So right out of the gate I’ll just say it–this is the best X-Men film of the franchise. Not only is it a great superhero movie, it’s also just a fantastic piece of cinema, period. For me, this is truly the first film of the summer blockbuster season where I have felt compelled to head to the theater and see it again. That’s exactly what I suggest you do as well. Check out the full review after the jump…
Bryan Singer is on the top of his game with X-Men: Days of Future Past. He has a created a great ensemble film that ties together the stars of the original X-Trilogy–Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, Halle Berry, Shawn Ashmore, and Ellen Page–with the newcomers of X-Men: First Class. The glue holding that all together as always is the irreplaceable Hugh Jackman as Wolverine.
While not enough praise could ever be given for the veteran cast of the series, James McAvoy (starting with First Class as Charles Xavier) is the stand out amongst the newcomers to the series. Both he and Michael Fassbender (Erik Lehnsherr/Magneto) were given the very difficult task of stepping into the shoes of Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen, and they pull it off with flying colors. Both their portrayals add so much depth to these already very deep characters.
Another great addition to the series and this film in particular is Evan Peters’ Quicksilver. He absolutely steals every scene he is in and the way his speedster ability is shown in the film is fantastic! It just leaves you wanting more of him.
Going back to Jackman, including this film he’s played the part of Wolverine seven times. At this point I can’t even imagine an X-Film without him in it. It’s great fun to see Wolverine dealing with being back in the 70s but having his future knowledge. All of Jackman’s scenes with the 70s cast are great.
The screenwriting (Simon Kinberg) for this latest installment in the franchise is top notch, and pretty damn impressive. It should have been a difficult task to combine the two casts while also making the time travel aspect a coherent story, but they pulled it off. The movie is just so much fun, and even at over two hours you just don’t want to leave the theater when it’s finished.
Visual effects this go around are just outstanding. The powers of the new mutants we’re introduced to paired with the 3D, especially Blink’s (Fan Bingbing) portals, are very impressive. Getting to finally see the sentinels on screen is for sure one of the film’s many highlights. They’ve really managed to up the stakes with this film in a big way, each set piece is bigger and more grand than the one that came before it.
This film has plenty of fan service as well, with great nods to the classic comics, references to familial connections, and just overall a great sense of nostalgia for the X-Men franchise as a whole. This film could really feel like a bookend to close the series on, but in a lot of ways it’s also a fresh beginning. If anything I really feel like this latest entry as rejuvenated the mutant brotherhood’s stay at the cinema.
So as I’ve already said, go and see this movie! Then go out to the theater lobby and buy yourself another ticket to see it again. You’ll have a blast watching it, over and over again. This movie has raised the bar for all other films released after it this summer to live up to. It has plenty of surprises that will have you smiling from ear to ear. And, as you should know by now, stay until the very end of the credits to see what we have to look forward to in X-Men Apocalypse.
5/5
