Film Discussion - 2016

08I X-MEN: APOCALYPSEI Film Discussion

X-men Apocalypse doesn't start out all exciting and tense like Days of Future Past, but it definitely has a tone of danger and long-winded suspense.

I say long-winded because the film is much less economic in its storytelling than the masterpiece that is Days of Future Past, but with Bryan Singer at helm, the film still looks X-men, sounds X-men and feels X-men. The ending scenes are especially worthy of some fist pumping with the new X-men formed – it feels a lot like the ending of Age of Ultron.

I find this movie an absolute fun to watch. There are many sequences in this movie that almost make me go nuts in the theatre. If for nothing else, 2016 sees comic book movies tugging at the heart strings of comic book fans – airport scene in Civil War, the birth of Batman in Batman V Superman (in my opinion at least), and of course the literal entirety of Deadpool. There are at least 5 moments in Apocalypse that makes me want to jump out of my chair and nerd out. I guess in a way, it shows that the film is mostly fan-service, but let me tell you, it's not.

I don't give a boiling crap about fan-service if it is not done well. For a movie to achieve the fan-service properly for me, the characters must be well set up. I think that's Apocalypse's greatest weapons: The characters.

Almost all the X people are back and none of them piss me off... none of the new casting feel forced... none of the old cast feel recycled... even a particularly awesome cameo feels right where it is. Like in the two movies before it, the relationship between Xavier and Magneto is the absolute highlight of the film

Magneto in particular is very well written in this movie, with Fassbender giving something of an Oscar performance. When magneto breaks in this movie, you REALLY feel for him. One cannot wait to see the films where Magneto dawns the full villainous persona – it must be so epic now that you feel his pain even more. Which come to think of it, didn't he do that in Future Past... these movies are confusing. Xavier is given some more sense of humor. His character isn't as deep as he is in the previous movie but he has definitely grew. He is a teacher now. He is an inspiring figure in the mutant community. It is even hinted that he might possess one of the greatest Mutant power. The director and the writers allude again and again to Xavier's gift/curse. The fact that he is able to see into everyone means he can feel everyone's pain. One must admit it's a pretty hard weight to carry.

The rest of the characters are really good too. Cyclops is done very well – the actor chosen I think did a great job portraying the guy and his torment. Nightcrawler is awesome. I love him. He has this innocent, naïve characteristic that is such a cool contrast to his almost undefeatable power. I love the new Jean Grey. Once again, the character is nailed. When she's supposed to be introverted solitude and an outcast of the society, it works. When she's supposed to be motherly and caring, it works. When she's supposed to be all sad and scared of herself, it works! The actress portrays Jean at her most protected, protective and vulnerable. With the tease that I was given in this movie, I cannot wait for the Phoenix saga.

One of the biggest gripes I've had with the trailer is that Mystique seems very Katniss. It is worrisome for me to see Jennifer Lawrence portraying two almost similar characters. However, in this movie, you do get a sense of Mystique being a different character. Jennifer Lawrence maintains very well the personality of the character of Raven from First Class and Future Past.

I think Oscar Isaac did pretty well as Apocalypse. He's big. He's threatening. He's ominous. He's deadly. They pick a good actor for the role and it pays off. I do feel like we should've seen a bit more about his past however. I can't really get behind his motivation and if someone is to come up and make an argument that he's a generic villain, I wouldn't be able to debate properly against that. The only really great thing about Apocalypse is the actor portraying him.

The film has a lot of fun with itself. The most annoying thing about writing this review is that I can't go into detail about those really great scenes due to possible spoilers. The best way I can explain it: The film makes smart use of the X-men's power. Bryan Singer has developed the same attachment Joss Whedon developed with The Avengers. Hence in the huge action sequences, he is able to make them exciting, funny and memorable.

The movie has a bit of a pitfall however. Being so ambitious about building a new X-men movie can be a good thing, when you're making a set-up film like First Class. But the reason why Future Past works so well is because it's not preoccupied with setting things up. It tackles the characters head on – dealt into their emotions, question their ethics and challenge their decisions. In this movie, you see a bit of that from Charles, Mystique and magneto, but none of them are having their ideologies challenged. The film is juggling two storylines: Setting up the new X-men and ending it all with Apocalypse.

For me, the setting up part is much more entertaining. And sad to say, if you were to remove Apocalypse out of the equation, you'd still have a darn good, if not better movie. That is not to say I didn't like Apocalypse – I just find him less interesting than the setting up of the new X-men. My favorite sequence in the film actually involves the crew escaping and fighting against the government – NOT APOCALYPSE. I feel like Apocalypse's storyline is bogged down by the much better new-x-men storyline.

That being said though, the film is magnificently fun. It's a great ride with great actions, effects and deep characters.

I can easily give it a 7.0/10.

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This review is dedicated to @brech33se who wrote a book which I have read ever since I started using Wattpad and it is 'The Devil is My Guardian'. It's a really good book. If you love teen fiction, romance and comedy, definitely check it out!