Logan Review!
Before the release of this film Hugh Jackman had, repeatedly, said that this was his last role as Wolverine. He was hanging up the claws, and this would be the capstone to this character's story. I'm sure many people felt skeptical at that, mostly because it's an X-men film and the studio would probably offer Jackman more money to reprise his role once again, and because Wolverine is the Iconic X-men character in the films. He's always their main character. Then Logan came out. It's not only a great superhero movie, but it's a fantastic film in general. You can tell that a lot of love and passion was put into this film in order to satisfyingly send off Wolverine.
Like Deadpool, Logan is another Fox film that has taken an R-rating, and you can tell from the first scene that they wanted to differentiate this film from the others. Wolverine is cussing, slashing, going berserk, and chopping limbs off to tell you what type of movie this was going to be. It's very effective, for long time Wolverine fans to finally watch him go berserk on screen, but also to let parents know that while this may be a comic book movie it's not going to be for all ages. This beginning scene is also important in setting up what type of film this would be. Logan is very old, and his healing factor can't keep up. He's worried about his limo because without it he won't have a job to get money and buy medicine for Prof. X. Right off the bat this movie, like Deadpool, tells you that this will be a personal journey for all characters, and not a world ending action slug fest.
Hugh Jackman really shines in this film, and you can easily tell that he's acting his butt off and having a blast. His "old man Logan" is so believable that a certain character later on in the film will remind you that Hugh Jackman isn't really that old. That also goes for the other actors. Patrick Stewart turns in another wonderful performance, and this time he's Prof. X at the end of his life, being taken care of by Logan, but with old age he's having trouble keeping his powers in check. It's a really powerful scene to watch Prof. X go berserk too, but I really love how it's a metaphor about how age can change your mind. And honestly, this film is all about that parent-kid relationship. Prof. X has always been a father figure to Logan, and in most of the films Logan has picked up strays (Rogue from the first X-men films being the prime example) where he had to take on the parent role. However, in this one it felt like the writers really wanted to focus on Logan taking up the responsibility of not only someone younger, but also his aging father figure. What I love about Hugh Jackman's performance even more is the fact that his character is old, like really old, and he's had it up to here with life. He wants to have an easy life, but suddenly he's taking care of an aging Prof. X who wants Logan to stop and enjoy life, and a daughter figure that makes Logan have parental decisions. It's just really interesting how he has to balance saving them, but also parenting them in a way.
The action is well done. It doesn't get in the way of the character moments sprinkled throughout the film, and because Logan is having trouble with his healing factor it puts in a new sense of danger in his fights that haven't been present before. Taking advantage of the R-rating, the film is really brutal with the action, and in a sense it felt realer than most action blockbuster these days. There were stakes involved, it either benefited the characters or created an obstacle for them, and never once did I find the action to be there for just spectacle. There was always a purpose, but in that purpose they had a lot of fun showcasing it.
Overall, Logan is the perfect last chapter to a character that has survived on screen for around seventeen years. It's a personal journey for the characters, the film hits all the right notes to make this Wolverine film satisfying, and it respects the fans enough to make this film as great as it is. I'm sure we'll see Wolverine again in some aspect in the future, but for this to be Hugh Jackman's sendoff I think they not only nailed it, but created one of the better superhero films while doing it.
A-
