8.5/10

Rating: 8/10 (3 March 2017)

Sad, brutal, powerful and most importantly freshly original, "Logan" is a great piece of cinema with performers committed to this material in a way we haven't quite seen before in the genre which pays off by touching emotional heights for which the audience might be as unprepared as much as they are touched by it.
The balancing act that Mangold pulls off is a tricky one, but his mastery in molding the tones and hitting the emotional moments when they need to is remarkable, he takes full advantage on his medium and leaves us with frames and feelings stuck in our head for long after the film's departure. He has so much on his table to bring to life, there are multiple story lines and many moving pieces, but he makes all of it into a beautifully flowing piece where you never feel lost, everything here belongs to this film.
The success of this emotional piece is strictly connected to how good the performances in it are. First off is Boyd Holdbrook who is a revelation, he has a natural talent for holding the screen and being magnetic and make the most out of it giving us a villainous role that is the perfect match for this feature. On top of that comes Dafne Keen who does stuff which I have never seen in a movie theater before, she is crazy good and possibly one of the best child performances I have ever seen. What she conveys with her eyes only is incredible and when she starts getting into the action they do stuff that I have honestly never seen before with a child.
Of course this is the Jackman/Stewart show in the end and what a show, what a finale to give to these characters. There isn't merit to be awarded singularly here, as in all great movies, the quality of the emotions you are being carried through starts with a truly great script that offers the actors A+ level material to work with. They rise to the challenge, making the most out of every word, every stare and in comes Mangold and his delicate touch in capturing all of these moments. This film is really sad, it brings to life emotions and characters in a way that hits the audience deeply, the themes of bitterness, rejection, heartbreak, love, life, purpose, discrimination, hope, it brings tears to my eyes just recalling the outlook the films takes and it is a icon of how cinema can convey theme through story no matter its nature.
The struggles the characters go through in this film feel so raw and close to us. Professor Xavier is given what is possibly his best portrayal and arch yet, he his in a sad, sad place, his life feels so tragic to us, his dreams have vanished, the way Stewart portrays him takes us to a place of such humanity, looking at an old man, a great man who is at the end of line, disillusioned and lost, mad, but still hoping. It is a beautiful piece of character drama that is developed throughout the film with pitch perfect dramatization and, curiously enough, the perfect amount out comic relief. As much as this film is emotional and sad it has moments of comedy gold that fit in seamlessly as they have always been part of these characters. Stewart has moments of "Cukoo's Nest" madness that bring out really funny monologues, plus his timing on one liners is perfect and even the way he moves makes for great comedy. And of course we don't loose Wolverine's dry humor which has always been a great part of his character.
And we haven't touch upon the action yet. This movie is violent and brutal and awesome because of that. Every drop of blood, every hit, every scar is justified by story. there isn't a moment of wasted time in the action, it feels urgent and necessary, the set-pieces flow in naturally and frenetically, they enter the story at the right times, they build and end when they need to and when it is time to start a new one is always feels built up and climaxes to new heights which are topped with the final confrontation which is a blood bath of violence and savageness that has me white knuckled, you almost feel there, with the characters, in the middle of this insane struggle. You feel every it, the pain in every cut has a weight and Logan's incredible effort and stress to go on it conveyed brutally in a way that you almost feel it upon yourself.
I think that there are only a few criticism that I could move towards the film which are plot points that are repeated throughout which don't really belong in the film. They insist on an X-Men comic point which has nothing to do with the film and raises questions all around which don't really need to be there and could have easily been solved with another macguffin. These sort of nitpicks and continuity issues are the only ones that really have any place in being pointed out.
Everything else in "Logan" works, this is a devastating film, with many tears involved, it will stick with you and leave you with images and feelings stuck in you mind, that is the mark of great, great film, one that molds tones and stories into one beautiful piece of genre cinema that will certainly have a lasting effect through its legacy, every single risk taken in here paid off to perfection.