Too much hype. Disappointed

Rating: 7/10 (26 July 2013)

After a wait of more than four years following what many considered to be a average movie at best we get The Wolverine. X-Men Origins: Wolverine was attacked by most people and caused a big backlash that was probably the cause of this film being pushed back for four years. I'll admit I was not one who hated or tore apart Origins. I enjoyed that film. This film however not so much.
The biggest complaint I have is with the story. Mark Bomback and Scott Frank both wrote this film. The same people who brought us Total Recall(remake) and Live Free or Die Hard. So the story being a bit overly boring shouldn't have surprised me but it did. Often times films fail to keep your interest for a run time such as this film has which is just about two hours. The Wolverine starts out nicely with a good story and it seems like it will go in a good direction. Sadly this film often slows for a good period of time and takes awhile to pick back up. The action scenes were amazing however but the lack of interesting story diminishes that aspect since after each amazing action scene we are stuck with boring and overly long dialogue.
Director James Mangold is truly one of my favorite directors. He has brought us such films such as Cop Land, Identity, Walk the Line, and 3:10 to Yuma. The directing in this film is actually very good. Mangold knows how to direct a high flying action scene as he has been doing that for so many years now. No worries about a shaky cam here during the big action scenes which adds a lot to the film. There are some problems with this film however the directing from James Mangold is not one of them.
The acting comprised with mostly foreign actors throughout the film is actually very good. Supporting actors and actress like Tao Okamoto, Rila Fukushima, Hiroyuki Sanada, Brain Tee, and Hal Yamanouchi all work together very well as a family in this film. The chemistry is there and you can tell. Then there is Svetlana Khodchenkova who plays the role of Viper. She comes off as completely out of place and doesn't fit in the role of all. Yet another downside to the film. Hugh Jackman however puts in another great performance as The Wolverine. From the start Jackman has dominated this role and after fourteen years he still plays the role with the same force and same energy.
Overall this film is just above average. There is one lone item that truly saves this film and that scene comes about a minute into the credits. I'm not going to spoil it however make sure you stick around to see it. The scene is amazing and sadly for this film it is the best scene of the movie. Overall I would give this movie a 6.5/10