Logan: His Time Has Come

Logan is a movie by 20th Century Fox about a worn out and damaged James Howlett a.k.a The Wolverine and Logan. He has spent several years, after the mass genocide of mutants, looking after Professor Xavier near the Mexican border. Avoiding social contact, Logan is one day met by a nurse named Gabriella, who pays Logan for the safety and protection of a young mutant named Laura, who’s very much like him. Logan must now protect the young Laura from dark forces that wish to capture and do harm to her and her kind.

 

Logan is directed by James Mangold, who directed the previous solo Wolverine movie, The Wolverine (2013), 3:10 to Yuma and Walk the Line. Incorporating his love for westerns and the grittiness they bring along, Mangold marries blood with grit. Mangold, having also having a hand in the screenplay and coming up with the story, delivers an R-rated X-Men movie that explores the darker themes and savagery of one of the fan’s most beloved characters, the Wolverine. The story is very much lwithin the X-Men universe, but is stripped down into an intriguing noir-based storyline that explores the themes of humanity, paternal love as well as the exploitation of greed.

Hugh Jackman turns an exceptional performance as a weary and hurt version of a once steadfast character. He is boiled down to a shadow of his former self, on the brink of suicide. But through the events of the movie, manages to have a final chance at redemption with the appearance of Laura. If this is to be his final outing as the Wolverine, it is truly one worth the journey for playing this iconic character for 17 years. Laura, played by Dafne Keen, also serves as a major plot point to the story. Dafne Keen’s Laura is a more savage and younger version of Logan, struggling to find her place in this world while evading her captors. Her lines are limited but she manages to convey a sense of innocence behind the limb chopping and violence, which is saying something considering this is her first ever film.

Patrick Stewart returns as well, portraying an ailing Professor X that is suffering and living in regret. He manages to retain his place in a story heavily driven by Jackman’s Logan, serving as an emotional drive for Logan as well as Laura. The villains are Boyd Holbrook’s Donald Pierce and Richard E. Grant’s Dr. Alexander Rice. Pierce is given a meatier role, being introduced relatively early on in the movie. He serves as the leader of the Grim Reavers, a group of mercenaries hunting Laura and her fellow mutants. Holdbrook brings a sense of charm and style to a typically generic role, breathing his own style into the character. Dr. Rice is however a generic villain, introduced in the latter half of the movie to connect plot points.

 

Music composer Marco Beltrami delivers a minimalistic and western-like music to the movie, which is unique for a superhero movie. From the heart thumping “Loco Logan” to the more subtle “Main Title”, the track is packed with memorable scores that is more than just a companion piece to an already great movie.

 

The pace is also consistent. It amps up the violence and adrenaline when the action kicks in, and dips into a somber and calmer feel for it’s more human moments. The movie does feel like a final goodbye to the Wolverine character, a fitting one at that. The savagery of the character is truly explored in its full glory, giving audiences the Wolverine they truly deserve. James Mangold has made a movie fitting for a character so iconic and so beloved, while not only delivering a great, character driven movie, but also setting the bar high for superhero movies in general.

Directed by:   James Mangold

Starring: Hugh Jackman

Patrick Stewart

Boyd Holbrook

Stephen Merchant

Richard E. Grant

Dafne Keen

My Score: 4.5 / 5

Movie review written by.

Gu’ryal Singh Randhawa

Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering, UNITEN