X-Men Origins: Wolverine

(2009)

Directed by

Gavin Hood

Review by Terry Plucknett

After the 2008 resurgence of the comic book genre, with genre-defining movies such as Iron Man and The Dark Knight, it is hard to look at a classic superhero movie in the same way.  However, if you do not expect to see something reach the lofty levels of last summer’s films, you will enjoy X-Men Origins: Wolverine.

The latest installment in the very successful X-Men franchise delves into the history of the story and explores how the most recognizable the mutant we all know and love.  Hugh Jackman returns in the role that made him a household name, Logan aka Wolverine.  At Logan’s side at the start of the movie is his brother Victor (Liev Schreiber), also known as Sabertooth.  Right away, some questions about the legend of Wolverine are answered.  First, we discover he and Sabertooth are about 150 years old and have fought in every major American war from the Civil War to both World Wars to Vietnam.  While in Vietnam, they are approached by William Stryker (Danny Huston) who wants them to join a task force of mutants he is starting.  They agree and join other mutants portrayed by Ryan Reynolds, Dominic Monaghan, and Will.i.am, among others.  However, this group is asked to do things that Logan is not comfortable with and decides to leave the group, leaving Victor feeling betrayed by his brother and partner in crime.  Logan moves into the wilderness of Canada to live a normal life with his girl until Stryker comes and lets Logan know that Victor is hunting down and killing all members of the old group.  He ignores the warnings until the attack comes against his girl.  Stryker approaches Logan again and asks him to undergo a procedure that would make him indestructible so he could take down Victor.  This procedure fuses an indestructible metal with his skeleton and creates his signature metallic claws, which were up until now simply bone claws.  However, after Logan undergoes the procedure and survives, he realizes things are not quite the way they seem.  Now with his new strengths, he hunts to find the truth behind the situation he has been thrown into.

Like the other X-Men films, Wolverine is action-packed and loud.  It is predictable and cliché at times.  However, this is really what you have come to expect from the series.  Also, although it is predictable and cliché, it has enough twists and turns to keep you guessing, like the other films.  Hugh Jackman proves once again that his first mainstream character is still the best he has created on film.  Liev Schreiber also has a great performance as Sabertooth, who was portrayed by Tyler Mane in 2000’s X-men.  The dynamics between the two work well and the battles between Wolverine’s claws and Sabertooth’s nails are some of the best of the movie.  X-Men fans will be happy to finally see an appearance by Gambit, portrayed here by Taylor Kitsch, and also a young Cyclops.

I have never been a fan of comic books, but I am starting to realize that I cannot get enough of comic book movies.  Something about the ultimate, world-altering battles of good verses evil that are portrayed in these movies, as well as the blurring of the line between what is good and what is evil, always makes for a good storyline and a fun movie to watch.  This film is no exception.  It is fun to watch from start to finish.  There is nothing really profound that comes out of it like  The Dark Knight last year, but that is not a necessary piece for a good comic book movie.  If we think of films like The Dark Knight as the exception rather than the new norm, we can fully enjoy some great comic book action movies for what they are, just plain fun.

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