It's time for one last Wolverine movie,
Logan. After seven outings as everyone's favourite
scissor-knuckled Canadian mutant (nine if you count cameos) Hugh
Jackman has fully embodied his character like few other superhero
actors have. So is Logan a proper sendoff to this actor and
his 17-years long role? Let's take a look.
Logan takes place in the future,
year 2029 in which mutants are nearly extinct. The man once known as
Wolverine is now a grumpy alcoholic chauffeur taking care of the
elderly Professor Xavier. His healing factor isn't working so well,
but it can work with the occasional conservative dose of... steroids?
C'mon Logan, winners don't use drugs! But trouble brews as he
discovers an 11 year old girl not unlike himself is being hunted down
by some bad dudes. Saying anything more would risk giving away some
good storylines, many of which are quite thoughtful and moving. I
know I felt like crying at the end. I also wouldn't want to spoil a
new (CENSORED) who shows up at the halfway mark; he/she will blow
your mind! What is worth mentioning is that Logan shows little
regard for the continuity of the rest of the X-Men series. And it's
about time we had a standalone X-Men movie; that series' timeline is
more convoluted than a possessed yoga instructor with scoliosis. The
most I could speculate is that this movie may have taken place in the
same universe(s) as 2016's X-Men: Apocalypse and/or
perhaps 2013's The Wolverine, but that's a big maybe.
Instead, this movie takes place in a universe in which X-Men comic
books also exist. Neat, huh?
You may have noticed that this is the
first rated R X-Men film (if you don't count Deadpool),
playing well into the violent nature of Wolverine's character. And
this movie earns its rating with lots of blood, gore, and curses, but
it takes a while for these elements to be used properly in a natural
way. For the first half hour or so it feels as if the producers
decided to cram in loads of F-bombs and brief nudity simply because
they could. Nevertheless Logan does succeed in giving us a
more stripped-down, nitty-gritty, back to basics action film. One can
see this through the closeup, excellently choreographed fight scenes
in place of the big CG set pieces that most superhero films have
grown accustomed to. The result is a film that is gritty, but not
humourless.
Hugh Jackman really goes out with a
bang in what is undoubtedly his finest Wolverine performance yet. His
role this time around is even more moody than usual and it's pulled
off with a fine degree of nuance. What can I say? He's the best there
is at what he does. Patrick Stewart also makes a return to his iconic
role of Professor X, who now has a degenerative brain disease that
makes him dangerous if he doesn't take his medicine. It's a really
interesting idea. And lastly we have a similarly interesting new
character, Laura (AKA X-23) played by Dafne Keen. Her awkwardness,
naivete, and volatility not only challenges Logan in a completely new
way, but it also establishes a character who is engrossing in her own
right.
But of course I can't let an X-Men
movie go by without listing all its plotholes. Heh heh heh. If
Wolverine's (CENSORED) is impeding his healing factor then does that
mean the same thing will happen to Laura? Besides, his healing factor
seemed to be working just fine after the opening scene. Why didn't
the steroids make Logan go crazy like everybody said it would? Why
doesn't Professor X use his powers for useful things other than
calming down horses? It would sure make a lot of things easier!
Instead, the Professor is content with putting friendly (CENSORED) in
needless danger. What a tool. Lastly, did the movie just end with a
reference to The Outlaw Josey Wales? Does this mean the mutant
kids are going to join the Confederate Army?
Luckily the rest of Logan is
awesome enough to make you not care about these plotholes. On the
whole, it's a very good superhero movie with a different premise and
tone to the usual ones. With its strong emotional punch, Logan
is easily the best of the three Wolverine films and perhaps the best
X-Men film of all. Mature action fans of all types, think about
giving this one a try.
PS – There's no end credits scene, so
don't waste your time like I did.
Grade:
No comments:
Post a Comment