Review of X-Men: First Class (2011) by Adam F — 05 Jun 2014

It's safe to say that overall, prequels don't really inspire confidence and that most of them range from mediocre to pretty terrible. "X-Men: First Class" is the exception to the rule. Not only is it one of the best instalments in the "X-Men" franchise, but even if you hadn't seen any of the other films, it would still be a thrilling and intelligent adventure. The first "X-Men" movie was released in the year 2000 and that means that for many people, they will not have caught them in their original theatrical run. It's going to be in the universe's chronological order that they see them so after the very mediocre (some would say bad and I wouldn't fight them on it) "X-Men Origins: Wolverine", this one is a breath of fresh air. It's the film that really shows what the franchise has to offer. The story begins in 1944 with a young boy, Erik Lensherr being brought into a Nazi camp in Poland. After a scientist named Dr. Klaus Schmidt (Kevin Bacon) notices the boy bend metal with his mind when he is separated from his mother. Recognizing the boy as a mutant, a seemingly ordinary human with amazing powers, he is taken and trained to hone his skills under barbaric, but effective means. Meanwhile, in Westchester County, New York, a young mutant telepath named Charles Xavier discovers a strange, blue-skinned female shapeshifter trying to steal food from his kitchen. Raven and Charles become friends, bonding over their unique mutant abilities. Fast forward to 1962; Erik (Michael Fassbender) is now tracking down Schmidt and crosses paths with Raven (Jennifer Lawrence) and Charles (James McAvoy). With the help of CIA agent Moira Mac Taggert (Rose Byrne) and a group of new mutant recruits, they uncover an intricate, apocalyptic plan by Schmidt (who now goes under the pseudonym Sebastian Shaw) that involves political manipulation, blackmail and nuclear Armageddon.

Before I get to the plot of the film, which is really exciting, I want to talk about the characters involved. "First Class" is filled with fascinating characters and they are even more interesting when they interact with each other. In the foreground are Charles Xavier and Erik Lensherr. The two young men are quite different but instantly become fast friends when they are faced with a common enemy. Erik is obsessed with revenge and pessimistic, while Charles is excited at the prospect of meeting new mutants and ever hopeful. Erik suffered greatly during his childhood and feels alone not only because he was separated from his family at a young age, but because of his mutant abilities. It's one thing to be a survivor; it's another to be a survivor and a different species of human in a cruel world. Charles on the other hand grew up wealthy with a close mutant friend always at his side. He uses his powers to pick up ladies, is the life of the party and on his way to become one of the top minds in the world. Charles even comes off as a bit arrogant and insensitive at times, kind of like a spoiled brat that has, thanks to his powers received the world on a silver platter. On paper, it sounds like these guys should be bitter enemies, but when they meet, they click instantly. They complement each other and make a great team and figure that between the two of them, they can make the world a better place for mutants of all kinds. Unfortunately, while they bring out the best in each other, Erik's scars run deep and there's always the risk of them drifting apart because of their different views on mutant/human relations. That relationship is the core of the film and it works incredibly well. McAvoy and Fassbender have terrific chemistry and you really believe the friendship that forms here.

The other really notable characters are Raven and Hank McCoy (Bicholas Hoult). These two mutants, while secondary have a lot of meat to them. Raven and Hank become friends because of their similarities. Both of them are mutants that have physical appearances that are different from normal human beings. Thankfully they have a way to hide who they are, but both are uneasy about having to disguise themselves. They are also very lonely characters. Raven feels distant from Xavier because she feels like he doesn't truly accept her despite the fact that they've known each other since childhood. Hank feels like his intelligence ostracizes him from the people that surround him and has trouble getting close to people because he is afraid of revealing his mutant identity. In both cases, their uneasiness about their mutations is holding them back and their acceptance, or non-acceptance of their mutant identity is what defines their character arcs. When they meet, Raven sees someone just as intelligent as Charles finally pay some attention to her and she's attracted to him. Hank sees someone who knows his pain and could provide the solution to his physical deformity. They have an instant connection, but the more they interact with each other, the more they drift apart because of their evolving views on mutants, which is also what is threatening to happen with Erik and Charles. On top of these deep interactions between these two pairs, you can then swap the partners around to see even more character development. Erik, having seen the ugly side of humanity is ready to embrace mutants and distance himself from the people he has seen commit unspeakable atrocities. This puts him on Raven's good side, but Hank's bad side. Charles, who believes that mutants should basically humor humanity's request sits well with Hank (also because they're both scientists) but begins aggravating Raven. There's so much to analyze and dissect just between these characters that we'd be here all day, so let's move on to the plot and the villains.

When you have a movie where there's a bunch of heroes that team up, you need a great villain and this film has several. First and foremost is Kevin Bacon as Sebastian Shaw. He's a great foil to Erik because he helped essentially create him and he's a great foil to Charles because not only does he have a secret weapon that perfectly nullifies his telepathic abilities, but he also represents everything that Charles fears. I don't want to say too much about that last point because it would spoil some of the big surprises in the film but once you know what his plan is and how he wants to execute it, you'll know what I mean. He's not just some supervillain out to take over the world though, Shaw sees himself as kind of a hero, someone that is just speeding up what would inevitably happen on its own. How the plan ultimately plays out as well really plays into the character interactions I talked about before with Xavier, Lensherr, Raven and the other mutants reacting differently to it when all the cards are on the table. This is not only a great villain, but one that feels real too because his actions have real consequences. As a cherry on top of the sundae, this guy is actually kind of likeable. He's not some kind of lunatic, he's a smart guy with a plan that's pretty airtight. He's also got his charming moments and when you think about it he makes some good points about man's destructive power and his place in it. It certainly doesn't hurt that the guy is always sitting next to the mega-hot January Jones as Emma Frost. No relation to the character in "X-Men Origins Wolverine" by the way, this might as well be a new character because the film is set during the sixties and she's a fully-grown adult here (whereas she was a kid in "Wolverine"). She's a terrific opponent for the Charles/Erik team because of her slew of abilities and because of her mastery of them. She knows she's sexy, uses that to her advantage and has both brains and muscles to match. Those are just the surface villains too. We've also got CIA guys that trust the mutants about as far as they can throw them and some political opponents that would love to see all of these mutants just wipe each other out too. I realize that I'm being pretty vague at times, but this film has such a tight, surprise-ridden plot that I would feel bad about giving away too much.

This is an intense story with high stakes. Stakes made even higher because you genuinely care about the characters involved. The film's got a terrific score, a tight plot, good tension, strong moments of emotion and even a couple of moments of humour. You cannot tell that this was the fifth film in the franchise because it feels so incredibly fresh. When the credits roll, you'll actually be sad that it's all over, until you realize that actually, this is just the beginning. I absolutely loved it and look forward to seeing not only these characters, but these actors portraying these characters again. (5/5: On Blu-ray, June 1, 2014).

(5/5: Theatrical version, 2011).