A pretty efficient sequel that manages to entertain

Rating: 7/10 (22 February 2014)

I prefer the first one to be perfectly honest with you, but this one is pretty enjoyable as well. The tone is much darker than the original and it tends to work both ways when it comes to this movie in terms of effectiveness. The darker tone manages to make the story feel more important, you can feel the agony from Logan's character in this one. It's actually somewhat tough to endure with how much Logan is going through. His desire to live is completely overshadowed by the pain he is suffering from Jean Grey's death that took place in X-Men III. He no longer wants to fight, just to live like a hermit and get drunk. I thought it was a really good look at a drastic character change from Wolverine. On the other hand, the lack of humor really hinders the movie at times. It takes itself so seriously at times that it almost becomes draining, especially at over two hours long. It isn't as well-rounded as the original either, despite being a tad more emotional. I did love the storyline of Wolverine having his power taken away to essentially deal with immortality. It made for some great storytelling. I dug the setting in Japan for the most part. It delivers some fantastic action scenes. My favorite is the one on top of a train. That one was absolutely exhilarating. Hugh Jackman is fantastic as usual. He is at his most intense yet as Wolverine. As I explained at the start of my review, his character takes a drastic turn that is filled with despair and agony. He is an extremely flawed hero in this one, showing plenty of courage and intestinal fortitude. Aside from his performance in Prisoners, this may be the best he's ever been. Tao Okamoto is a bit cantankerous and ungrateful at the start, but she turns in a decent performance when all is said and done. My favorite female performer is Rila Fukushima. She had plenty of spunk and charisma. She was also rather bad ass and had terrific chemistry with Jackman. Svetlana Khodchenkova is engagingly menacing as Viper. She had the right facial expressions to creep anyone out and made a terrific enemy. Hal Yamanouchi and Ken Yamamura do great jobs as Older and young Yashida respectively. Famke Janssen's role is nothing more than a glorified cameo. She is still deceased and pops up here and there in dream sequences to give Logan moment's of truth. It served its purpose. There is a bit of a plot hole that puzzled me. Jean claims to be lonely where she is, yet Scott Summers dies in the beginning of X-Men III. You'd have thought she would have some company. I realize Jean loved both, but still. I don't know, maybe I missed something. It just struck me as a bit odd
Final Thoughts: This is a very good sequel in it's own right. It's dark, mean, and very enjoyable. You can't go wrong with Wolverine 1 or 2 in my opinion. If you want two hours or so of entertainment, check this one out. I hope Hugh Jackman decides to reprise his role as Logan in the third installment
7.6/10