"X-Men: Days of Future Past" Movie Review

 

        X-Men: Days of Future Past is directed by Bryan Singer and stars Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, Jennifer Lawrence, James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Nicolas Hoult, and Peter Dinklage. This film takes place in the future, when the world is desolate because of these machines invented to kill mutants. There are not many mutants left because of this, and the ones left are being hunted. The X-Men send Wolverine back in time to stop these machines, called Sentinels, from being invented so all of this would never have happened.

            This is a fantastic superhero movie and even a great film. This is mostly due to the fact that it has real characters. The script here is by far the best thing about the film. Yes, the special effects are fantastic. Yes, the movie does have cool action. Yes, the movie was really enjoyable. But what makes this film different from your normal superhero movie are the performances and the writing.

            The character in this film that I believe gets to shine the most is Raven/Mystique. She is torn between joining Erik/Magneeto’s side or Charles/Professor X’s side. She does not know if she wants to be Raven or Mystique. This conflict drives her character throughout the film, and even drives some of the plot, because, in this film, the characters are put before the plot. The characters drive the plot, not vise versa.

            Raven/Mystique does not receive all of the attention, though. A lot of attention is paid to Erik/Magneeto and Charles/Professor X. The conflicting sides of them and the agreeable sides of them are portrayed perfectly. We see how similar and different the two sides of them are. Though, this is not just a comparison of the two sides of them. We see the opposite sides in side of each other, and we get development on each character individually as well. We can sympathize with both, and we can go against both. When they are conflicting, we could take either side.

            The characters are both likeable and interesting. Throughout the entire film, we get character development. We also see character progressions and regressions. I got invested into the characters. The characters drove the entire movie. Even during the action, the characters decided what happened. The characters make the action happen, and the characters make what happens inside of the action happen. The action has a lot to do with the characters. It is not mindless.

            The action is also superbly done. Bryan Singer does a fantastic job with it. Not only are the sequences filmed well, but they are masterfully crafted and beautifully done. The choreography for them is great, and the look of everything during the sequences is excellent. The sequences are exciting and exhilarating. They are very well written and directed. The score for them is also great. It pumps some of the fuel into the action and helps it because more exciting.

            As far as the performances go, they are fantastic. Hugh Jackman is, as always, fantastic as Wolverine. He adds a great realism to the character. Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart both give fantastic performances. James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender are fantastic as well. I actually they have improved since X-Men: First Class. Their performances in that movie are great, but they are better here. Though, I believe that Jennifer Lawrence really stepped up her game. She was good in X-Men: First Class, but I believe she is nearly perfect here. Nicolas Hoult is very, very good here as well. Peter Dinklage plays a very important character, and he really helps sell this character. He is great.

            I have already made it clear that I loved what the script did with the characters, but I have not yet made it clear that I believe the script for this film is great. The dialogue is great here. It seems like real dialogue, and it plays a huge part in investing the audience into the characters. We learn about them from what they say and do. The dialogue works for its purpose in investing us in the characters and making the film grounded in reality. The dialogue is also very enjoyable to watch. As far as the narrative structure goes, it is crafted flawlessly. Time travel stories usually have nearly infinite plot holes, but this film seems not to include them. The film never gets convoluted. It always stays on-point.

            As far as the visual effects go, they are obviously going to be great because of this film’s high budget. All of these Marvel superhero movies will have great visual effects. Though, this film’s visual effects seemed even better than the effects of other Marvel movies. I never once pointed out in my head that something was CGI, because they looked real. Though, the visual effects are not the point of which this film looked good. Bryan Singer is a great visual director, and did a very good job with most of the scenes here. The cinematography was also fantastic sometimes.

            X-Men: Days of Future Past is a transcendent superhero film. I have no flaws with it and believe it is the best of all of the X-Men franchise. I loved this movie. I think that it is a great film.