Original View Date: June 1st, 2011
SPOILERS throughout review.
Note: When I first watched the movie in the theaters, X-Men First Class was at an unbelievable 100% on Rotten Tomatoes.
It's a blast! I was never bored or uninterested; this movie has very few flaws. This X-men movie serves as a prequel to the rest. It's about Charles Xavier starting his school for mutants all the while exploring Magneto's origins. It's riveting to see the friendship between Charles and Erik while knowing they will break apart soon. The tension between the two builds up while they still get their friendly moments.
The biggest problem I had was Mystique's decision to join Magneto. I understand that the writers wanted to keep the running time short. However Mystique was an underdeveloped character. Her scenes feel extremely rushed, especially when Mystique decides to leave with Magneto even at a circumstance where her brother is lying on the ground with a bullet stuck in his hip. No, the writers do not completely neglect Mystique. She gets a few scenes where she shows that she wants to be accepted in society. But this is a point where Erik has suddenly gone off track from the original mission; it was an unexpected event. She's given a sudden choice whether to stay with her brother she was living with since they were children or to go join Magneto in wiping out the human race. Mystique is actually a nice person in this movie and I hated to see her just leave the stage like that. It was a moment that made me question the movie but it was overlooked. I mean there are so many redeemable qualities in this film.
Characters (4/5):
This movie really reminded me of the Star Wars prequel movies as Erik here is the Anakin Skywalker of this movie. He can't let go of the past, he's hungry for revenge and he's got a dark side in him which will eventually cause him to turn completely. We all know how this character will end up but the movie makes us to not want him to change. It's been done before but it always works so well and the climax of this movie just proves how well their characters were developed.
Despite Charles and Erik being well developed, Mystique is yet missing something. In fact the whole X-men students are underdeveloped. They aren't really distinguishable except through their powers and we don't really see them interacting.
Performances (5/5):
The child actors were great in setting the mood (especially Erik). The tension, the anger, the grief, the humour...I felt them too. The performances were convincing and the casting was well chosen.
Specifics (5/5):
The action sequences are amusing, the soundtrack is awesome and the special effects were used well in quantity and in quality. There are some sequences where the CGI can be really appreciated (for example: the climactic scene where missiles are fired towards the mutants and Magneto stops them in mid-air). The movie is very smart with action sequences; it's magical to see what the mutants can do by combining their powers.
Theme (4/5):
Yeah, yeah, yeah the theme of the X-men franchise is getting stale...the whole process of overcoming insecurities and dealing with being a minority. But you know what? It still works and it's still believable when characters are undergoing their internal conflicts. Beast and Mystique are the key players here and their subplot works in building the theme. Also the whole Cold War background works amiably, especially when Charles and Erik are going through a cold war of their own.
Overall (4/5):
This is the fifth and so far the best X-men movie ever made. It's background of the Cold War fits in so well with the "cold war" going on between the mutants. Very emotionally gripping and entertaining film with excellent performances delivered by the actors.
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