Old mutton chops is back and this time, bub, it’s personal. Yes, for all those who have lain awake at night wondering just exactly how Wolverine managed to find those lethal knives implanted in his wrists then you should thank your lucky stars: this film will answer your questions. Following the superhero from his humble beginnings as ‘plain mutant’ Logan to the mysterious Weapon X project that sees him introduced to the uber metal Adamantium X-Men Origins – Wolverine probes in-depth into the psyche of the motivations of one of the most popular of the X-Men. For about 5 minutes. It then proceeds fills the rest of the movie in with CGI and pointless fight sequences.
It all starts so well. There’s a great opening sequence and a nice set-up that sees Logan as part of a renegade group of soldiers. But as soon as he quits, we fall firmly into a territory that’s cliched, contrived and – most painfully – boring. Given the comic book beginnings of the character it may be unfair to expect the world in terms of in-depth characterisation but – by the same token – the X-Men film franchise and many other recent superhero movies have shown that a little sophistication and intellectual clout can go a long way.
It’s a shame as it’s evident that the cast could handle some meatier material. Hugh Jackman is really at ease with the role of Wolverine (and, as many have pointed out, his resemblance to his comic book counterpart is – pardon the pun X-Men fans – uncanny) and does the brooding hero well. Similarly, Liev Schreiber has great fun as Logan’s half-brother Sabretooth (though there definitely is a ‘Battle Of The Sideburns’ going on between the two: now if THAT was the film, I would sit gripped) and makes a pretty good foil. But even he is sidelined for much of the movie in favour of Danny Huston’s portrayal of Colonel William Striker, a villain so bland and obvious you wonder if there’s a website called rentabadguy.com.
So all that’s left is the fight sequences. And they are well done, in particular the climactic showdown. But we’re in an era when we would expect nothing less, especially considering the obscene amounts of money put into the film.
As always, fans will enjoy pointing out the cameos of various characters from the X-Men franchise (including one who they seem to be gearing up to make the next X-Men Origins on) but I would wager that many would still find themselves rather underwhelmed by the whole experience.
As comic movies go, this one turns out to be far from mint condition.
X-Men Origins – Wolverine is on general release now from 20th Century Fox. Go to www.xmowolverine.co.uk for more information.
Laurence Boyce