Wolverine Review

It was a great idea to give Wolverine his own "origin" movie. As the shining star of the X-Men trilogy, it would have been ideal to see the man tear it up without the hindrance of Rogue's relationship troubles and the philosophical musings of Charles Xavier. As expected, the result is a satisfying escapade with thunderous action and a merry band of characters, but struggles to overshadow narrative annoyances.

Beginning in 1845 with the first appearance of young James Howlett's bone claws, the film then fast-forwards through James' participation in major wars alongside his brother, Victor (Liev Schreiber, Defiance). This sequence, shown during the opening credits, is energetic and entertaining; enough so that their wartime adventures could satiate an entire film. James and Victor, for some annoyingly inexplicable reasons, stopped aging in their mid-30's and look the same in the present as they did during the Civil War.


Herein lies the paramount flaw of the movie. The title implies an explanation of Wolverine's mutant abilities, but his lack of aging, healing powers, and claws are just thrown at the audience without a lick of clarification. Instead, the film narrates how James ended up as we found him in the X-Men trilogy, with his metal claws and amnesia. It all has to with a confusing series of bloody events and bad decisions, after which James is given an adamantium skeleton by the U.S. military, which proceeds to hunt him down.

The hunter turns out to be Victor, who has the same retractable claws and self-healing powers as James. But the two share a classic sibling contrast: James is calm and detached while Victor is bloodthirsty and insane. Their strained, violent relationship is compelling, but it is sadly abandoned once James gets his metal implants.

It's always a bad idea to think too much during comic-book movies, but the critics need to say something. Wolverine scores with its countless spectacular action set-pieces, from the Alaskan throwdown between the brothers to the breathtaking finale on Three Mile Island, where every mutant gets a chance to showcase their abilities. But there is a new level of expectations after The Dark Knight, which has raised the bar for superhero movies - perhaps unfairly, since every movie can't have its psychological complexities and legendary villains.


Comic book nerds, such as myself, will drool at the sight of various characters from X-Men lore, from The Blob to Emma Frost to John Wraith (as well as a few others that won't be spoiled). Even with the onslaught of cameos, the film manages a tricky balance - pleasing the geeks without confusing the rest of the audience.

Often times,it feels like Wolverine is serving as an "origin" for other properties that will spin off, much like Wolverine did, into their own feature films. There's Gambit, one of the most popular X-Men from the comics, who is bluntly thrust into the story with little cohesion. It's great to see his staff and card tricks in action, but it's obvious that the Cajun charmer was added for the hell of it. The other offender is Deadpool, whose smarmy wisecracks are a perfect fit for the naturally droll Ryan Reynolds. His astonishing sword skills steal the spotlight from Wolverine, and his lack of major screen time is a clear sign that the filmmakers have bigger plans for the character.

Admittedly, I would be first in line to see Gambit and Deadpool movies (already announced!), but next time, let's stick to just Wolverine, so his befuddling questions can finally be answered. Memorable action aside, X-Men Origins: Wolverine is hampered by its narrative banality and lingering inquires, but it's still fun fluff.

*** out of *****