My Rating: * * * * *
“Mutation: it is the key to our evolution. It has enabled us to evolve from a single-celled organism into the dominant species on the planet. This process is slow, and normally taking thousands and thousands of years. But every few hundred millennia, evolution leaps forward.” –Professor Charles Xavier
Well, it seems as though the evolution of the X-Men film franchise only took 11 years to evolve into perfection. I was a good it younger when the first trilogy was released and for what it was worth, I liked it. I was a big fan of the 90’s animated series. As I got older I began to realize just how un-X-Men the first 3 films really were. X-Men Origins: Wolverine had a good story but crappy CGI. When I first heard that First Class was scheduled for production, I was quite excited, but a bit nervous. But as the months grew closer and the trailer and pictures were released, everything turned to excitement.
The opening scene of First Class was almost identical to that of Singer’s first X-Men film. It looked as though they even used some of the same footage too. I always liked that scene, but I always wanted to know what happened from that point to make him into the human-hating man he was in the present films. Well, Matthew Vaughn showed just that! The whole Sebastian Shaw as a Nazi collaborator doing experiments on mutants was a great idea and the scene with his mother was well filmed but sad. Showing that and the other quick flashbacks of the experiments/ torture that Erik endured really contributed to his character.
Michael Fassbender’s portrayal of the young, revenge-driven, Erik Lehnsherr was by far the best acting and characterization in the entire film. The entire Nazi hunter aspect of Erik was great, especially the scene in the bar where he talks about how his parents’ “names were taken away from them by Tailors and Pig Farmers”. The tension and expression from the two former Nazis and Erik’s nonchalant attitude was one of my favorite parts of the film. You really get to see what drives his character, and you can really sympathize with him. Even his killing of the Nazis was justifiable. His whole ‘I’m on a secret mission of revenge’ attitude along with his world travels really reminded me of Sean Connery’s James Bond. I wouldn’t be surprised if Fassbender received an academy award nomination for this role. He was without a doubt my favorite character in the film.
James MacAvoy’s version of the pre-bald and pre-handicapped Charles Xavier was pretty good, but it could have been better. I did not especially the ladies-man persona he portrayed in the beginning. I don’t care that he was a young 24-year-old college student, the drunk ladies-man is NOT Charles Xavier. I did really like his relationship and history with Jennifer Lawrence’s Raven. The whole sister relationship was a really good choice and their chemistry was portrayed very well. As the film went along, I began to like his character. We slowly saw him take up the “advising-professor” role that we all know and love. He became quite serious very quickly. We also get to see his friendship with Erik grow to be that of a brotherly relationship. Erik finally found somebody who understood him and his reasons. By the end of the film, we see the friendship somewhat fall apart. It wasn’t that drastic of a split but, then again, it leaves room for them to still be on good terms with each other like we see in the trilogy.
Jennifer Lawrence was a solid choice for the young Raven/Mystique. She is a really sweet and caring character, which we all know, somehow later, becomes a ruthless killer. Her attitude of trying to fit in and accept her looks is reminiscent of the attitude of many teenage girls. “Why do I look like this? Who would ever date me? Will anyone ever like me for who I am?” these are the questions that go through not just girls, but everybody’s head when they are a teenager. I don’t particularly understand what made her turn so angry towards the end, but it surely is starting down the long path to be the ruthless killer.
The mix-matched group of X-Men in the film consist of Hank McCoy(Beast), Sean Cassidy(Banshee), and Alex Summers(Havok). I admit that these are not the characters I would’ve chosen for the original team, but I also wouldn’t have picked Jean or Scott either. The characters hardly had any time on screen, but when they were, they proved to be a good team.
*Nicholas Hoult’s portrayal of Hank McCoy was pretty decent, but it lacked the proper accent that Beast is known to have. He was also too skinny. In the comics, Hank was big boned but normal looking with the exception of having huge hands and feet and super human agility. The only powers we see in this film are his agility, speed, and big feet. His science skills and jargon were well portrayed, I really liked the Jekyll & Hyde reference. His Beast appearance toward the end wasn’t as bad as I originally thought it would be. Though, it does need improvement.
*Caleb Landry Jones’s Sean Cassidy/Banshee character was more or less the comic relief of the film. He was always joking around and getting hurt. I really liked how they portrayed his powers and explained how he used them to fly. The sonar effect in the water was a really neat touch to his abilities.
*Lucas Till played Alex Summers (Havok). This character seems as though it was just thrown in there so they could have a projectile shooting member. His character hardly had any lines and was a bit of a disappointment.
In this film the Hellfire Club was a strip club in Las Vegas that was a front for Sebastian Shaw’s inner circle. It consisted of Sebastian Shaw, Emma Frost, Azazel, Riptide, and later on, Angel Salvadore.
*The all too familiar, Kevin Bacon played the devious leader of the Hellfire Club, Sebastian Shaw. He was first shown as a Nazi collaborator scientist who did terrible experiments on mutants in concentration camps during WWII. He tested and tormented the young Erik Lehnsherr and unlocked the boy’s powers of magnetism. The terrible things that he did to the boy have caused him to be the target of young Erik. Bacon played this role quite well. He was charming, yet deviously smart, and pure evil with a hatred of humans. I was impressed with the character and how Bacon played it!
*The amazingly beautiful Emma Frost was played by the equally beautiful January Jones. She was the busty lingerie wearing assistant to Shaw. She seemed like she was mainly put in the film for her sex appeal .There wasn’t a line she said that wasn’t said in a seductive tone. She kind of got on my nerves after a while.
*Azazel was played by the amazing Jason Flemying. In the comics Azazel is a demon who is red-skinned, can teleport, has a pointed tail, and is the father of Nightcrawler. Though in this film, the only things lacking were the demon aspect and the relationship with Mystique to produce Nightcrawler. He uses a small curved dagger and a large curved sword. He is Russian and is in some of the best fight scenes in the film.
*Alex González plays Riptide, the tornado producing silent member of the club. He basically stands around and produces tornadoes at Shaw’s command. This character seemed a bit useless, they could have easily picked anther mutant in his place.
*Zoë Kravitz plays the sexy exotic dancer and mutant, Angel Salvadore. She is found my Charles and Erik and originally is on their side, but she has a change of heart and changes to Shaw’s side. I think Kravitz did a fairly good job in this role, though her character didn’t have much of an impact on the film.
The story of this film was simply amazing and Matthew Vaughn did a fantastic job turning it into this masterpiece. The special effects and makeup were well done and the locations and music score were beautiful. But it’s the story and characters that really made this movie what it was. It has aspects of comedy, romance, emotion, and of course, action. I strongly recommend this movie for anyone. The continuity is completely different than the other films and comics, but it is still just as amazing. In my personal opinion, X-Men: First Class is the best super hero / comic book movie since Chris Nolan’s The Dark Knight in 2008.
Favorite Quotes:
*“Mutant and Proud!” -Mystique
* “Lets just say I'm Frankenstein's monster...and I'm looking for my creator.” –Erik Lehnsherr
* "My parents didn't have names. They were taken away from them by Tailors and Pig Farmers!" - Erik Lensherr
* "Good evening, my name is Sebastian Shaw. And I am Not here to hurt you. My friends, there is a revolution coming when mankind discovers who we are and what we can do. Each of us will have to face a choice: Be enslaved or rise up to Rule! Choose freely but know that if you are not with us, then by definition, you are against us. So you can stay and fight for the people who hate and fear you, or you can join me, and live as kings and queens" –Sebastian Shaw
* “Are you sure we can’t just shave your head?” –Hank McCoy
“Don’t touch the hair!” –Charles Xavier
* “I've been at the mercy of men just following orders. Never again.” –Erik Lehnsherr
* “I wouldn’t call it a war exactly. That suggest both sides stand an equal chance of winning.” –Emma Frost
* “That is a very groovy mutation!” –Charles Xavier
* “I prefer…..Magneto!” –Magneto