With minor flaws that has little impact, X-Men: Days of Future Past is the summer blockbuster we've been waiting for. It has tremendous action sequences & great visuals, while employing a strong & dark storyline, with enough humour & drama for audiences to capture all there is about this wonderful franchise. This is the defining X-Men film that centralizes and set things right for the whole series.
There is just no other way to put this, but this really is the defining X-Men film we've been waiting for. It's strongest aspect is the fact that it feels like the centre of it all. Before this film, the franchise is spread out and messed up, but this film ties them all together & wraps things together in one big box called "X-Men". It's hard to say too much without spoiling it, but its just good to know that this movie fixes the wrongs of the past, and opens the door for the future (speaking in terms of the franchise itself). So it really feels like the centre of the franchise, and it is kind of fitting, with such an ensemble of the old cast and the new, and more importantly, Bryan Singer himself made sure that this is one for people to remember for the ages.
Speaking about the details, the storyline was great, and while time travel story usually provides complications, Bryan Singer set the rules straight from the start and so it didn't feel too complex to follow. And once again I just have to say my main reason for singling out this franchise (and this movie) compared to other superhero movies is the theme of mutants being a despised minority race instead of a glorified hero or team. This became the major theme of the film once again, and it really works.
The action sequences and visuals were an absolute treat, especially in the future setting. The opening sequence itself was a blast and one of my favourite fight scenes. Fights in the past was not half bad, and my, does Magneto (past version) look badass with his immense powers. There was little humour in the future setting, but the first half of the movie (in the past) was just pure entertainment, with lots of laugh in Wolverine, Quicksilver, and even Professor X himself. The drama was well presented throughout, with characters we know and love playing major roles in the story. Most importantly, the idea of Professor X finding his hope & rightful ways, as well as Mystique trying to find her true nature, is well presented as the core of the drama in the film.
As I did mention "minor flaws that has little impact" in the first paragraph, here's just some ideas why. Without spoiling anything (I hope), the switching between past and future in the second half of the film felt like it took something away from the film, especially concerning the drama and about embracing the moment and feeling for certain characters. More importantly, though, it felt as if not much story or plot is given to the future characters (even Xavier & Magneto), that it gets hard to even feel for them. Despite the cruel scenes in the future, the stakes are not presented to be high so as to regard feelings for the future characters. Meanwhile, the ending also felt too loose and leaves many explanation needed, making it less satisfying than it could have been otherwise. Yet, they do not matter much when you have a movie as fun as what you see throughout the two hours, and this is simply the summer blockbuster we've been waiting for.
Note: It would require watching most of the other X-Men films to understand the whole of this film. General audiences will enjoy the movie, too, but to get the future experience, it is recommended to have knowledge of past X-Men films.
VERDICT:
Good: Excellent action sequences, Great visuals, Brilliant plot, Great mix of humour & drama, (Assembling the whole franchise together)
Bad: Less satisfying ending
SCORE: 9.0
No comments:
Post a Comment