Review: Logan

Runtime: 2hr 17min

Director: James Mangold

Release: 1st March 2017

Rating: 15 (UK), R (US)

The final X-men picture goes out with a depressing whimper instead of the emotional rollercoaster that was intended.

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Over time, X-men movies have grown more and more inconsistent in terms of tone and pacing between films; maintaining consistency is a difficult task with such a vast franchise (particularly one with multiple timelines), but Logan manages to be one of the 'odd films out' in that it is far more grounded than its' predecessors. In making the movie more grounded, the film is far more dark and brooding than any other X-men movie, portraying Logan/Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) as a jaded and depressed mutant and even the presence of a child throughout doesn't lighten the tone.

There is no doubt that having Hugh Jackman and Patrick Stewart in their usual roles is the best the movie has to offer, it is clear that they are completely comfortable in their roles to such an extent that one cannot imagine anyone else performing. Their presence on-screen is fierce and captivating; and I could not praise Logan enough for this.

The movie however is riddled with faults throughout, starting with the primary plot point of the film, the most important character involved: Laura (Dafne Keen). The introduction of this character is key to the entire fabric of how the film runs and functions as a storyline, yet she is unlikable and irritating. I have pictured a version of the film's events without her presence, and she does not add to the story as a single entity at all, despite the fact she is among the centre of events. To put it simply: the film revolves around her as a character, but if not present, the film would not lose an entertaining or vaguely interesting on-screen performance. This is not down to acting talent, but script writing which paints Laura as a damsel in distress despite the fact she can clearly handle herself during action scenes.

The action is undeniably entertaining, yet comes few and far between. Some dramatic moments include Logan having to deal with Xavier having a seizure, which causes the surroundings to be affected perilously and Logan must stop the seizure by calming Xavier down with an injection, which just involves Wolverine walking toward Xavier in slow motion, disposing of a couple of enemies who are frozen and cannot move. This doesn't particularly constitute its' own 'action' segment, and detracts from the real moments in the film in which the protagonists really can entertain the viewer with some incredible bloodthirsty scenes.

Logan is a bloodthirsty film overall, at no point is there a pause in the violence that the movie shows, which again, changes the tone from most of the other films within the franchise. This film is not for the light-hearted, and those that find themselves huge fans of the series are definitely going to enjoy the movie; this is not the first X-men film which I can say has flaws, and while I know that the film isn't perfect and I personally did not find the plot captivating (in fact the plot is not anything we haven't seen before), I know that a lover of the X-men series is going to find that this movie will tug on their heartstrings time and time again. 

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The need to thrust the important parts of the story upon Laura is completely unnecessary, when this film tries and fails to get the audience to enjoy her as a character, it then attempts to make her relatable by placing her opinions and feelings towards Logan in line with that of the audience: of admiration. This didn't work on me at all, and I still found her an annoyance as the film began to close, and due to the fact the main focus was shifted slightly from Logan and greatly from Xavier to this new character, it meant these beloved characters did not get the chance to really relate like they have done in other films before their exit. 

Is Logan a good film? At least partially. Is it a good X-men film? Absolutely. The vast inconsistency with other X-men movies puts it above many others, naming The Wolverine and X-men Origins: Wolverine as the main movies that Logan has managed to top (which wasn't particularly difficult). I can recommend the movie to anyone who loves X-men and Marvel, but definitely not to anyone else.

6/10