X-Men: Apocalypse Review
May 26, 2016, at 10:30 p.m.
The inherent problem with comic book movies is that the audience knows the outcome before they go in the darkened cinema. While they may not know all the details, they generally know two things: 1) That the good guys will win. 2) The bad guys will lose.
Therefore, the most difficult task is to create a villain so heinous and truly threatening that the audience momentarily loses hope. They forget about what they already know and for a split second that tiny voice creeps inside their head and says, “They’re not going to make it!”
X-Men: Apocalypse accomplishes this feat, but not as strongly as some of the more recent comic book films. Without the need for a spoiler alert, the movie’s outcome is fairly predictable. What is not predictable is how the two-and-a-half hour action film keeps the audience engaged for the duration.
There are some mind-bending action set pieces and all the CGI that requires to make it. Plenty of hidden Easter eggs for hardcore fans of the genre and children of the 80s are like a treasure map unraveling throughout the film. Of course, there is the obligatory Stan Lee cameo, and they gave away Logan Madder’s appearance in the trailer. But there was also a tremendous amount of dialogue and character development along the way as well.
Overall I liked this movie and excited to see it. With director Brian Singer back at the helm I was hopefully for a return to the original X-Men films that he made. X-Men: Apocalypse delivers a win to the fan, in my opinion. Yet, this is comic that peaked in the 90s, set in a storyline from 1983 and trying to sell itself to an audience in 2016. The younger patrons in the audience seemed to laugh at inappropriate times, and didn’t feel invested in the story arcs of Professor X and/or Magneto. One liners from Nightcrawler got a better response.
On a grander scheme, I think that Marvel Comics is making a legitimate stab at competing with DC Comics on the big screen. While some may disagree with me, ever since the Burton Batman, Marvel has struggled to find its niche to the powerful, gothic and DARK films of DC.
While speedster Quiksilver’s self-deprecating humor felt right-on, the rest of the “comedy” in the movie felt forced. However, this is the second powerhouse entry of the Marvel Universe in 2016, and both X-Men: Apocalypse and Captain America: Civil War were strong, well made and financially successful movies. With Dr. Strange promising to deliver a Christopher Nolan-style Batman Begins/Inception, Marvel comics just may start to set the tone of comic book movies to come.
Oh yeah… Olivia Munn is super hot, too.
