My Personal Thoughts on "Logan"
Helmed by director James Mangold, Logan is the final iteration in the X-Men universe as we know it. Someone else’s vision may indeed be crafted one day but as far as this series goes, its successful 16 year run has come to an end. Upon release, Logan received universal critical acclaim. Judging against the prior standalone “Wolverine” movies, my expectations for this movie were already set quite low. I remember the trailer now giving away too much either. However, did it actually live up to the hype as being the last “X-Men” movie?
Time has passed and Logan (played by Hugh Jackman) aka “Wolverine” is now getting older with his mutant abilities also deteriorating with the age. His main role in life is as a carer for Charles Xavier (reprised once more by Patrick Stewart) aka “Professor X”. Charles is suffering from a life-threatening brain disorder which occasionally leads to him having epileptic-like seizures, resulting is devastating consequences to all around him. Logan soon comes across a lady named Gabriela who asked for his assistance in transporting herself and daughter, Laura (played by newcomer Dafne Keen)* , across the border over to Canada. However, it becomes apparent that all is not what is seems. Laura is in fact a mutant with similar powers to himself and they are on the run from a team of soldiers who are hell-bent on killing them both. But what are the reasons for this and is there more to their “accidental” meeting than meets the eye?
Taking a cue from the equally popular movie Deadpool, this film is an R-rated production. This comes with a few caveats, of course. Namely, that this is an adult presentation through and through. The violence throughout is carnal and visceral on every level. The damage inflicted from the use of “Wolverine’s” adamantium claws are shown up close and personal, with every gory detail of injury exposed for our viewing pleasure. Add to that the explicit language being used by our two main protagonists and you have yourself an X-Men movie with a very different feel to it than ever before. Though I’m pleased to say that this is as welcome a change as any. The heavy gauntlets of “PG-13” territory have been cast aside and let the producers loose on the project with little to no restrictions about what can and can’t be shown on-screen. You can really feel they have a great time putting this title together.
The acting is stellar and pretty much as good as it’s going to get. Even from our new miniature star, Dafne Keen, every cast member gives it their all before bringing the final curtain down on this epic series. And with it, comes the emotional tug. This movie has it in spades. From the withered version of Charles to the reluctant yet hurting character of Logan, we are treated to the most endearing X-Men movie ever produced. The fact that most other mutants have either gone missing or been killed (as is hinted in the movie), there is an air of desperation as time seems to be all but running out for the two of them. They are all that’s left of what Charles had once built. Add the character of Laura into the mix and you’ve got heart-rending, action packed movie that stands out as one of its kind. Very impressive stuff and the very best way they could have hoped to see out this franchise.
There are many welcome surprises interspersed with the action. One namely being one of Logan’s toughest adversaries yet. And the main antagonists of the movie have enough of a unique angle to their persona’s to raise them above just being serviceable villains. The stakes are high and the narrative sets the whole premise up to perfection.
I find it interesting in that this movie comes across as anything “but” a comic book movie in it’s look, style and feel. However, that may just be because of what we have been spoon-fed all these years. Though not necessarily being a bad thing per se, I believe this wrap-up to the saga combined with an invigorating and fresh twist as they did, is the ultimate finished product. It is sad and did manage to bring a tear to my eye as the credits began to roll. This was the last time we will ever see our beloved and tragic heroic figures on-screen ever again. But what a hell of a way to bow out. An absolute classic from it’s foundations up. I loved this movie more than you can imagine. Simply put, the finest form of artistic excellence this movie franchise has ever known.
My Verdict: (9.5/10)
I was pleasantly surprised bu Logan. Much more gritty, darker, and not in the least bit cartoonish. A gripping and enticing film in its own right. Worth a second viewing, in my opinion. Glad to see you share similar thoughts.
The earlier X-Men lost their appeal to me in the beginning, which is why Logan almost failed to get my attention. But somewhere along the line I made a decision to watch it (perhaps I had read a great review like yours here) which enticed me. I don't recall. But I gave it a go, and didn't regret it. It's a great story, and well produced.
Great review.
I'm telling you, man. You can quote me on every single thing you said. The X-Men movies were good, but after seeing this, you may have felt a little short-changed with what you "could" have had with them.
So glad you stopped by and gave your "as always" insightful brilliance. Thank you very much, man...
This movie was awesome and here's a fun fact for anyone interested.
MAJORITY OF THIS MOVIE IS CGI! :0
Everything you see from the actors to the locations all digitally created, Jackman just provided his voice and likeness as did Keen (Of course this is not for every scene but a large portion of the movie)
Here is a brief video that will probably blow your mind regarding the making of this film
and here is another showing hugh jackman doing the voice while watching the movie so he can act out the sounds he needs to make to can provide the appropriate audio for the 3D version of himself.
How crazy?!
What awesome snippets of amazing info from you! I loved the voice overs you kindly linked to. Your comment just adds to the already impressive depth to this incredible piece of film-making.
Bless, buddy. Thank you! :)
Sure no problem :)
I'm in the creative industry and only recently discovered all this, and couldn't believe the amount of work they put into this film.
The only criticism or question I started having about this film was more a moral one, after I learned all this information.
A film created similarly in the past was The Matrix, and Keanu gave $80mil of his $114mil to the VFX team because he understood that none of the success he or the movies achieved would have been possible without them, I wonder how Jackman dealt with this? Or if the money the team got was better proportioned from the start?
Anyway thats my 2 cents on things and thanks for the awesome review :)
Thought the movie was amazing, but I felt it dragged a bit too long in some places, but not enough to take anything away from it. Love the way that El Paso, Mexico City, border checks, Spanish speakers, etc. were integrated into the story. Real people, real places. It added a level of grounded realism to the story and shows the value of occasionally having a comic book story that isn't centered around New York, DC, LA, San Francisco, etc. Plus, it further connected the movie to the Western genre! All in all, I loved it.
This movie was made to pander more towards a strong narrative arch than the usual comic book fare we were so used to. I'm glad you see the good in a movie like this. It is trying to be different but, from my point of view, latching onto our emotions on a more personal level.
Interesting viewpoint from you though, my friend. Thanks for commenting. :)
There's not much to add to your review. Logan is an amazing movie, technically perfect, and I loved how dark the narrative gets. I think part of the film effectiveness is also due to its showing a new angle on Wolverine, who becomes a very "human" character. Seeing him getting old makes us realize how much we are growing older with him. The final part of the picture is heartbreaking. Too bad lots of people didn't watch it, expecting "yet another X-Men movie".
On an off-note, thanks for your review. Actually, I'm new around here and I was thinking of writing some reviews myself, I need to step up and start producing content...
Thanks for adding your valued opinion to my review. The humanistic arch the producers went with is pivotal in future productions, I feel. The success of this movie only goes to show more evidence of this.
And thanks also for your kind words of praise.
As much as I'd love to agree with you, I'm afraid this might have been a one-time-only experiment. I'd be more than happy to be wrong, and it is possible they will indeed explore this angle again (I'm also thinking that the success of the Netflix series might be factor), but I have the feeling that the next X-Men installment will be more similar to Apocalypse. Which, in all honesty, I hated.
Oh sure, I agree with you, buddy. I'm meant in terms of these certain "one-off" types as they did with this movie. Otherwise, yes, I agree it will most likely be back to a formulaic, standard approach as before.
I loved the film and your review is pretty similar what I think about it.
So I give you 10/10 on your review!
By the way... I saw you in exyle's travel photos. Sir, you're handsome :D
We seem to be having the exact same thoughts on this movie. Thanks for stopping by.
And yes, @exyle and I are very good friends.
I'm a bit jealous that you have great friends on the platform.
And happy for you at the same time.
Lol, I'll take that as a great compliment! :)
Interesting perspective on Logan! I enjoyed this post, it was a good read.
Many thanks, buddy. Glad you like it as much as I do. ;)
One of my favourite movies as of late, not all time, yet.. good review! Big recommender
Glad we agree on the spectacular nature of this awesome movie. I only hope they stay with this exceptional formula for more upcoming similar releases. :)
It's not the last movie anymore, since they plan to make New Mutants this year
Yes, but I mentioned that the universe we've been privy to for the last 15 or so years is now over. The new generation will be interesting to say the least. They sure have a lot to live up to.
I loved this movie, but I didn't get why his mutant power had deteriorated so much. professor X said in an earlier movie that his powers of regeneration were off the charts and he could be any years old. Being as he was still in it, it obviously wasn't that long since he met Logan and that is a hell of alot of deterioration.
Still a brilliant movie but very sad.
the powers deteriorated because the previous movies were in comic books (in the movie) only and in reality (of the movie) they were never that strong
They explained indirectly in the movie. First they say that the adamantium is finally overcoming his regenaration, and it is killing him. This is true. But why his regeneration lost against the adamantium? For The same reason the rest of mutant have vanished from Earth, because Dr.Rice and his scientists develop a toxin that they implanted on the food consumed by people that suppressed the mutant gene. All started with his new strain of corns, and the high fructose corn syrup that came out of that, the strategy they took to defeat them on the long run.
Hope this helps you, and we can continue have fun talks about movies we enjoy so much they become part of our lifes in degrees of meaningfulness!
Have a great day.
It is always nice to read someone's opinion so well expressed. And that should be always tha case regardless if we agree with them or not. I never cared much for the X-men franchise, but I knew from the get-go there was something special about Logan, and boy was I right when I watched it. Completly an emotional voyage, I was invested in the conflict and their stakes. It adds a lot of value when we are able to observe the humanity in the characters when they are allowed to explore there finitude and decay. Thanks for talking and spreading the word of it!