Logan Review

Verdict: A fitting sendoff, that works well as both a comic book adaptation and a true film, this is a piece of art that feels more like true cinema than a populist money grab.

Logan is the epitome of emotion in a genre film, resigning itself to be an analytical piece on aging, depression, family, angst, worthlessness, and mortality, as opposed to a crowd pleasing, happy meal selling work of populist appeal.  To begin with, we are taken through layers of nuance we could never get with a movie made for ten-year-old, as even though Tony Stark is a drunkard, you never experience it that much in the movies, as it is supposed to be kid friendly. This is not a knock on the previously mentioned character but rather acknowledgement of the greatness of Logan.

Logan is a drunkard, a depressed and angst filled soul, a man who lived almost two hundred years, forced to see every bad thing that ever happened during that time. He is a man that exists in a depressed state, aging due to a poison inside him, his attempt to save mutant kind successful, only to see everyone he knows die anyways. It is quite beautiful to see both Xavier and Logan at their worst, a side of them that really utilizes the R rating, as both of dirty mouthed, but not to a point where it feels like a shtick.

You can tell from every word of dialogue, every mannerism, every exchange that Professor X would have preferred anyone but Logan to be the one who was his caregiver, disappointed that one of his favorite pupils is his biggest disappointment. In the world of Days of Future Past, Logan was willing to undertake the task to save mutant kind, and here we see an aging Logan refusing to even help a family of farmers. As the story progresses so does Logan's old heroic self and the bond that existed with the old X-Men, three generations of X-Men working together to save the future of mutant kind from private industry militarized forces.

I read another review, one that cited that this is the rare comic movie where people forget to take medicine, and where cars don't start. There are scenes where people who would have lived in a less bleak movie die, and where a car gets stopped by a fence it would have broken through in another film. It is a dystopian piece, one where the worst thing that happens to civilians is they get knocked over and disillusioned by a physic seizure, where the future survives and the past doesn't. It is a powerful and emotional movie, one that could be shown during Oscar season to a bunch of old white guys and play more like a quality film and less like an annoying reminder that the lowest common denominator rules box office sales.

The villains are nothing more than a simple red neck with a metallic hand and a scientist working to create a new breed of mutants. The existence of a literal metaphor aside, the villains are more corrupt humans than world destroying monsters or adopted ice gods from a different realm. It is all about the evils of corporate conspiracy rather than the evils of global domination. That is the beauty of it all as you don’t ever feel that the villains are sensationalized creatures of death and destruction.  

When Heath Ledger’s performance as the Joker was revealed to the world, it was hailed as one of the best genre performances of all time and even went on to win an Oscar. The most amazing part of Logan is that at least three performances match that one in quality and two of them even exceed it. Hugh Jackman being allowed to show the brutality and nuance of Wolverine due the freedom granted by Fox to James Mangold, lets himself show why he was the perfect guy for this role, as it is the best he has ever been. Patrick Stewart who does not look as old in real life is aged to perfection, and his dementia is so well played that I looked wide eyed and open mouthed at him simply rambling on about Taco Bell.  Finally Daphne Keen was a revelation, her dialogue-less emotion powerful, and her physical ass kicking, awe inducing.

Lastly, I would like to give props to James Mangold for utilizing westerns in his film, as with La La Land last year it feels more like it is honoring its inspirations and less like it is trying to steal them to get praise. I am sure when the script was written, Mangold, who also directed 3:10 to Yuma, decided that every set piece and shot that he filmed was the true vision of how he wanted this saga to end, as it feels like a true passion project and less like a crowd-pleasing film. It is dark, bleak and grim and never stops throwing emotional gut punches, which is one of the greatest thing about the film.  When I heard X-23 say the word “Daddy”, it felt true and emotional deep, and not unintelligent like “Martha”, and that is something I can’t help but thankful for. 

Rating: 4/4