Since 2000, the ‘X-Men’ film series has gone from strength
to strength. Based on the popular Marvel comic book series created by
Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the stories about mutant outcasts continually captured
imaginations. Ten films later, we reach ‘Logan’, the third in the solo
Wolverine series. Part of the extended ‘X-Men’ universe, ‘Logan’ sees
everyone’s favourite steel-clawed mutant in new environs. It’s also the
best Wolverine film to date with story and main star going full throttle in
moody action spectacle.
Two decades on, no new mutants have been born. Seeing the
slow extinction of the unique race are Professor X (Patrick Stewart) and
Logan/Wolverine (Hugh Jackman). Working as a limo driver near the Mexico
border and wanting to lay low, Logan tries to forget his legacy. When
approached by a mysterious woman who wants him to protect young mutant Laura
(Dafne Keen), Logan’s past comes hurtling back. Helped by fellow mutant
Cailban (Stephen Merchant), Logan readies to face against evil forces one more
time until the final showdown.
Being promoted as Jackman’s ‘final’ appearance as Wolverine,
‘Logan’ goes out in a blaze of glory. Nothing is off limits from the
violence to the way the story is told. In Director James Mangold’s hands,
‘Logan’ plays like a 1970’s revenge Western with the dirty, grimy locales
Wolverine’s mean streets. Logan is a man on the edge and near the end of
his days. His world-weariness is conveyed very well by Jackman who hasn’t
always been the greatest actor. His limited range has produced some cinematic
stinkers, although ‘Logan’ is definitely not one of them.
Praise should go to the writers who have developed an
atmosphere of dread and blood-thirstiness. Each character wants to
control something even with limited resources at their disposal. ‘Logan’
has more in tone with the earlier X-Men films without the silly throw-away camp
which bogged down the worst of them. ‘Logan’ knows the story it wants to
tell and does so without abandon. Wolverine’s brutality is seen in pure
force with the cinematography perfectly capturing the desolate nature of his
environs.
There is no doubt ‘Logan’ is the best of the Wolverine
movies. It’s also the best performance Jackman has given to date with his
discarding the usual ‘Home and Away’-style acting holding him back. He
exits the superhero scene with violent grace with a satisfying ending as poetic
as any hard-lived Western.
Movie Review Rating out of 10: 8
Movie Review by Patrick Moore
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