PG-13
Running time: 2 hours 16 minutes
Distributor: 20th Century Fox
Director: James Mangold
Cast: Hugh Jackman, Hiroyuki Sanada, Tao Okamoto, Rila Fukushima, Will Yun Lee, Brian Tee, Svetlana Khodchenkova, Famke Janssen.
Synopsis: Based on the celebrated comic book arc, this epic action-adventure takes Wolverine, the most iconic character of the X-Men universe, to modern day Japan. Out of his depth in an unknown world, he will face a host of unexpected and deadly opponents in a life-or-death battle that will leave him forever changed. Vulnerable for the first time and pushed to his physical and emotional limits, he confronts not only lethal samurai steel but also his inner struggle against his own immortality.
Review: Being the official poster boy for Marvel's lucrative 'X-Men' franchise, Wolverine has always been a fascinating character assimilated with multiple layers of anti-hero quality and of course, a certain degree of rage. Here we have an immortal dealing with the pain inflicted from his tragic past, not to even mention how the recurring death of his loved ones have sort of made him into a total outcast. By equipping these elements, 'The Wolverine' plays out as a decent period piece that explores and unearths the other side of the adamantium-clawed mutant himself through a more introspective lens. Director James Mangold (of the awesome '3:10 to Yuma' fame) does know how to strike a balance between putting out well-shot action sequences (the fight atop a high speed bullet train..) and designing momentous progresses in terms of the titular character's power, emotion and spirit. As usual, Hugh Jackman nails his role much like a real-life embodiment of Logan. Point is, it's a Wolverine movie set 8 years after the event of 'X-Men: The Last Stand' within the culturally vibrant backdrop of Japan, thus there really must be a shift in the environmental scope in order to justify things up and set a few things right. Unlike the atrocious origin story, the story claws deep into the psychological aspect of Wolverine. It's mainly about how he deals with his fear, pain and loss derived from his haunted past, how violently twisted the world around him has grown and how he manages to see the larger picture regarding his immortality. In the end, everything escalates and converges into a major climactic alternation that'll bound to provide a much needed character development for many opportunistic outing to come. However, the film hits a snag when the story overemphasizes on Wolverine and his mental exile, thus blurring the identity behind the real villain of the plot. Apart from that, the presence of Viper is somehow unnecessary to me as her motive remains scarcely explained to me with her weird mutant ability. Kudos to the bold move of securing a big twist at the end. Lastly, the mid-credits scene might be a great rival to 2008's Iron Man. If 'X-Men: Days of Future Past' turns out great, it might even give The Avengers a run for their money.
Rating: 3/5 Stars
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