X-Men: A First Class Review

 by Clayton


 The fifth movie in the X-Men film franchise was released this weekend, to mostly positive reviews and a fresh excitement from fans that wasn't present for the last two (awful) incarnations. The first film was released back in 2000, which makes this film franchise the longest-running modern comic book film series, a franchise that's made nearly $800 million domestically and featured such diverse actors as Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, Halle Berry, James Marsden, Hugh Jackman, Anna Paquin, Brian Cox, Dominic Monaghan, Will.I.Am (seriously), Ryan Reynolds, and now, James McAvoy, Jennifer Lawrence, Kevin Bacon, Rose Byrne, and January Jones (*fans self*). It's undeniably a huge franchise, but even after all this time First Class proves that what's broken can be fixed and the wheel can be reinvented.

What's that on the ground?? Oh, just a conveniently-placed camera

 The Story: First Class takes a bit of a spin on the traditional comic book series by placing it in 1962, at the height of nuclear fear and tension between the US and the Soviet Union. As opposed to the social commentary on minorities that the comics originally began as, or the straight action of later comics and the first few films, First Class attempts to up the ante by placing it in a new timeframe and with a history that most of us who graduated from highschool know the relevance of. The time and history is, of course, only as a supplement to the action and character development, but it serves as a interesting take on the hyper-modern action we've grown used to.

 The story is new, but is Phantom Menace-esque in its heavyhanded foreshadowing. This film doesn't set up the later films and story - it blatantly tells you why each event happens, why every relationship is the way it is. I'd much rather have seen a bit of mystery, or even room left for a prequel sequel, but instead we've been hand-fed each detail. I get that the modern American audience isn't all that smart, and the action movie crowd even less so, but it'd nice when filmmakers have some sort of faith in audiences. That isn't present here.

Even before paralysis, Professor X was more of a
sit-down on the job kind of guy

 The Good: The film may be mundane in its approach and not fully original in its setting, but it is more than adequate in giving us depth. We get to know the characters because there are few enough to be manageable, and we see the relationships that we've grown used to develop and augment in a natural, albeit rushed manner. I thought that the characters were far and away the best part of this film. Almost every single one was cast perfectly, and throughout the training sessions we got to see a telescoped growing up of each character and see them deal with mutation as more than just a convenient power but also as a social disorder. That dynamic is one of the strongest in X-Men's history, and I was glad to see it on display in the film (again, even if it became a bit heavyhanded).

 Technically the film was appropriate. I have a big problem with close-cropped, over-paced, poorly-choreographed action scenes, but for the most the action was diverse and filmed well. I'm overjoyed that First Class declined the temptation of going for 3D, because the action stood on its own without it. The CGI was mostly effective, and from an aesthetic standpoint I had no major problems with the film. The training montage was one of the best scenes because of the block editing done in it, which kept a great pace and gave it a unique feel. Technically I had no problems with the film, and I think its technical merit will ultimately help place it in the top slot so far as the franchise is concerned. I don't think there was a single overbearing slow motion scene if there were any, and we all know I am a FIRM BELIEVER IN NO SLOW MOTION, so I was ecstatic to see that laziness done away with in the film.

*drools*

 The Bad: Kevin Bacon. He was like a 70's-style porn star with a ridiculous power and hilarious scenes of melodrama. He was a terrible villain because he was hackneyed, but not even in a fun way. You want to hate him, but he's so simultaneously pathetic and overpowered that it's impossible to. In a mostly strong cast, Bacon was a shining beacon of mediocrity, at best.

 And again, I hated how overplayed and *bing word* heavyhanded the setup was. This film was both a reinvention and a prequel, but it played out in 90 minutes what could've easily been done in a trilogy of its own. Was it necessary to end the film on the note it did? Possibly, because it ties up in a neat little CGI-laden package everything we need to know before X-Men 1, but it could've been drawn out and done in a more natural manner. I'm rarely one to clamor for a sequel, but in this case it's something I'd be more than happy to sit through.

 ... and the Sexy! JANUARY JONES AKA EMMA FROST ALERT GOES HERE. I think January Jones is a beautiful g.oddess, but she played Frost to perfection. She's an excellent James Bond-style villainess sidekick, but I lament the rise of CGI because it seemed that each time I was beginning to faint from seeing her beauty on screen for longer than thirty seconds she'd turn into a ridiculous asymmetrical diamond chip thingie that was.not.hot. One of her high points, though, was her always-white fashion sense. She was a glamorous villain made even better by her 60's style fashion... which brings me to one of the biggest things I saw in the film.

NOT from a old-school pornography

 THE FASHION OF FIRST CLASS. I love looking at old fashion styles. Shows like Mad Men (ft. January Jones), movies like Girl, Interrupted, or even old Hitchcock films. I love to see how people used to dress and compare it to the plagiarized and watered-down styles of today, and seeing modern films try to emulate older fashion is exciting to me. There were some scenes and outfits in First Class that seemed spot-on, that made me fan myself. And then there would be Rose Byrne tramping around in a CIA mini skirt that was barely low enough to cover her belt, throwing me into a double-take. As time wore on though, I began to see how perfectly the period-piece of 1960's fashion merged with the sex-craze of action film to create this fun, appropriate costume style that flowed with the film. I honestly would watch this film again simply to watch costumes. For my birthday I need an Art of X-Men: First Class book, if such a thing exists. I need taaa examine daaa fashion!!!


 The Verdict: Go see it. This isn't a film that'll change your life, but it's a film that is fast-paced enough to be fun, intelligent enough not to be a drag, and engaging enough to be memorable. It's a good date movie, a good afternoon alone movie, or something just to pass the time. If you've seen any of the other X-Men films, this is a must-see. It rises above the other four in form, and the story is something recognizable enough to be nostalgic. Not necessarily this week, or even while it's in theaters, but make an effort to see this film. And that's the verdict.