X-men:First Class Review
By LostTimeLady
[image height=300]http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-luVISBP02ac/TeNM-RaRPcI/AAAAAAAAA_M/KZdCNI58T2w/s1600/x-men_first_class_movie_poster.jpg[/IMG]
SPOILER WARNING: SOME MINOR SPOILERS MAY BE PRESENT IN THIS REVIEW. SORRY ABOUT THAT.
By LostTimeLady
This review is dedicated to my boyfriend who suggested going to see a film on my birthday... and it was this one...
[image height=300]http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-luVISBP02ac/TeNM-RaRPcI/AAAAAAAAA_M/KZdCNI58T2w/s1600/x-men_first_class_movie_poster.jpg[/IMG]
SPOILER WARNING: SOME MINOR SPOILERS MAY BE PRESENT IN THIS REVIEW. SORRY ABOUT THAT.
Growing up I was a DC girl. My mother has a collection of Silver Age DC comics that her and her brother read when they were younger, Superman, Supergirl, Lois Lane, Jimmy Olson, World's Finest, the usual mix. It was only comparatively recently that I started to become more of a Marvel Girl (no pun intended). It started with watching Spiderman 2 and has moved on from there, resulting in me devouring the X-men books one by one in my local library. Granted years before I used to watch the 'marvel action hour' on telly (which consisted of X-men: Evolution and a Fantastic Four cartoon) but really that more sowed seeds than reaped the harvest.
I've always had a fascination with the X-men series for several reasons. One, it's grounding in very real struggles that young people face as they grow up, rejection, confusion about who they are and what they should be. Even mutant powers have had parallels drawn with young people wrestling with their sexuality. A particular quotation that comes to mind is from the mother of one young X-men in one of the previous X-men films: 'Well, have you tried not being a mutant?'
The second, and more obvious reason for this fascination is how totally brilliant it all is. I could reel off to you in a second who my favourite X-men are, both in terms of powers or personality. But instead of telling you that, I'll tell you this, those two reasons I stated as my fascination for liking X-men are two of the many reasons why you should all go and watch X-men: First Class.
[image height=250]http://watchmojo.com/film/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/xmen-first-class-group.jpg[/IMG]
The team...
The team...
I live in something of a bubble at University so it was only on the off chance that I had even glanced at the cinema listings and saw X-men in bold print on the page. Immediately deciding to go (and booking tickets later for good measure) it was only then that I watched some trailers on rotten tomatoes. For those who have seen the trailers the plot summary I'm about to give is no spoiler but skip the next paragraph if you really don't want to know:
The film act as an origins story for several X-men, most notably Magneto and Professor X, and focuses on their friendship and the seeds that would later become a bitter rivalry. The rest of the line up I shall not spoil, especially as to who's on who's side but it's fantastic to see a nice mix of well known mutants as well as less well known ones and also that they all get proper introductions. A massive point in the film's favour in my eyes. The era and setting shifts at the start from World War II to the Cuban Missile Crisis and it's nice to see a light touch with the historic setting while still feeling free to go a little nuts James Bond style.
The film oozes cool from every pore from the swarve period clothes worn by the characters, to the flawless special effects and brilliantly scripted moments. One moment of which made me squeak with delight and the sheer effortless cool that was produced.
[link]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45Wq_BMzu64[/link]
Anyone who can tell me how to embed videos gets a cookie!
Anyone who can tell me how to embed videos gets a cookie!
The film rattles along at a fair clip, and you get the feeling that any fat was trimmed away so that all you're left with is a well-paced, well-rounded narrative. Often there's so much going on that you could be forgiven for feeling dizzy but luckily the editing is restrained enough that at the moments when you just want to sit back and go 'wow', it gives you the very shot you're hoping for. The music is excellent and fitting to the film but never feels obtrusive, again, it's going for the cool factor and hits it. Again, it's the James Bond feel.
A big focus has to be the script which is fantastic. They managed to do away with bombastic 'I am magneto master of magnetism' type lines and in its place is something stylised (we are talking about a film about people with superpowers after all) but also stylish. There are some light moments of comic relief in the dialogue that give a lovely indication that this was a labour of love as much as anything else. A good script is nothing without good photography and thank goodness that's done fantastically as well. There are several 'hero shots' that are just brilliant.
[image height=200]http://moviecultists.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/x-men-first-class-charles-and-erik.jpg[/IMG]
This wasn't the picture I wanted but it'll do
This wasn't the picture I wanted but it'll do
My only quarrel with the film is this. It's age rating. I don't know what the rating is in the States but in the UK it has been given a 12A certificate. This means that, unlike years ago where only people over 12 could see a film rated 12, a 12A certificate means that children under 12 can go and see it as long as they are with a responsible adult. I had a similar qualm with Sucker Punch for these very reasons too. I think the film is too mature for people under 12. Yes, it's a film about superheroes battling it out in the fictional alternate reality, but just because that's what the setting is doesn't make the film suitable for young people.
There's a lot of very graphic stuff in it, and although you don't see much of the gore (one particular plot spoiling moment comes to mind where it goes all out however) there's still a lot of physiology in it that could be upsetting. Also, I know America in particular has a interesting relationship with nudity and sex in films that is different to that of the UK and Europe I still think that what is in the film, although tasteful (depending on your definition) is more mature than what the average 8 year old should be exposed to. By no means am I saying, 'Slap a 15 rating on this quick' but merely that it is more suited to a traditional 12 rating instead, and that's fine. I would not have wanted the film to be watered down, everything in it carries weight and meaning and is a beautiful whole and would be poorer for the lack of what stops it at times being totally family friendly. (Watch out for one particular cameo that proves my point!) I know I'm not going to win friends with those above two paragraphs but I had to say it.
So what am I saying, in a short pithy sentence then? This is one of the best things Marvel Studios has put out in recent times and breaths life again into one of the best comic book series ever written.
X-Men: First Class was released in the UK on 1st June and in the USA on 3rd.
LostTimeLady has got the itch to watch 'X-Men: First class' again, even though she only saw it on the other day, a sign of a good film in her eyes. Also, she doesn't know whether it's a good or bad thing the fact she thinks that the young Charles Xavier is gorgeous.
[image height=300]http://watchmojo.com/film/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/xmen-first-class-charles-xavier.jpg[/IMG]
Charles Xavier knows you want to watch X-men: First Class...
LostTimeLady has got the itch to watch 'X-Men: First class' again, even though she only saw it on the other day, a sign of a good film in her eyes. Also, she doesn't know whether it's a good or bad thing the fact she thinks that the young Charles Xavier is gorgeous.
[image height=300]http://watchmojo.com/film/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/xmen-first-class-charles-xavier.jpg[/IMG]
Charles Xavier knows you want to watch X-men: First Class...
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