THE WOLVERINE

THE WOLVERINE Review

By Darin Skaggs

     The Friday the 13^th series is one that has the same premise in each one after the third film.  In the series the immortal Jason Voorhees takes his machete and slashes multiple victims, some of them having sex and others just running through the woods.  The best people in the group eventually defeat Jason until he comes back in the next film.  There is no originality in these films and the superhero genre is going down that very road.  James Mangold’s new film The Wolverine is a great step up in the genre with trying something new and is a great addition to the lackluster X-Men series.

     The Wolverine takes place after the events of X-Men: The Last Stand.  Logan is dealing with the aftermath of his friend’s deaths.  He lives as a hermit and has dreams of the past.  He is then brought to Japan by a man he saved the life of during World War II named.  The man promises him that he will take away Logan’s immortality.  Logan is interested and sticks around long enough for Viper to weaken his skin and saves the man’s daughter, Mariko. 

     Logan spends most of the film trying to figure out why he is weaker and protects Mariko.  Instead of like other superhero films, this one is like a drama.  There is a few action scenes including one on a train that are amazing, but most of the film is talking and solving the mysteries of the movie.  Hugh Jackman does great work as The Wolverine.  This is his sixth time as the immortal hero and he is pretty much on auto pilot.  The other actors are unknown, to American standards.  This is a brilliant choice taking talented unknowns and putting our familiar hero in the middle of them.

     The last act of the film is kind of out of nowhere and is a little too cartoonish.  Viper, who never seemed to be a real threat, does some damage but never seems to be at her full potential.  There is a twist that seems it should belong in the action packed film not this dramatic one.

     The darkness of the film, matched with the darkness of the cinematography and goes along well with the attitude that comes from Logan.  It is one of the better superhero, and especially X-Men films.