Logan (2017)
Finally Hugh Jackman and the Wolverine get a film worth shouting from the rooftops about. This is a superhero film like they should be, tense, gritty and heart felt, where it's all about the characters not how many buildings they can whizz at each other.
I imagine this is the film Jackman always wanted to make - down and dirty, full of swearing and violence - yes those Adamantium claws really hurt - he can really get his claws into Logan and show those who only know him as the comic book character what a good actor he really is. Logan is definitely not an action film. Nor is it particularly a superhero film. It's a character study of a tired and vulnerable ageing man given powers he never wanted and now in the slow process of dying due to those same powers. However it's not just the Wolverine in this predicament. There's also a stand out turn from Patrick Stewart as the equally ailing Professor X who's semi-consciously losing control of his mind with disastrous consequences for those around him. Then there's a lovely performance from young Dafne Keen who may or may not be Logan's daughter and a beautifully underplaying Stephen Marchant only adds to proceedings.
Rather than any other X-Men film, director James Mangold looks back at his own work such as Walk the Line and 3:10 to Yuma for inspiration and references to this films direction, think No Country for Old Men or Clint Eastwood's Unforgiven with an injection of Easy Rider. This is no X-Men: Apocalypse. Thankfully.
The second best film i saw yesterday. Highly Recommended.
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