Logan Review: Blades of Brilliant Sorrow

Rating: 10/10 (31 May 2017)

Listen to me right now, because I'm gonna tell you why Logan is one of the best superhero films I've seen in ages. I know that it may be clichÃ© now since the film's been out for a few months, but if you haven't seen the film yet just here me out.
The film stars Hugh Jackman as a past his day Wolverine (Logan) who's greatest strength has now become his worst weakness. The adamantium that is bound to his skeleton is poisoning him. This is shown when bullets now do a number on Wolverine when he should of been able to pop them out of his body with ease more angry then hurt. Hugh Jackman has really worked hard to portray how much Logan has aged in this film. Hugh Jackman even stated that he went without water for 2 days to help further portray this which is evident when Logan begins stumbling in some scenes, especially near the end. This level of commitment really shows how much Jackman put into this project in order to give his Wolverine character a fitting send-off.
The other actors also do an excellent job of portraying their characters. Patrick Steward has done a superb job of portraying an elderly Charles Xavier who's telepathy powers are starting to deteriorate, forcing him to become isolated from the world under the care of Logan, causing him to go borderline insane.
Dafne Keen also did a superb job in her portrayal of Laura, a violent young girl with powers very similar to Logan as she too has an adamantium skeleton. She is also put under Logan's care without his consent and as Logan is forced to care for her, you definitely see the bond that forms between her, Logan and Charles as Logan must protect Laura from a man named Donald Pierce and his group of soldiers who are hunting for children like Laura to create living weapons out of them. The character designs also matched the characters themselves with elderly characters like Logan wearing vests and old boots and characters like Laura wearing "brighter" clothes like denim jackets. It makes the film feel more grounded, more realistic and gives it a "Last Of Us" kind of feel as it shows the difference between the young and old.
Speaking of a "Last Of Us" kind of feel, the film's violence is absolutely on par with the film's dark nature. The film defies the usual superhero clichÃ©s of saving the world and getting the girl and the usual superhero film rating has been increased from 12 to 15. In fact, Logan rarely feels like a superhero film most of the time and the film is very aware of this when Logan mocks Laura for reading X-Men comics. The action looks slick and bloody stylish and the CGI and green screens rarely looked suspect. The blood and dismemberment was never in your face either. Right from the opening scene from Logan's first fight with a group of thugs vandalising his car, you know this film's gonna be bloody and brilliant. The film's soundtrack and sound also moulded with the violence really well as you could feel every moment claws slashed against flesh like an Old Man Freddy Kruger and the soundtrack that matched the intensity of every action scene flawlessly, especially during the forest massacre.
The film's themes also blow it away from everything else on the market. The theme of loss is present because it is the year 2029 and nearly all mutants on the face of the Earth have been all but extinct. The theme of family is also present because Logan's family are nearly all gone and having to look after Laura has made him rethink about why family is so important. The use of light and darkness adds even more to the sense of hopelessness and sorrow that Logan is facing as you can really sense in the trailers.
James Mangold should feel really proud of himself for Logan. This was definitely the kind of Wolverine film we needed for a character that's so dark but scaled down in previous instalments of the X-Men franchise. It's no bark and all bite! Let's hope more superhero movies follow this trend so we can have more classics like this and The Dark Knight. Here's to a "lethal" 17 years Jackman! ðŸ˜ƒ 9.8/10
Is it better then? The Dark Knight- No. it's without a doubt a close one, but the Dark Knight's slightly superior writing and the theme of insanity slightly edge Logan.
X-Men: Apocalypse- Yes. Logan trumps Apocalypse in almost every way from setting to action and everything else in between.
The Wolverine- Yes. As I said, Logan defies all superhero movie clichÃ©s and tells a darker better tale then what The Wolverine could.