By Christopher Stipp

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X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE – REVIEWED

I don’t need to see this film again, nor do I have the need to ever own it.

When I was 13 I had a friend by the name of Brandon Murphy. He was the only one who I knew was into comics and is responsible for sending sparks into the tinder that would flame into a full-on passion for The X-Men, Spider-Man and other titles that would create the base for my love of this medium.

One month, while casually flipping through a copy of the most recent Comics Journal at my local comic book store they had a section in the back that was dedicated to talking about the cinematic developments of comic properties. Seemingly, a lot of what has finally made it to the big screen (SPIDER-MAN, X-MEN, FANTASTIC FOUR) had its genesis in a paper publication back in 1989. It would be ridiculous to think that these films were trapped in development for damn near two decades but the facts are both SPIDER-MAN and X-MEN went on to become box office juggernauts which laid waste to anyone thinking these films would only appeal to children. The early iteration of these films were a little rough as the filmmakers felt in the dark about how to translate comics to screen in a way that would be faithful to the source but be marketable enough to wide audiences so there were creative liberties taken; Rogue skewed younger, the Green Goblin was physically different and The Hulk had to contend with Hulk Dogs.

Profits swelled, studios took notice and now we’re having to contend with a litany of comic book to film adaptations, reboots and spin-offs. Thanks to the success of the movies that had to believe that taking the material seriously would actually work we now have X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE. Based on the character who was the most obvious choice to get his own film WOLVERINE takes place long before he finds himself with the X-MEN and introduces a rogues gallery of fan favorites: Deadpool, Blob, Sabertooth and Gambit. The film wants to establish Wolverine as a character, wants to delve into how he received his adamantium and tries desperately to entertain while doing it. If this was Gambit’s game he would say 2 out 3 ain’t bad but here, for this film, it’s a losing hand.

The issues that hobble this production are apparent from the beginning when we’re introduced to young Logan and his bone claws. In what has to be one of the most rushed “twist” story details, and there are enough of them here to think that M. Night Shyamalan, not David Benioff and Skip Woods, should get story credit, we have the worst use of “I’m your dad” in an awkward moment that sets the shoddy tone for what is to come. From the shoehorning of Logan’s classic comic book refrain of “I’m the best there is at what I do, and what I do isn’t very nice” into a conversation that feels awkward when uttered out loud the movie stumbles as the script feels like disparate moments strung together by a thin thread of relevance which, ultimately, prove not to be the case. The events that transpire could have all happened without the aid of the excuses that heretofore are called co-stars. If you could keep a tally on the ways in which any number of the co-stars, excluding Sabertooth, help the movie you would only need to use one hand. This is frustrating as any writer actually pushing pen to paper should recognize that you have to have a reason to include someone in a story but what seems to be the case in WOLVERINE is that these characters act as excuses to divulge wildly far-fetched bits of information.

Further, an examination of what comes next illustrates the other contentious point that could go either way for someone watching the film: the flimsiness of the movie’s production.

We go from boyhood to modern time with Logan all grown up and sharing a plane with the host of characters that will come and go like stage props for the rest of the movie. Ryan Reynolds absolutely shines as the merc with a mouth, Deadpool, and if there’s anyone who you wish they had more of in this movie it’s him. Liev Schreiber starts his run as the wickedly casted Sabertooth, and who deserves a lot of credit for elevating the tension, suspense and mood of this film, and doesn’t disappoint for the duration of the movie. The team’s leader William Stryker, played by Danny Huston, also is delightfully cast as the one man who no one should trust in a foxhole. The rest of the characters are forgettable, disposable and are completely irrelevant to the movie’s forward movement and act as convenient placeholders, like an opportune coaster to place a wet drink upon, to simply use and discard when not needed. The opening battle sequence has everyone showing off their talent, one by one, in an overly orchestrated battle that looks like it was taking place on a poorly disguised, and photographed, set; it’s plasticine flimsiness here just sets the tone for the other sets that look like sets. From the fight that takes place after our heroes board an elevator, to the jungle scene prior to Logan jettisoning from this merry band of mutants, to the fight that takes place between Gambit, Logan and Sabertooth, to a host of other special effect moments that simply look false there is a surprising lack of quality control. Never minding the accoutrements to the action on the screen the lack of character development for those on the periphery adds to the disappointment.

The script for the film seemed to be at odds with wanting to tell an origin story, hence the title, but also having a fun movie to watch. I don’t think these things are mutually exclusive but the movie covers so much ground you don’t ever have a chance to breathe and that’s not a good thing. We barely get to know Logan’s lady Silver Fox, we have an even less chance to understand Dominic Monaghan’s Bolt, John Wraith barely has an opportunity to flex his muscle, don’t get me started on the stopwatch lifespan of the husband and wife who hurriedly nurse Logan back to health after he gets his metal, we get The Blob for one token scene and Gambit is all but ignored. There are literally a cast of characters interfering with a movie that should have been about Wolverine but instead we have X-MEN 4, a new team with a different leader. Even though this film is a vast improvement over X-MEN 3 it only does so because of the strength of Hugh Jackman and Schreiber.

Jackman is the bright light in all of this as he pours himself into this role. He believes he is Logan, that he is Wolverine. And he’s damn right for thinking so. The mannerisms of what this human animal is supposed to be like are all evident in his rage when he escapes his captors as Weapon X, when he’s fighting for his life in the denouement of this film. Jackman has the charisma to pull this whole character off without a hitch but, the problem is, there isn’t anything else for him to do with what he’s given.

With a gimpy script, wretched effects, questionable photography and a host of other distracting elements it’s not hard to make a case as to why this should be the only entry in this series, that any more films will turn a once hardcore outlaw of comics into a parody of himself, better suited inside the Sunday funnies. One time will be more than enough to take in what’s presented but I do hope the resulting avalanche of money that will no doubt be in this movie’s future will help begin discussions about how to focus on what was right about this film and excise everything else that did not.

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