Well, at this point, I am a couple movies and one major event behind in this here blog, and let's not even discuss what happened to that story I was working on. But, I'm back in the saddle, and I have some things to talk about. So let's go with X Men: First Class for a Kickoff.
I should probably start out by saying that I have long been a complete fanboy spas for the X Men in all it's incarnations. Whether it be reading and re-reading my brother's X Men comics when I was a kid, the incalculable amount of money I spent on the X Men Arcade game in the 90's, devotion to the animated series bordering on unhealthy (and I liked Jubilee, so shut up!), or my shameless fan-boy squeeing when the original film was released, I've Always been an avid fan of the Xavier School for Gifted Youngsters. However, in recent years, I've grown more guarded when it comes to X Men in popular media, as the quality of the films has, to my mind, decreased with each new release. While it was awesome to see Nightcrawler kick butt in X2, Last Stand is a film I can honestly say I've only seen once. It failed to capture what I loved about the concept in my mind and took a Pirates 3 style dive unceremoniously into the "One Sequel too many" files. So when I heard that a new X Men film was in the works, I scarcely took notice, not ready to be disappointed again. As the release date inched closer and trailers and story details began to surface, my interest was piqued. Focusing on Charles Xavier and Erik Lehnsherr? The Hellfire Club? Set during the Cuban Missile Crisis? Quietly, a tiny fan-boy in the back of my mind was bouncing on the balls of his feet at the possibilities.
So I saw it. And I have to say, it was more than a mere return to form, it is reinventing the wheel in a big way.
First Class tells quite possibly the most important story in the X Men Mythos, the origin of Extraordinarily powerful telepath Professor X and The Master of Magnetism, Magneto's Friendship and subsequent Animosity. It also focuses a great deal on the shape-shifter Mystique, from when she was a young girl and how she came to be one of Magneto's most trusted allies.
The film opens with a dramatic demonstration of how different the two friend's childhoods were. Young Erik is seen manifesting his powers of magnetism in an attempt to keep his family together in a Nazi Concentration Camp, only to be taken away by a man named Sebastian Shaw and tormented into developing his powers further. Charles Xavier, on the other hand was raised in the lap of luxury, demonstrated by the fact that he lives in a mansion and recognizes Mystique aping his mother's appearance not only by reading her mind, but because he has never seen his mother anywhere near the kitchen. After Mystique reveals her true form, blue skinned, golden eyed, and red haired, and says her name is Raven, Charles offers to let her stay with him, so she will never have to steal again. From then on, Raven is raised as Charles' Sister.
Fast Forward to 1962, and we find Charles publishing a thesis on Mutation and using his powers to seduce women and Erik hellbent on finding Shaw, the man that tortured him and killed his family. After CIA agent Moira MacTaggart reveals the existence of The Hellfire Club, a collective of Mutants, led by Shaw, with dubious goals, Charles is brought in as an expert on Mutation. While in pursuit of Shaw's Submarine, Erik nearly drowns attempting to prevent his escape with his powers, but he is rescued by Charles, who was in pursuit of the Hellfire Club with MacTaggart. From there, Shaw's true goal is revealed and Charles and Erik work together to recruit other mutants to combat the Hellfire Club and bring Shaw to Justice.
I really have to praise the writing in this film. Never too corny, but never taking itself too seriously either, and with fantastic pacing, it tells the story of the first major conflict involving mutant combatants against a perfectly appropriate backdrop. I've heard some point out that the film feels more like "The Magneto Story" than X Men, and I can't really argue, but really, is there a more important character in X Men lore than their primary antagonist, with the exception of Xavier himself? While some of the mutants, like Riptide, Havok, Banshee, and Azazel (to some extent) are a bit one dimensional, they all get a chance to show off their impressive powers. One character I really enjoyed was the reboot of Angel from an aristocratic prettyboy with eagle wings to a young girl with dragonfly wings and the ability to spit explosive projectiles working as a stripper.
As far as visuals go, all of the characters and their powers are well designed and convincingly real looking. Sets are, for the most part, period accurate and costuming is well done. Visual effects never really overwhelm the scene and are usually subtle for most of the mutant's powers, with Havok and Riptide as fairly obvious exceptions. The only real complaint I have from a visual standpoint is Hank McCoy's Beast form. It just looks... off for some reason.
Sound is excellently done in this film as well, with plenty of well crafted sound effects and suitably epic or subdued music to fit the scene. There are also some popular period songs that add to the 60's feel of the film.
Overall, I'd have to say that First Class soundly eclipses the original X Men Trilogy. It's bigger, and yet more personal, and it has a lot of heart, and a lot more to say than just "Mutant Powers are Cool!" Plus, Logan in the Single greatest Cameo ever, besides maybe Stan Lee's in Thor.
9 Nazi Coins out of 10
PS: Is it wrong of me to wish Jubilee would make more of an appearance in a future X Men Sequel? I always liked her.
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