X-Men Origins: Wolverine - First review
X-Men Origins: Wolverine - First review
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Tuesday, 28, Apr 2009 11:35
Brutal fights, cool stunts and a comprehensive look at Wolvie's journey through battle fields, animal rage and lots of stabbing.
By Lewis Bazley
Directed by Gavin Hood, out April 29th in cinemas, starring Hugh Jackman, Liev Schreiber, Ryan Reynolds, Lynn Collins, Taylor Kitsch, running time 108 mins.
In a nutshell.
A solid genre effort that fills in the blanks.
What's it all about?
In this prequel to the hugely successful X-Men trilogy - which might have spawned more sequels had Brett Ratner not ballsed up X-Men: The Last Stand - the mysterious history of the adamantium-clawed mutant Wolverine (Jackman) is revealed. From a childhood in 19th century Canada to fighting alongside brother - and feral fighting machine - Victor Creed (Schreiber) in a greatest hits compilation of American wars, Logan earns the battle scars and psychological wounds that define one of the greatest characters in comic book history. Through membership of the amoral Team X military cadre, losing the woman he loves and enduring unimaginable pain as his animalism is given an indestructible metallic sheen, the passion and pain of Wolverine is unmasked.
Who's in it?
After voicing an animated penguin, falling for Nicole Kidman in sunny Australia and hosting the Academy awards, Golden Globe nominee Hugh Jackman (Wolverine) reprises the role that made him a superstar.
Liev Schreiber, recently seen alongside Daniel Craig and Jamie Bell in Defiance, stars as Wolverine's brother Victor Creed while a host of familiar faces complete the Team X lineup, including Ryan Reynolds, Dominic Monaghan and will.i.am. Danny Huston - not necessarily a dead ringer for a young Bryan Cox - plays the dastardly William Stryker with Texan Lynn Collins taking her biggest role as Wolverine's love Kayla.
As an example...
"You can stay here, locked up like freaks of nature, or you can join me. I'm putting together a special team with special privileges. How would you really like to serve your country?" - Stryker
"You're gonna die for what you did to her." - Logan
"Do you even know how to kill me?" - Victor Creed.
"I'm gonna cut your goddamn head off. See if that works." - Logan
What the others say
"I can remember sitting in cinemas open-mouthed at effects in just two films: Terminator 2 and Spider-Man 2. Now, you can add a third. In all three cases, it seems to me, the real secret is not in the bundle of microchips used to produce what you see, but in the way the effects are a logical, necessary part of a storyline that the scriptwriters have been skilful enough to involve you in from the first scene." - Nigel Kendall, Times Online
"A fast-paced spectacle with action, drama, romance, wry humour and technical wizardry... Jackman has elevated his skills to new heights and his ability to couple brute force with vulnerability is the key." - Louise Keller, Urban Cinefile
So is it any good?
With a high profile internet leak, (largely inconsequential) whispers over alternate endings for US and European audiences, and the box office behemoth of Star Trek looming on the horizon, hopes for the origin story of one of Marvel's greatest creations seemed flimsier than a Michael Bay plot. Thankfully, with fight sequences so brutal you forget to breathe, numerous excuses for fanboys to geek out and a deftly handled recreation of Wolverine's tragedy-tinged wit, X-Men Origins: Wolverine is a well-crafted and frenetic comic book film that stands comfortably alongside the titans of the genre.
Director Gavin Hood manages to cram in the root of Wolverine's moral confusion, the landmark Origin comic series and a swift, brutal opening which sprints across battlefields, taking in bullet wounds and slashing claws as the history and characters of the brothers are superbly defined. Were it not for Watchmen's stunning credits sequence, it'd be the finest action opening of the year.
In a slightly rushed but box-ticking first act telling of the assembly and collapse of the covert Team X killing squad, Ryan Reynolds is a delight as Deadpool, his usual backchat sketching a character just the right side of asshole, and scorn at his lack of screen time can be consoled by talk of a spin-off.
Unfortunately, until its fluid, pulse-racing climax, there's an unfortunate A-to-B feel about the progression of the plot. Wolverine's escape from Team X, experience of love and loss and quest for vengeance through tracking down former friends and a new comrade feels as if it's sprung from the pages of a Choose Your Own Adventure book - "If you decide to meet Gambit in New Orleans, turn to page 56. To fall to the floor screaming 'Noooo!', turn to page 84."
Fortunately, beautiful locations, the stinging violence of the action set pieces and some smirking, blokeish interplay between Jackman and the fantastic Schreiber means the flaws of a surprisingly weak script from David Benioff and a handful of CGI misfires can be overlooked. Though Huston is hammy, Collins makes a sexy, affecting female lead while Friday Night Lights star Kitsch draws a full house with his portrayal of Cajun card shark Gambit.
Moreover, the darkness and wit of Wolvie only seen in flashes in the X-Men trilogy comes to the fore with glorious results as the character's bipolarity is writ large in a script that combines thudding action, mutant tragedy and black comedy.
When stripped down to its adamantium-laced skeleton, this is little more than a mutated revenge thriller but the blanks in Wolvie's past created through the first three films are filled in and this is this the cigar-chomping mutant the fans know and love.
7.5/10
Lewis Bazley