Just like with the different X-Men comic book series, X-Men: First Class is a totally different style and tone than the other films in the franchise. Don’t expect a complete action film, it’s more like a dramatized biopic/documentary of the origin of the X-Men. I enjoyed it but I’m not sure if it’s because I’m an X-Men fan and love the stories and universe that Marvel created. The movie as a whole missed the mark in a lot of areas but all of the comic book tidbits and the ending made me a happy geek leaving the theater…I will actually enjoy watching this one again.
The movie is pretty much all introductions and back story. It begins during the Holocaust at a concentration camp in Poland 1944 where we meet the kid version of the infamous Magneto. Fly across the world and we’re introduced to the young Charles Xavier living in his posh mansion. From the beginning, they set the circumstances for the paths each of these men take. With this journey in time we also get to see a German Kevin Bacon and the cutest little Mystique (Morgan Lily) you’ll ever see. There are a lot of subtitles in the beginning of the movie, so prepare to read a bit…like a real comic book!
Frenemies Charles Xavier (James McAvoy) and Erik Lehnsherr (Michael Fassbender) in X-Men: First Class
Jump a few years to 1962 and we see an older Xavier during his college years. We’re all used to the wise and calculated Professor but now we get to see him as the charming player picking up chicks at Cambridge bars. I really loved Xavier’s character played by James McAvoy…it made this movie so much more enjoyable. His character is similar to Tim Roth’s Dr. Cal Lightman in the TV series “Lie To Me” except more horny and instead of reading body language, Xavier can read minds! Erik Lehnsherr (Michael Fassbender) is a Jew out for revenge and an older Mystique (Jennifer Lawrence) is looking for acceptance. These three and the relationships they have with each other are the basis of this film and the chemistry they all have is great. Close but still cautious and mysterious.
Zoe Kravitz looking hot in X-Men: First Class
So much build up and background, what’s this movie actually about? Well, it a nutshell…it’s the formation of the first class of Xavier’s School for the Gifted Youngsters instigated by mutants trying to begin a nuclear war between the Russians and Americans via the Cuban Missile Crisis…it’s a history lesson with archival footage to boot! I always love when comics tie in to actual events and explain real stories with a fanciful twist. Our main villain is Sebastian Shaw who builds a small team with Emma Frost (January Jones), Azazel (Jason Flemyng) and Riptide (Alex Gonzalez). Magneto and Xavier team up with the CIA and agent Moira MacTaggert (Rose Byrne) to find young mutants to build a team of their own. They find Angel (Zoe Kravitz), Banshee (Caleb Landry Jones), Havok (Lucas Till), Darwin (Edi Gathegi) and Hank McCoy (Nicholas Hoult).
Class Picture?
The kid aspect is so cool in this one. They are all teenagers with their rambunctious attitudes and naive view on the world. They’re all outcasts just discovering that there are others like them. I think this movie is going to touch a brand new generation unlike any comic book has done before. Plus, there are so many tie ins with the original story lines and characters that older comic book fans are going to rekindle their love for the X-Men. Again, if you’re a X-Men fan, I think you’re going to love this retelling of the origin of the crew. The recruitment of these kids are done through a montage that includes a sexy lap dance and ends with an awesome cameo. There’s then also a training montage where all of the X-Men hone their skills in preparation of what’s to come. However, both these scenes highlight some of the problems with the movie.
The beginning of Charles Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters
The tempo is slow. It’s all story building and then preparation with a few action scenes to tie you over. Many of the special effects as well as the direction in general seemed amateurish. This is a period piece set in the groovy times so a lot of the clothes, equipment and scenery are throwbacks but they still seemed to be missing something. I don’t want to feel like I’m watching a movie from that time, I want to feel like I’m watching a movie about that time. Also, some of the performances could have been a bit tighter. If director Matthew Vaughn could have change those things along with the music choices in this film, it would have been on another level and even more special reaching more than just avid X-Men fans. It’s almost exactly 2 hours long filled with dialogue and information but seeing how the roles of the characters evolved and then finally succumb to their natural destinies is incredible. School is in session and I’m ready for my next class!
Flipped is a great wholesome movie. It was truly marvelous. It tells the classic story of young love between a boy and a girl but in regard to film, it doesn’t tell it in the classical way. The movie is set in the fifties and takes us back to a time of the radio where stories were just told verbally. Flipped heavily relies on the great monologues of the main characters and uses the visuals to support that. It’s a movie that can be enjoyed by young and old and has a light enjoyable feeling even when dealing with difficult subjects.
