X-Men: First Class, directed by Matthew Vaughn, stars James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, January Jones and Kevin Bacon. Director Vaughn, as some of you may know, is also the guy who brought us Kick-Ass. Although Kick-Ass was hit or miss with most folks, it was a BIG hit with me. I was eagerly awaiting the release date of the latest installment of X-Men, and while I try not to look at any reviews before I go to a movie it was a little hard not to hear a few things from other reviewers. I was so afraid the other reviews were going to taint my overall movie experience but I am happy to say it did not! If you don't come away from this movie loving X-Men even more (as if that's possible) then you may want to see a shrink right away. This movie was a boat load of entertainment!
First off let me just give a big tops off (yeah you read that right) to Michael Fassbender who plays the young Erik aka Magneto, this man can act and hot diggity dog does he look slap-my-ass-and-call-me-sexy good on screen. (Yeah I'm a crotch slobber, I read romance books like you all breath air. Deal with it.) I enjoyed him in Inglorious Bastards and more recently the revamp of Jane Eyre, he packs an acting punch that held so true to the story of Magneto I came out loving it. James McAvoy and Jennifer Lawrence (Winters Bone) should not be overlooked either; both are also incredible actors who came ready to do the work it would take to make this movie believable. The young charismatic pub partying Xavier and vulnerable Raven, who later becomes Mystique, have a sordid history and I was so very pleased the film took the time to establish that foundation. I would have liked to see this film come out before all the others since it's first of the films chronologically, but prequels seem to be the fad nowadays and so it shall be.
The main plot of the film revolves around the Cuba missile crisis that took place back in the 60's. X-Men does a great job of tying in historical events and depicting them as possible mutant maneuvering. A bunch of seasoned secondary cast members had me spotting actors I love throughout the film. Dealing with discrimination and emotionally complex issues, First Class deals with some tough ideas while mixing in mutant myth. If you're looking for an action packed non-stop blow up fest you won't find any of that until about half way into the movie. The main point here was to show the origins of the mutants for people familiar but also unfamiliar with the X-men mythos. For those that need the action it comes at ya, but the main point of this film is grounded in storytelling rather than fight scenes.
Kevin Bacon's (Everybody cut Footloose!) character is basically held accountable for being the guiding force behind Erik's transformation into Magneto. While he forms a few bonds of friendship it's ultimately not enough, as well all know, to stop the change that leads him to a very different conclusion than Charles Xavier and his X-Men. Layers and layers of story take place in both the X-Men comics and movies but this would be a great starting point for those late comers that may not know much about what the whole world is about. A certain cameo scene had me laughing in my seat, you won't see it coming but you will enjoy it. The only character who felt the blandest to me was Emma Frost played by January Jones, I really wanted to get more out of Emma's character but felt her portrayal missed the mark. That being said, it's not awful just a little to distant for me.
The whole film has a Bond-esque feel to it, beautifully shot and well directed. Some amazing CGI is also thrown in to wow the audience. Overall this Marvel fangirl got her fix and walked away pretty darn happy. Getting a strong recommendation from me to go see it, and ladies do NOT be afraid the film is chock full of eye candy AND a great story. It's a win-win! :)
Getting 4 Wolverine Sheep
KD
