AMB Reviews

X-Men Origins: Wolverine: 6/10 Stars

Release Date: May 1, 2009

Content Advisory: Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of action and violence, and some partial nudity. Action violence is nearly constant and quite intense. Wolverine stabs, pummels, and fights with other people as well as other superheroes. Most of it however, is very cartoonish and more intense rather than graphic. There are several large explosions. Several brief glimpses of blood. We briefly glimpse Wolverine's buttocks.

Review:

"X-Men Origins" purpose is to try and explain more of Wolverine's history. It's other and more obvious purpose is to cram in as many corny fight sequences as possible.

In Short:

"X-Men Origins: Wolverine" elaborates on Wolverine and how he came to be how he is in the "X-Men" films. Hugh Jackman stars as Wolverine, who, after finding his love dead on the side of the road, is determined to track down the killer: his brother. But first, he is made indestructible by a man named Stryker. But when Stryker wants him dead, along with his own brother, Wolverine will have to face many risks as he tries to avenge his lost love. Okay, so I will dive deeper into this in the next paragraph, but let me tell you... this plot really only exists to cram in fist fights, explosions, and crashing cars and helicopters. It's slick and stylish, but also very hollow and generic.

In Full:

"X-Men Origins" tells the complex past of Wolverine and just how he came to be. It's never quite clear how he came across his wolf-like powers... I guess he was just gifted like that (or cursed). What it does tell is the story of his lover, Kayla, who is one day found dead in the forest. Finds out... the killer is his own brother... Victor Creed. Now, after being made indestructible by a suspicious man named Stryker, Wolverine is ready to face off and avenge his brother, meeting many new mutants along the way. Though this film may have cleared several things up about Wolverine's existence, I still question the existence of this film, as it all seemed like one big excuse for fist fights, explosions, and Wolverine's scream.

Hugh Jackman plays the role of Wolverine. He has certainly had much had experience acting, so I must give him props for his performance. He seemed to spend a lot of screen time screaming his guts out in either anger or sadness, but when he wasn't, he accomplished his job well. His job: frown as he tears apart helicopters, stabs both people and mutants, and occasionally kisses his lover (before she was killed, that is.) The rest of the cast was pretty much unknown, but some familiar faces might include Will.i.am. and Lynn Collins.

It's obvious, however, that this film really only cares about showing off its impressive visuals. And impressive they are. From the first scene to the ending fight, this film is filled up nearly to the brink with fist fights, explosions, car crashes and flips, and even one very large helicopter crash (followed by an explosion, of course.) Whatever this film's production budget, it was obvious that it's main goal wasn't to really elaborate on anything, but rather lure an audience into the theater with that excuse and then dazzle them with splendid special effects. Unfortunately for them, I was not so quick to laud this film with praise.

The film really just felt... empty. I kept waiting for something original, something startling to help me clearly see Wolverine's past and where he came from, but I always ended up disappointed. I knew this was an action film, and I knew to expect lots of action violence, but I also expected something to help us better understand the other "X-Men" films. Similar to a foggy window, this film may have cleared up bits and pieces of the glass, but in the end, it's still pretty hard to see through.

So far, the summer 2009 movie season has let me down. Now, I'm perfectly fine with an action movie, but if the film has no plot to really go on... it pretty much falls flat on its face. Not that this film doesn't have a plot... more so than "Terminator Salvation," in my opinion. But without much originality, it still ends up falling down. Don't get me wrong... the movie intrigued me throughout. It certainly was interesting. But I couldn't help but keep wondering if it was going to better. If it would elaborate more on... something. Anything! But no... excuse me for the corny metaphor, but in the end it left me with a plate of pancakes with no syrup to accompany the delicious treat.