Catching Up With My “X’s”

Lake Charles, LA

Okay, okay.  Now before you read this blog, know that I am well aware that X-Men:  Days of Future Past has been out on DVD/Blu-ray/digital download for some time now AND that I’m probably not adding much to the whole X discussion that hasn’t already been mentioned, but please realize that I have a life outside of those brilliant fantasy worlds that I love so much and it just took me a long time to get to this film.

Also, there will probably be spoilers in this post, but as stated above, this film has been available for awhile now.

Let’s begin.

I watched X:DOFP over the weekend with my friends from the USS Lafitte.  I was one of just a small portion of the crowd that had not watched the film, but no one spoiled anything for me.

I honestly didn’t know what to expect from the film.  I knew that Brett Ratner had no hand in the direction of the film (a blessing in my opinion) and that Bryan Singer had returned (although I had no problems with Matthew Vaughn).  That’s a good start in my opinion, but I also knew that Wolverine would once again be the front and center character despite having two solo flicks and a primary role in almost every other single X flick (heck, he even had a cameo in the one film he was a central character in, First Class).  I have no real grudge against the character (he used to be a favorite of mine as a child), but I’m just very, very tired of seeing him save the day every single time.  I thought these guys were a TEAM and not Wolverine and a bunch of freaky folks.

Anyway, this tale finds us fifty-plus years into the future of the events that took place in First Class and the world has turned on all of the mutants and any mutant sympathizers.  It’s gotten so bad that there are just a few powerful mutants left and Magneto has joined up with Professor X to make a last ditch attempt to stop their current future from happening.

In order to change the future, someone has to stop a singular event from occurring in the past.  That event, the murder of Bolivar Trask (creator of the Sentinels), comes at the hands of Mystique, who has basically gone rogue (haha) and doesn’t listen to anybody but herself.  She’s on a one woman mission to wipeout the Sentinels, robotic beings that can defeat the mutants (and evolve and adapt to their attacks).

To get to the past, Professor X has drawn up a plan to be pushed telepathically into his younger self via the transfer powers of Kitty Pryde.  He determines that he is too old and weak to survive the process (as is just about everybody else), but Wolverine, banking on his healing abilities, volunteers for the task.

This sets into motion a chain of events where Wolverine has to convince young Charles Xavier that he has to help him stop Mystique.

Along the way, we learn that Trask has murdered many mutants in the name of science (including all of the surviving cast of First Class, saving Beast, Mystique, and Havok), and that he is having trouble selling his Sentinel plans to the US government.  Also, Magneto is in prison for murdering JFK.

Once he convinces Charles and Hank McCoy (Beast) to assist him, Wolverine sets out to free Magneto.  This is done with the help of Quicksilver.  There was a lot of talk about Quicksilver before and after this film was released.  He looked like a silvered-up club kid in the promo photos and, frankly, I thought he looked silly.  Thankfully the promo photo was the worst part of the character, as he was played to perfection by Evan Peters.  Peters used his brief screen time to become one of the biggest standouts of the film.  He had what many consider to be the biggest and best scene in the film and, in all honesty, it was pretty cool to watch.  If you haven’t seen the film, you’ll know what scene I’m talking about as soon as it plays out before your eyes.

After securing Magneto from prison, Wolvie, Beast, Prof X, and Mags attempt to stop Mystique.  Of course, being still rather young and angry, Magneto screws things up himself and in the end, he becomes the baddie that needs to be stopped.  The film has an epic Magneto moment much like First Class did, and comes to a very suspenseful head whenever the past X-men clash with the Sentinels and Magneto and the future X-men do the same (although Magneto’s on their side in the future).

The film moved at an excellent pace, wasting no time explaining how Kitty Pryde acquired the ability to transport Wolverine to the past.  Maybe it’s discussed in the comics, but it wasn’t necessary to know “why” she could do this.  The story was as believable as a tale about time-hopping mutants could expect to be, and there were a ton of old and new faces that popped up on the screen.

I was ecstatic to see a few of the older faces that arrived on the screen, but I won’t ruin the surprise for anyone.

I really liked the inclusion of Blink (Fan Bingbing).  Not only were her powers cool, but she was lovely as well.

The story ended with a wide opening for the next film and, most importantly, erased all of the terribleness that was X3.

The entire cast did an excellent job.  Jennifer Lawrence, Patrick Stewart, James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Ian McKellan, Ellen Page, Hugh Jackman and all of the rest of the returning cast did great jobs.  It was also cool to see Iceman (Shawn Ashmore) glide on ice!  Newcomers like the aforementioned Binbing, Omar Sy (Bishop) and Booboo Stewart (Warpath) did fine jobs as well, despite having limited roles.  Peter Dinklage was very convincing as Trask, and I hope he returns in another film soon.

In conclusion, I enjoyed this flick.  It was extremely entertaining and worthy of multiple views.  Hopefully Singer will stay on board for the next go round.

Highly recommended.