically bleak setting with a compelling backstory that doesn’t get fleshed out in heavy-handed dialogue. Instead, audiences are left to connect the dots as characters engage in conversations that have a real-world, organic feel. There are no moments where the film breaks character to tell you something. Every bit of dialogue that is spoken is said to someone who has lived in this world – someone who is familiar with what has happened over the last decade. Viewers are visitors in this world, and it’s a harsh world that won’t welcome in anyone with open arms. But those who take the time to familiarize themselves with their surroundings and its history will be well rewarded.

It’s been 17 years since the X-Men film franchise debuted and, since the initial film, each movie has been a (mostly) family-friendly PG-13 (Deadpool excepted). With Logan, fans are treated with the brutally hard-R rated film they’ve been waiting for. Seventeen years is appropriate timing for an R-rated goodbye to the two best roles in the franchise, even if it is hard to say “goodbye.” Logan takes full advantage of its elevated rating, featuring some of the most graphic scenes in a comic book film not based on the works of Frank Miller. But the brutality, the graphic violence, the language – none of it ever feels forced. As organic as the dialogue is in the film, the violence on display feels equally appropriate.

As rewarding as it is to see The Wolverine in his full glory ripping through body parts with his adamantium claws, there’s a contrasting balance as the weight of his exploits weighs heavily on him. He has long ago reached a point where this violence is something so ingrained in him that there’s nothing but a buried conscience and aching bones keeping the claws in. The graphic action sequences and the aftermath that follows is a poetically beautiful visual of this ongoing, internal struggle that just happens to be fun to watch.

There’s a beauty in the subtler aspects of the film. When it’s not gracing you with sharp dialogue and viscerally brutal fight scenes, Logan navigates deftly through the film’s narrative by omitting direct exposition. The film tells you more by saying less. Important plot points and backstories are often not told directly to the audience – they’re hinted at with offhand remarks or background noise that feels natural. It never dumbs things down to let you know what happened, it expects you to embrace this world enough to just know.

While several of the previous X-Men films have been enjoyable in their own right, it’s sad see that the franchise waited until the two greatest players said their goodbyes to offer a truly great film. It is a well-crafted experience that will challenge the idea of what makes a comic movie great – taking viewers on a journey through their emotional range before leaving them seated in silence as the cinema fades to black. There may never be an X-Men movie that achieves the same level of greatness as Logan. And that’s okay.

Good – 3 / 3

“The third film is always the worst.” This pseudo self-aware line is spoken as a not so subtle nod to the less than stellar reception X-Men 3: The Last Stand received. And, as painful as it was hearing this piss poor attempt at irony, it couldn’t be more true.

X-Men: Apocalypse is the third film in the new X-Men timeline and follows the events of the X-Men sequel / reboot Days of Future Past. While Days of Future Past had its faults, it still stood out as one of the stronger entries in the X-Men film franchise. Sadly, the legacy of the excellent First Class does nothing to elevate Apocalypse above mediocrity.

The film opens strong enough with a thundering score and the titular En Sabah Nur (Apocalypse) and his four henchman marching to a ritual to transfer his consciousness. We’re treated to a fun, if a little clumsy, action scene right off the bat before the film tosses up the title card… and then devolves into a muddy mess of mediocrity and wasted potential.

The majority of the film is set in 1983, over 20 years after First Class, and it does little to emphasize this point aside from a few period outfits and a Return of the Jedi marquee. Despite the cast having aged only 5 years since this new (old) class of heroes was introduced, we’re thrust into yet another decade with little to no reason. Really, the only cues we have, aside from the punk clothing and movies playing in cinemas, that any time has passed between films is the damage done in the last two movies is barely a passing thought to anyone in this universe and one of the characters has a family now.

With First Class, and to a lesser extent Days of Future Past, the characters felt new and refreshing. Even if we had seen them before in these films, the new interpretations added a new layer of depth. In the original X-Men film, we were given a glimpse into what turned Erik into Magneto. First Class took us deeper into that character evolution with an extended look at Erik’s time in Auschwitz and Michael Fassbender giving us a Magneto that, in spite of his feelings toward them, is more human. The relationship between Charles and Erik in First Class gives more weight to each instance you hear the line “old friend” spoken in the original films. It’s a compelling relationship and one I’d love to see more of, but one that takes a back seat to some of the new gifted youngsters as Apocalypse tries desperately to bridge the gap between the old and new.

While Days of Future Past did little to develop that relationship further, being essentially another Wolverine movie, the characters in that go ‘round were actually fun to follow. Apocalypse shifts its focus to follow Jean Grey, Kurt Wagner, and Scott Summers in their “first” appearance in the franchise. I’ve never been a fan of how Cyclops has been presented in the film franchise, being a bit of a whiny douche, which is disappointing because he was always my favorite in the comics. Apocalypse somehow manages to make the character even less likable than the James Marsden iteration of the character. I understand, he’s going through some unexpected changes that are difficult to handle, but the stilted performance, cringe-worthy dialogue, and lack of chemistry do nothing to make those changes relatable – or even tolerable.

On the topic of dialogue, the script is downright terrible at times. With a hodgepodge of graceless exposition, ham-fisted attempts at humor, and standard, impact-less “us versus the world” hero speeches, you’re sure to shake your head more than a few times at just how utterly stupid these characters can sound when they open their mouths. That’s not to say that it’s all bad – there are moments with true dramatic weight, but I think that has less to do with the script and more to do with Michael Fassbender’s better-than-this-movie-deserves performance. Each scene he’s in is mesmerizing, with one in particular striking nearly every emotional cord. It’s a shame, then, that he’s such a small presence in the film. Each scene with Erik is like watching a different movie. A good movie.

The primary conflict in X-Men: Apocolypse centers on the return of Apocalypse as he gathers an army of mutants to push the reset button on the world so the strong can survive and start anew. It’s an idea with potential: all-powerful being hell-bent on world destruction and domination surrounds himself with other, like-minded powerful beings to see that plan through. Unfortunately, it’s wasted on unnecessary subplots and stupid characters.

Apocalypse keeps four henchmen nearby and, of those, only two are actually interesting in any way. Olivia Munn as Psylocke is hard to watch – even if she is just a blip on the radar in the film – and the inclusion of Angel is downright baffling (I don’t remember him being in his forties in The Last Stand). Alexandra Shipp’s turn as Storm is a vast improvement over Halle Berry’s, but she gets about as much screen time as Psylocke – which is a shame because she manages to be one of the few enjoyable characters in the film. Apocalypse himself is bland and a waste of Oscar Isaac’s talent as the blue makeup and boring progression do a fine job of making him as unrecognizable as he is uninteresting. There are brief moments where you can see a glimmer of what could be only to be pulled back down by a groan-inducing line someone managed to choke out.

There was an opportunity to build toward something bigger with Apocalypse. Days of Future Past reset the timeline and created the possibility to do something new; instead, they went with another paint-by-numbers standalone superhero flick. While some of the action is enjoyable and the time you get to spend with the Magneto subplot is absolutely worth watching, there’s little to nothing else in this film worth recommending. It’s like a cocktail of one part good movie, two parts painfully mediocre movie, and one part absolutely horrible movie. While it’s not downright terrible as a whole, it rarely ever tries not to be.

Meh – 2 / 3