Huge letdown (X-Men Origins: Wolverine (DVD))

Member Name: shaneo632

Product:	X-Men Origins: Wolverine (DVD)
Date:	30/06/09 (9 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Jackman, fun action

Disadvantages: VERY cliched, Deadpool is ruined

Wolverine is without doubt a fan favourite and has been the primary focus of the X-Men trilogy, so it only logically follows that an origin story about his birth as a mutant would be intriguing, fun, and, above all, have the undeniable presence of Hugh Jackman as Wolverine (an inspired bit of casting for sure). Well, one of these things is correct - Jackman is on top form once again, but the other components just don't work very well seperately or together.

Wolverine begins promisingly, chronicling the relationship between James Logan aka Wolverine and Victor Creed aka Sabretooth, as they put their violent urges to use by fighting in World War 2 among other battles. William Stryker, who was played by Bryan Cox in X-Men 2, returns (played this time by Danny Huston), or perhaps, appears for the first time, in offering both brothers a place on Team X, a group of mutants led by Stryker, but their motives at first are unclear, and with such murky morality, Wolverine leaves the team.

Years later, Sabretooth goes on a killing spree, murdering a number of mutants, and ultimately coming after Wolverine himself. Such kickstarts a travelogue of new mutant characters previously unseen in the X-Men films, such as Gambit (who is well played by Taylor Kitsch, but ultimately unsatisfying and only fleetingly dealt with), and Deadpool (who is utterly wasted, messed with, and changed from what he SHOULD be like).

Wolverine does offer a few thrilling, if utterly ridiculous action sequences (notably as an explosion catapults Jackman from a truck onto a helicopter), but there's nowhere near enough here for the discerning viewer. The plot structure is incredibly derivative, the visual effects rather rickety at times (notably as Wolverine unleashes his claws in a bathroom), and the main thing keeping it together is Jackman's unadulterated charm.

Wolverine is a disappointingly routine comic book film that benefits from Hugh Jackman's explosive screen presence and some fun set pieces, but a highly unoriginal plot and some rather poor representations of some of Marvel's most beloved characters make this nothing more than mediocre.

Summary: An unfortunate misfire