X-Men Origins: Wolverine

October 11th, 2009

This action-packed prequel to the popular X-Men films explores Marvel Comics character Wolverine’s (Hugh Jackman) past and the events that influenced the mutant before the Weapon X program bonded his skeleton with the powerfully strong metal alloy adamantium. After the death of his girlfriend, Wolverine seeks vengeance against supervillain Victor Creed (Liev Schreiber). Ryan Reynolds, Danny Huston and Lynn Collins co-star.

If I say I didn’t care for this very much, will Jackman come and pierce me with his impressive set of shiny new fingernails? Or maybe he will just drag them along the chalkboard? Because if so, then I absolutely adored it. Ok, you can stop reading now, Hugh….I would recommend this more to less informed fans of comic book movies in general than to hardcore fans of the series itself. If you are watching this for a good action movie, then you are less likely to be disappointed. However, as a member of the former category, I can’t really speak to the movie’s ability to preserve the integrity and original concept. I can say, however, that this was entertaining from an action and special effects standpoint. Those appeared to be more of a priority than the storyline itself, which was rushed. This would have been deeper if the story had more room to breathe because there are some interesting concepts here. Nonetheless, it is what it is, and I still managed to glean some enjoyment from the experience. I liked the various introductions of the other X Men and the clever b’dass one-liners delivered mostly by Jackman himself and Liev Schreiber, who plays his brother, Sabertooth. “Ooh, shiny!” being my personal favorite, or maybe “You’re my brother. No one gets to kill you besides me.” Although I never really had any of those “WOW” knock-your-socks-off moments where you realize you are watching cinematic history in the making, there were enough “Oh, cool!” moments to merit another star for me. 3.5 stars and a recommendation for a decent action movie rental. But wait for the dvd release. A solid 3.5 stars.