The Wolverine

I didn't much care for X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Hugh Jackman still was, and always will be, a brilliant Wolverine, but the other characters felt lackluster, the villain was weak and the storyline didn't fit well with the other X-Men movies. It didn't have the same feel.

For some time it seemed that the poor critical performances of both that and X-Men 3 would mean there would be no more movies with Wolverine in them, at least in a leading role. Luckily, the film makers decided to do one more and if this particular movie is going to be the last one, I for one can move on happy with what I got.

The Wolverine is a movie that works both as a continuation of the X-Men storyline, as well as a standalone movie. The focus is kept heavily on Hugh Jackman, which works for the movie's advantage. There are some callbacks to the events of the trilogy, but as a whole I think this film could have worked just as well without them, if not better, as they are a bit distracting from time to time. But most of the time the focus is on where it should be. In this movie Logan travels to Japan in order to meet an old acquaintance, who wants to settle old scores before his demise. In Japan we get some gorgeous scenery, nice atmosphere, intriguing settings, believable characters, all that good stuff.

I especially liked Tao Okamoto's character Mariko, the granddaughter of Wolverine's old friend. Jackman and Okamoto have brilliant chemistry together and when the movie slows down during the second act to give them time to simply interact with one another, it feels justified. Usually that kind of slowing down in an action movie feels boring and unneeded, even sappy, but here it works because the actors have the skills to pull it off. Which is a great thing, because it gives the movie more depth and we get a chance to know Wolverine in a new way that the Origins movie tried to reach, but never could because of its lack of emotional maturity.

Unfortunately this film has one major flaw and that is the unbelievably weak villain, known as Viper. Her actress, Svetlana Khodchenkova, just doesn't have the screen presence or acting skills to give the character any memorable attributes. She merely stands there, struts around in her skintight suit and spouts the dialogue. That's it. Sure part of that is poor writing, but it's still rather jarring because the two main protagonists are so damn good. If only the villain had been as good, this could easily have been one of the best Marvel movies yet made.

As it is, it's still fine. The two main characters are very good, most of the side characters do a good job as well, the action works wonderfully, the Japanese setting gives the film a nice coating of majesty and even the story, while nothing that extraordinary, functions well enough for us to enjoy it. The villain is weak, very weak in fact, which keeps the film from being great, but you can overlook it and focus on the good stuff.

If there's one major element that truly sets this picture apart from any other standard "solid" comic book movie is the way through which the director communicates the experience of being Wolverine. His healing factor and the idea of out-living everyone you know is daunting and depressing. Finding purpose after facing true vulnerability adds so much to the character and FAR more than we've seen before. Tremendous visual and emotional imagery is presented throughout the movie and provides the viewer with greater insight into the hero and even the villains. This one screams quality from the opening through the amazing final act. I've seen it mentioned that the resolution deviates from the comic books but I honestly couldn't care less. What hits the screen more then works in movie form.

For those going into this flick expecting simple fun, prepare to enjoy but prepare to be surprised. Fun is not the only piece of this pie. In fact, I think movie fans of all kind will be stunned at how many levels this movie delivers upon. This is an action packed but surprisingly deep film that, for me, really delivers. The Wolverine will leave your movie-going senses on high and I honestly can't wait to see it again.

Wolverine is one of the iconic characters in both the Marvel Universe as well as the 20th Century Fox's movies; so is his Adamantium claws and healing factor. An immortal and living through ages he does have a lot of stories ready to be told through movies/comics. We did get an Origin movie, X-Men Origins Wolverine which was panned by critics and audiences alike. But I felt it was trashed more than it deserved to be. It had loads of action and bits from the original Wolverine Origin story arc but it did trash the character for the sake of being an action-heavy summer blockbuster. A weak script, irrelevant characters and a stupid take on 'the merc with a mouth' underwhelmed the audiences. Anyways The Wolverine salvages some of its lost prestige putting a lot of focus on the core character.

Rumors that Darren Aronofsky'd be helming the new Wolverine had me excited but the director's chair was handed over to James Mangold in the end. I am not skeptic at all regarding Mangold's directing prowess, as evident from gems like 3:10 to Yuma, Walk the line and Identity. But I was wondering how he'd handle a superhero flick. After watching it, its safe to say Mangold's direction is far better than what I'd expected it to be.

The Wolverine is undoubtedly based on Frank Miller's take on the superhero and I was already familiar with the names Mariko, Shingen and Yukio. It all came like a whiff of fresh air. The Wolverine is sort of a reboot for the series and a brilliant stepping stone for a new franchise which could tell a parallel story to the X-Men movies. Although it has its roots attached to the previous flicks, we are dropped into the midst of Wolverine's story. There ain't no origin, there ain't no 'Previously'; instead we are just dropped into a narrative which ploughs forward to the thick of Japan. The Wolverine could be compared to treatment our superheros been getting recently. He's been stripped off his healing factors and he is left like so almost the entire movie and it does bring out some tension. I mean when he had the healing power, we knew he wouldn't just die even if she's split into two (admit it!)

The Wolverine is directed well and so was it well written and the action sequences well choreographed but its not without its flaws though. As mentioned above The Wolverine still has the debris it's carried on from X-Men The Last Stand and I wasn't pleased with it. Wolverine has flashbacks of his lost love? Seriously? Isn't it time his healing factor took care of that already? I mean its the god-damn Wolvie we're talking about here. Jean Grey's flashbacks (more like boring nightmares and more than once) kept crawling into the plot disrupting the pace and I just didn't like it. Of course Wolverine is tormented from what he'd done in the past but that doesn't mean, we the audience need to be tormented from start to end. The Japan setting was a bit distracting as well and maybe thats a personal thing. I am not a big fan of Martial arts movies and there was an excess of martial arts settings and jargon here in the movie though it all did look good. Props were fantastic and the action sequences thick, especially the Bullet Train sequence is something to gape at.

Hugh Jackman effortlessly steps into his Wolverine shoes for the 6th time and having worked with Mangold in Kate & Leopold did wonders for The Wolverine. This is the Logan we've all praised and been used to and Hugh easily slides into the role and storyline straight from X-Men The Last Stand albeit forgetting X-Men Origins Wolverine. But then again playing Wolverine would have become second instinct for Hugh by now. Supporting cast couldn't be praised for the same, most of them being just bait for the plot. Especially Wolverine love interest in the movies, I felt they had absolutely no chemistry. Rila Fukushima did an absolutely splendid job playing Yukio. I had huge expectations for Svetlana Khodchenkova who played the only other mutant in the movie, Viper but she just served for some eyecandy and wasn't even fleshed up to be a proper antagonist.

For what its worth, The Wolverine is a splendid action movie which concentrates more on the character and the plot than heavy heavy action sequences. If you are an X-Men/Wolverine fan you are gonna love it and please do stay back after the credits coz there is a monumental end- credit to be seen there.

This film is like a prototype of Logan (2017), trying to achieve a weary, violent film revolving around Wolverine, but not quite hitting the same mark. Compared to its predecessor X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009), it's better in some ways but actually is worse in others. On the plus side, the plot is far more comprehensible and the action is not very silly until the end. The small scale of the film was quite a departure for the X-Men franchise and only the fleeting inclusion of another mutant makes it relevant. While some might appreciate this realistic setting, I didn't find the Japanese corporate conspiracy plot very engaging. The film slowed down too much at times as the action scenes got repetitive (other than an interesting sequence on top of a train). While the film is not as silly as its predecessor, it's unfortunately not as interesting either.

Some time after the events of The Last Stand, this sequel of sorts focuses on Logan/Wolverine as a tortured soul living in isolation and haunted by vivid memories of his lost love. Now, having reached an emotional impasse, he travels to Japan to visit an old comrade. Once there, he quickly gets caught up in a complex political power struggle that, for the first time in his life, makes him truly vulnerable. Jackman, not unexpectedly, is formidable in the lead, and there are lots of visceral action scenes, but that does little to compensate for the faults; film's tone is grim, its characters—sans Jackman—are unappealing, plotting is convoluted, subject matter turns ugly, and the pace lags heavily after a strong start. Jackman effectively spits, scowls, snarls, and flexes his muscles in what has become his go-to role, but he has almost no support; too long, too dark, and too serious to really be fun. **