Monday, July 29, 2013
Remember back in 2009 when they released a solo Wolverine movie and everyone was super excited? Yea, me too. I mean, how can you go wrong with an independent adventure a la X2, focused solely on the badass predator, Logan? Then we all saw that steaming pile of crap and lost all faith in a genuinely good solo Wolverine film. Thankfully, James Mangold came around and tried to make a faithful adaptation that would renew our faith in X-Men films (trying to wash out the stale taste of X-Men: The Last Stand and X-Men Origins: Wolverine.) I’m so glad to say that he (mostly) succeeded. In The Wolverine, we meet up with Logan just after the events of X-Men: The Last Stand. He is mourning over the death of Jean Grey (the woman he loved, if you have forgotten.) During his self-proclaimed exile (and pseudo-pacifism) he is tracked down by Yukio (Rila Fukushima), who was sent by her employer, Yashida (Hal Yamanouchi), to find Logan and bring him back to Tokyo. Logan agrees to go, on the stipulation that it only be for one day, but what kind of a movie would it be if everything went according to plan?
I really can’t believe how much I liked this movie. Nothing about this film had me really excited. While it seemed to have a solid premise and crew (with James Mangold running the show), none of the previews had any promise. It looked too much like Origins for me to really get excited. But I still had faith in Mangold, since he has delivered so many times in the past (a la Walk the Line, 3:10 to Yuma, Identity, and Girl, Interrupted.)
There is SO much to love about this movie, but I think that there are two clear winners here: visuals and plot (save for the last...20 minutes or so.)
So, let me start with the visuals. HOLY JESUS was this movie well filmed. I can’t think of a single frame of this film that I didn’t thoroughly enjoy. The action sequences were especially impressive. If I had to single out one scene that really blew me away, it would probably be the fight on the bullet train. Wolverine is being chased by the Yakuza, who track him down while he is on the bullet train. At 300 mph (according to Logan himself), all hell breaks loose. I have never seen a better choreographed/filmed fight on a train since Spiderman 2. And, honestly, this one might be a tiny bit better.
While the visuals were excellent, it wouldn’t have meant shit if it hadn’t been for the truly excellent script. While the dialogue wasn’t phenomenal, it was the story that really had me. The plot in this film takes the character of Wolverine to a whole new level. We see the invincible Wolverine taken down a notch, and not only on an emotional level. We get to see him actually sustain injuries and how that effects his fighting, etc. I thought adding this human element to the plot made the entire story more relatably, thus, enjoyable. I know this wasn’t a completely new concept, and was taken from the comics, but it was the perfect story to take and adapt to the big screen. And coupling it with the excellent visual style of the film just made for an excellent moviegoing experience.
While I did really enjoy this movie, that doesn’t mean there were parts that made me want to die. Those parts mostly happened in the last 25 minutes of the film. I don’t want to drop any spoilers here, but I do want to say this: those minutes almost ruined the film for me. Almost.
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Hugh Jackman is still the perfect Wolverine, and this movie is absolutely proof that no one else can do the role. If you can look past a pretty horrendous ending, and corny dialogue at times, then this is the movie for you. With an excellent plot coupled with amazing visuals make this movie a must see for this summer.
Writing: 7/10
Visuals: 7.5/10
Acting: 6.5/10
Pacing: 7/10
Score: 5.5/10
Rewatchability: 6.5/10
Score: 6.7/10
