Validating the entire franchise

Rating: 9/10 (24 May 2014)

Quickie Review:
Director Bryan Singer, the godfather of all things X-Men (cinematically), returns to the franchise with its most ambitious film yet. In the future the world is in ruins and menacing robots called Sentinels are hunting both mutants and humans alike. The last remaining hope for survival is to go back in time and change history to prevent this dire future from becoming reality. To call X-Men DOFP a time- traveling comic movie is an injustice. This is a movie that goes beyond its genre norm and delivers a compelling character driven story. This is a must-see for all X-Men fans and everyone else.
Full Review:
X-Men DOFP is incredibly well-directed with strong story-telling, obviously credit for that goes to Bryan Singer. He finally returned to the director seat after years of being just a producer, and he shows how an X-Men movie is done. Movies involving altering time-lines can be tricky to pull off, one wrong move and the story will just fall apart. Yet Singer manages to keep this aspect of the movie cohesive, showing both the past and future scenes with the right balance. He in fact goes an additional step and keeps the cohesion with the entire franchise (even the crappy ones, yes). By that I mean this movie recognizes and corrects the faults and plot holes of all the other movies. At first glance, X-Men is an extremely crowded universe, but you don't feel that at all. Every character is given the right amount of screen time and things to do to make you care about what is happening on screen. They are no longer just a random collection of mutants in peril. That brings me to the strongest part of X-Men DOFP, the characters.
I can honestly say there is not an ounce of weak acting from both the old and new main cast. However, majority of the film takes places in the 70s, so it is mainly the new cast from X-Men First Class that get to shine, and wow they shine bright. James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, and Jennifer Lawrence play their parts so well that you will only recognize them as their characters. James McAvoy is Professor X like we've never seen before, broken and tortured. You sympathize and understand the pain he has been going through. You recognize that Michael Fassbender as Magneto is flawed in his ideologies, where the end justifies any means. Still a small part of you supports his ways. When an actor can make you question your own moral stance, that's a sign of brilliance. Finally, Jennifer Lawrence brings to life the multiple dimensions and physicality of the character Mystique with grace. The biggest surprise is the newcomer Evan Peters as Quicksilver, with the ability of super speed. He steals every scene he is in, and I think it's best for you to discover by yourself what makes him so great.
I really had to think hard for any negatives, and I just could not come up with any. Some people I talked to think there was too little action, and in a way I can understand that. In the end, that didn't bother me because I was invested in the characters and their emotional interactions. Still, the action set pieces that are there, I found them to be fantastic (now merge this universe with the new upcoming 2016 Fantastic Four already!). The X-men franchise is known for some great and not-so great movies. It is not a perfect franchise. However, X-Men DOFP is one of the greats, and hell, it is close to perfection.
REMINDER: There is an end-credits scene, so do not leave after the movie ends.