The Wolverine - Film Review

Set between X-Men: The Last Stand and Days of Future Past, this film follows Wolverine as he (yet again) tries to figure out who he is by first becoming a recluse and then dealing with some issues by fighting people. The film begins with a flashback of Nagasaki, the day the bomb hit, and shows Logan saving a young Japanese soldier's life. Now, years later, that soldier is a dying old man and the head of a hugely innovative company. He brings Logan to Japan and tells him that he has discovered a way to allow him to die. Logan refuses but already plans are in place to steal his power. Before he truly realises what is happening, his healing power is lost to him and he is on the run, trying to protect the soldier's granddaughter, Mariko.

Wolverine is a great character, and X-Men are a great idea, but I got the feeling that he is being milked for all he's worth here. I think it may be high time for another character to step up for their own movie. Deadpool, anyone? Anyway, the story-line was actually pretty good, putting Wolverine/Logan into a position he has never been in before; where he is actually able to die. A lot of viewers may wonder how on earth he can still run while riddled with bullets, but that was explained away in the first movie; "Does it hurt when they (the claws) come out?" "Every time." This means that Wolverine is always in pain when he is injured and has learnt to ignore it as usually it heals by its-self.

As for character development, you don't really see much at all. Take every character for face value. It's the same with most action-type movies, to be honest. In this particular film though, you expect Wolverine to grow more as he experiences being mortal for the first time, but he appears to shun this idea entirely and risks his own life repeatedly regardless. Admittedly, he does learn a bit about Japanese culture and gets over Jean Grey, but that's the extent of it.

This is, first and foremost, an action film, and it certainly does that well. X-Men junkies will like the new mutants, but there aren't really many about. Overall this was a nice, entertaining film to watch, but it was overshadowed by the reboots of the franchise. If you fancy something watchable and easy, this is your film, but I like my movies with a little bit more thoughtfulness in terms of characters.



The Wolverine on IMDB

Kyra_x