X-men Origins: Wolverine (movie review)

I was rather easily talked into going to see Wolverine (directed by Gavin Hood) last night for the midnight showing. So, here is my two cents on how this movie went down…

What I liked:

The first half of the movie was incredible. From the opening montage of Wolverine and Sabertooth going from one war to the next to the one and only scene of the Weapon X team completing a mission. Then it feels like the movie gets derailed after that.  But, before I go all negative, let me point out some of the rather brilliant highlights from this movie.

The cast ensemble was great. Almost everyone was spot on as far as nailing their characters. The only exception is Will.I.AM  playing Wraith. But, I think it’s mostly the character himself was totally useless except to add a power to Deadpool. I especially like Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool. He stole the few scenes he was in. If you listen to the interviews he did, you can tell he has a passion for the character and, unlike Nic Cage with Ghost Rider, can totally fit the part.

Scenes I liked: When the Weapon X team approached the Nigerian drug camp, I was thinking, “Why the heck is a covert operative team just walking upto the main gate of a heavily-guarded compound?”  The answer: Because they can. I mean, they simply out-classed any ordinary soldier they crossed paths with. Agent Zero was a surprise to me as was Deadpool. The first mission made me wish the entire movie was just about Wolverine being on the Weapon X team, but alas it was not to be.

The climactic fight scene on top of the nuclear reactor was amazing. Almost too amazing. I also liked the fight scene with Gambit. When Gambit used his sticks to speed-climb up the wall, I thought: Now that was cool!  And even though I did not like the “Ma and Pa Kent” scene with the two old people, I did like the showdown between Wolverine and Agent Zero.

And as far as Wolverine himself goes, I thought there wasn’t anything new Jackman could have done with the character, but I was wrong. Logan is actually somewhat of a wholesome guy before Stryker screws him up for good. He didn’t have that sharp wit at first, the nihilistic attitude toward life, and animalistic tendencies. And then he underwent the adamantium procedure, which was extremely painful since he was immune to painkillers. Combine that with some stiff double-crosses and you have an animal on your hands.

In the grand scheme of all comic-book movies, Wolverine is at best, middle-of-the-road. And it has more to do with plot holes and plot pacing than anything else. The special effects were good, the action was engaging, the actors did their job, but the story did not draw me in that well.

What I didn’t like:

The plot holes

SPOILER WARNING Do not read this paragraph if you do not want to be spoiled by certain plot points. First thing I didn’t like was the introduction to Logan’s girlfriend, Silver Fox. Not much there to draw us in and when it was revealed that she had a hidden agenda, it just seemed… well, tagged on. Any pathos we felt for Logan in regards to the loss of his love was nullified when they revealed a twist in the plot concerning her.  Then there was Deadpool. Now, I heard there is a hidden ending that some of the theaters got that revealed that Wade Wilson turned out not to be Weapon XI. But, c’mon a hidden ending that someof the theaters saw??  That just screams of last minute rewrites. Fans are universally displeased with Hood’s depiction of Deadpool.  It was TOO much re-imagining going on there from comic to silver screen.

The biggest plot-hole, one that no one on the message boards seem to care about, is the fact that Sabertooth is almost a foot taller in X-men 1 and has no recollection of Wolverine at all. With such a little amount of dialogue, I don’t understand why they couldn’t have given the role to the original Sabertooth, Tyler Mane. Liev Schreibner was good, but nothing of Oscar-worth. I really want to see if they try to work this into the storyline like they have everything else.

Clunky Pacing

The movie seemed to stop and start at least three times. The first abrupt end was what happened to Silver Fox. The second abrupt end was after Wolverine escaped from the Weapon X compound. The third time was after he left the farm. I guess you can view it was three acts of a story, but the story was too short to allow breathing room for three acts to flourish on their own.

The multiple hidden endings made the film seem incomplete. The one with Stryker was plain stupid. Nothing there to make us wish we stuck around past the credits. Not to mention that hidden endings are becoming a cliche in Marvel comic movies. Fantastic Four 2 had one, X-men 3 had one, Iron Man had one, and the original cut of Incredible Hulk had one (but they moved it in front of the end credits). It’s getting old.

Finally, some of the cameos were poorly done. Gambit was almost entirely useless (he flew the plane, big deal!). Wraith’s fighting scenes and death scene was also pointless. The Blob was a little bit better, but the boxing match was cheesy. Emma Frost, my personal favorite female X-men, wasn’t even really a character- more of a plot device with a cool-looking power. Cyclops did get one moment to shine and actually use his power to take out bad guys (took him what, FOUR movies to do it?) but that was about it. Actually, I don’t see much point in even including him or Gambit for that matter. What makes these characters interesting is not their powers, but their unique personalities, strengths, and weaknesses. The only minor character I think they actually put effort into doing well was Deadpool- and we all know how he turned out.

Will I see this movie again? Yes, because there is enough there to warrant a second viewing and the action is worth seeing again on the big screen. Will I buy the DVD? Yes, because I’m a completist 🙂 But, did I think it ranks up there with the other three X-men movies? Definitely not.

6 out of 10 (Poor pacing and plot holes keep this movie from shining through. The story had good intentions and in better hands could have been great, but it fell way short of any intended goals.)