May 1, 2009

X-Men Origins: Wolverine

Title: X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Year: 2009
Cast: Hugh Jackman, Liev Schreiber, Will i Am, Lynn Collins, Ryan Reynolds, Taylor Kitsch, Daniel Henney.

No, we haven't stepped into another dimension: Every summer, this blog gets the summer movie bug (this is NOT a cheap pun on swine flu, no), and then we sort of spill-over from Bollywood land. The same phenomenon also occurs when Harry Potter/Action/certain Hong-Kong movies warp our Bollywoodian mindset :)

I wasn't into X-men growing up- it was always Spidey, Superman, Batman and Captain America's group for me. However, with the X-Men series I was completely won over, and well- Hugh Jackman is rather impossible not to love, is he?

Since the movie has just come out, this review will have no spoilers- you need to get out there and see it. The movie tells us the relationship between Wolverine (Hugh) and Sabertooth (Liev)....


... while introducing us to the origins of some of the other mutants, including Gambit (Taylor), Kayla Silverfox (Lynn), Deadpool (Ryan), Wraith (Will i am), Bolt and Blob.


.. and we also know why Wolverine turned out the way he did, poor ol' hunky sod...


.. but for me, it meant a strong empathy for the character of Deadpool, as portrayed by Ryan. I haven't ever enjoyed Mr. Scarlett Johansson: don't enjoy rom-coms, and don't care much for the boyish charm he projects in them. And yet, he brings a vulnerability to the character that had me rooting for a sequel focusing on him.


Despite all thelove I feel for it, the movie has its share of highs and its lows, and is certainly not without flaws.

The highs:
  1. The opening credits are extremely effective and piece together a chunk of the story- beautifully done. They cover history, including that of Wolverine, and are shot beautifully. I'd watch the movie again just for these credits, and once you see it, you just might agree.
  2. The cast looks like they are really having a good time- they work well together, and you do get a sense of the good-humored camaraderie between them, especially that between Hugh and Liev.
  3. We are offered an opportunity to see the making of some of the traditionally bad guys- and that could be explored more that it was here. I am rooting hard for a sequel, as mentioned before.
  4. Hugh Jackman, Liev, Taylor, Daniel and Ryan have never looked so smoking. Or have been shot so well.
  5. The action sequences manage to be fresh despite the thunderstorm of Superhero movies last summer- that in itself is an accomplishment. The fight sequence between Agent Zero (Daniel) and Wolverine was completely satisfying.
The lows:
  1. The director's efforts to tie together EVERYTHING that is mysterious about Wolverine in the X-men series get almost tiring. Every little detail is pushed to be part of the story, and I am not sure if that was entirely necessary.
  2. Gambit, Bolt and Wraith are grossly underutilized, which is lamentable. Maybe in other sequels....
  3. An old man and woman die while helping Wolverine- which is SUCH a superhero-movie cliche :S
Conclusion: Watch it already! Summer's here.

7 comments:

dustedoff said...

I know I'm going to be taken to see this film, simply because my husband is a die hard X Men fan. But I don't really mind - Hugh Jackman is good enough reason for me to see it.

Don't know when it's coming to our neck of the woods, though...

Filmi Girl said...

I agree that the cast look like they are having a blast!

The only problem I had with the movie was that the beginning wasn't long enough. I miss that nice Bollywood-style half-hour beginning. I wanted to see more of the boys (all the boys) in Vietnam and then in their top-secret squadron so that we as an audience were more affected by their deaths.

Shweta Mehrotra Gahlawat said...

Dustedoff: Absolutely! I do think u will enjoy this one- lots of Hugh to love :)

Filmigirl: That WOULD have been more fun, i agree. Maybe they can give sequels to the others, and use Veitnam as a starting pt? it may wk.

Bhargav Saikia said...

How did you find Watchmen's opening credits?

Nomad said...

i almost laughed out loud when the helicopter blew up, then blew up again, then one more time...

veracious said...

Oh, Shweta, hate to disagree so vehemently with you here but Wolverine is most likely to be the worst movie of 2009 for me (if there's anything worse than this out there, I won't be watching it). Just such a lame movie, I was bored at first and then busy boggling at how many tired clichés they utilized. Anyway, won't diss it more as to not take up more space in your blog. :D

Shweta Mehrotra Gahlawat said...

Bhargav: was ok- but they didnt have Hugh :D

Nomad: Sorry was too b usy oggling the men to notice much :D

Veracious: But that's ok! For me, sometimes I am so caught u in a character (or a few) that the rest of the idiocies of the movies become entirely incidental :D