“His Time Has Come.” Those words could not be more true with the release of 20th Century Fox’s “Logan” - the final film in the Wolverine trilogy of X-Men spinoff films that sees everyone’s favorite feral mutant facing his greatest challenge yet in life and legacy, as well as marking the final time Australian actor and Academy Award winner Hugh Jackman will play the role he carved into film history for 17 years since the original X-Men film released in 2000.
Last Monday, I got to see "Logan" c/o 20th Century Fox Philippines (and suited up with cosplay friend Mislaine as Wolverine and X-23 respectively to boot)... And to say it's breathtaking and X-CELLENT is just a few short descriptions of what is possibly one of the BEST films I have seen ever, going beyond the superhero genre even. That being said here's my review... And there may be slight SPOILERS here but nothing that gives away the main beats or ending to this powerful film in the X-Men film franchise.
Movie: Logan
Release Date: March 3, 2017 (US), March 1, 2017 (Philippines)
Released by: 20th Century Fox Philippines
Directed by “The Wolverine” director James Mangold and reuniting him with Jackman once more in the lead, “Logan” secures itself an R Rating much like its fellow X-Men Movies spinoff “Deadpool”, but the film is not aiming to break the fourth wall with witty dialogue or go for silly humor altogether like its predecessor. Instead, that rating unleashes the rage and signifies that the “Claws are Off” – we are getting the Wolverine movie we’ve always wanted, and it’s something that Hugh himself has campaigned for since the beginning. Everything needed to show Wolverine slash people and kill is put into this film… And it’s about bloody time too. There are plenty of action scenes that are brutal and savage, and it’s the stuff that’ll please comic book fans that know how the character works.
However much as the movie has all the action and F bombs it can offer, it also contains a lot of emotion and finality. Taking inspiration from Mark Millar and Steve McNiven’s classic dystopian future tale “Old Man Logan”, Logan sees our hero in an aged and painful state struggling with his demons and mortality. Working as a limo drive, he barely makes ends meet to get enough money to help care and provide for an elderly and ailing Charles Xavier – better known as his friend and mentor from the X-Men codenamed “Professor X”. Their rough shack lifestyle near the Mexican border is shaken up when a young mutant named Laura appears, showing similar powers to Logan and wielding her own set of claws to boot. With a corporation on their tail to recapture the young mutant, a rough Western journey follows that will push all three to their limits, making the former Wolverine realize that there is more to life that the savagery and despair that has haunted his whole life since the beginning.
Next to The Dark Knight and possibly beyond the scope of superhero films this day and age, Logan is a prime example of how you successfully ground a superhero character and turn it into a movie that is deep, moving, and relatable in every single way. When Hugh Jackman announced his intent to play the character “One Last Time”, I wasn’t prepared for that outcome nor was I sure of how that would turn out in the long run. I am happy to say that James Mangold directed and told a brilliant story here, and incorporated some of the best elements of the X-Men Movies saga that needed to be addressed and introduced with a sense of catharsis at the end.
Aside from Jackman returning to the main role for a final time, his longtime X-Men Movies co-star Patrick Stewart is back as Professor X - who also gives out a breakout performance and what he also considers his "One Last Time" playing the mutant telepath leader. Charles' role here as an elderly ailing man will bring fans to tears just as much as seeing Logan struggle and heal less faster than he usually does... But there's a lot of banter between these two the likes you've never seen in previous X-Men movies before that will get people smirking and laughing just to downplay the sorrowful life they live in now.
What's more there's renewed vigor and interest injected by the presence of young actress Dafne Keen as she plays X-23/ Laura Kinney perfectly. As the cloned template of Wolverine and possessing the same abilities as he does, it's a father-daughter relationship that is the essential heart to the movie, and arguably is very similar to Naughty Dog's post-apocalyptic video game "The Last Of Us" in terms of emotion in a desperate setting.
As the conclusion to a long journey that has made us followers and believers of Hugh Jackman and his journey as Wolverine, "Logan" is essential viewing for any X-Men fan of the comics or movies - because it's exactly the kind of movie we needed to be made showing just who Wolverine is and a whole lot more. The spandex and theatrical superheroics take a backseat for something that is pure and full of what makes life a constant struggle - this film gets all the notes right and will make you happy, sad, and emotional in many ways. It has a bit of "Unforgiven" and a bit of "Mad Max", I don't want to see Hugh Jackman say goodbye to the role at all, but if there was one movie he did right in his career as Logan, it's this one right here. Go see it.
Logan is now playing in cinemas courtesy of 20th Century Fox Philippines.
Rating - 5/5
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