X Men Days of Future Past, English Hollywood Film Movie review, Johnson Thomas, Rating: * * *

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Action entertainer but without the Sparkle

English Film review

Johnson Thomas

Film: X-Men: Days of the Future Past

Cast: Hugh Jackman, Hennifer Lawrebce, Michael Fassbender, James McAvoy, Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen

Director: Bryan Singer

Rating: *  *  *

  

Back at the helm of the Fox/Marvel franchise he successfully launched 14 years ago, director Bryan Singer stages a stealth reboot by introducing a playful time-travel element to the ongoing saga, bringing two generations of mutantkind together in a story that toggles cleverly (if not always 100% coherently) between the political tumult of 1973 and a not-so-distant dystopian future. Singer’s This film lies somewhere in between all X men films, in terms of period- bu that’s not all, the future is also part of this repost. The non-linear narrative follows characters who travel in time to prevent a future apocalypse. Entirely of the paint-by-numbers, Plot driven kind, this film is also not very distinctive in it’s look. The action is less than superlative and the exposition lacks wattage in terms of dialogue. There’s a lot of movement going back and forth in time but the sense of urgency and tension is missing. 

The movie starts in the future. A murder of mutants led by benevolent Charles "Professor X" Xavier (Patrick Stewart) and frenemy Erik "Magneto" Lehnsherr (Ian McKellen) conspire to save both human and mutantkind from shape-shifting, killer robot Sentinels. To prevent the Sentinels from becoming government-sanctioned weapons, the mutants send Logan/Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) back to 1973 to stop Raven "Mystique" Darkholme (Jennifer Lawrence) from murdering the Sentinels' creator, Bolivar Trask ("Games of Thrones"'s Peter Dinklage). And in the process, Logan is forced to motivate and re-unite younger versions of Raven, Xavier (James McAvoy), and Magneto (Michael Fassbender)-  who don’t make this species saving expedition easy!

 

"Days of Future Past" is the seventh X-Men movie since 2000.  Singer (director of the franchise's three best films) and screenwriter Simon Kinberg make the spiel confident and entertaining with signature action and short expedient dialogue. The very basis for it’s existence seems a little out-of-the-blue. While the film begins in the dystopian future, it moves into the past quickly and allows for little scope for the fringe players Peter Maximoff(Evan peters), Bishop(Omar Sy) and future versions of Xavier and Magneto.  Halle Berry’s Storm , Shawn Ashmore’s Iceman and Anna Paquin’s Rogue suffer through blink-and-you-miss-it appearance.

 

“Days of Future Past” embraces specific historical moments  sending Mystique off to Saigon to rescue a squad of mutants from Trask’s clutches and including a subplot suspecting Magneto’s role in the JFK assassination. Working from Simon Kinberg’s screenplay (very loosely adapted from an “X-Men” comicbook storyline by Chris Claremont and John Byrne), Singer’s moves are smooth and easily transient. Though not spectacular, the action has dash and style.

 

More importantly, there are some key character flaws, such as young Xavier's need to take a drug that removes his powers but gives him the ability to walk, which are barely developed. When he walks he loses his mutant ability of telepathy and while he endures his wheelchair bound existence, his powers come out in full flow. There isn’t much development happening other than in the form of dialogue. The explanations are all in words, not visuals.  Xavier has knowledge of what ails Raven, Erik and himself, yet isn’t much into the rescue effort. If you can forget that there’s not much solidity in story, you could be rewarded by some fun entertainment. Great pacing, and some deftly executed sequences get the pulse rate going. Action is steady. The graphics animation and FX wizardry are not consistently up-to-the-mark though. As a result you feel entertained but not enthralled!

Johnsont307@gmail.com