Best X-Men Yet

Rating: 7/10 (3 June 2014)

I love time travel science fiction; however, I'm wary of sequels based in traveling to the past in order to wash away problems created in previous films. The storytellers need to have a strong sense of purpose, some stylish originality, and a good amount of self-awareness in order to pull it off (think Abrams brilliant "Star Trek" reboot). Luckily, Singer has nailed it with X-Men: Days of Future Past. Granted, it teeters on convolution and an over-abundance of comic-lore, but the story plays out gracefully and the characters are a blast. Add impeccable sound design and some top-notch scifi action, X-Men:DOFP is a tight and fun superhero romp. X-Men:DOFP follows Wolverine, sent to the past by old Magneto and Professor X to meet up with young Magneto, Professor X and other X-Men in the 1970s, in order to stop an event that sets course for a world war that destroys all mutants and much of civilization itself.confused? Don't worry, the Inception-like levels of plot are better focused within the film, and the emphasis is more on the socio-political themes of the first two X-Men: equality, weaponry, freedom. On top of this, the period piece look is outstanding, and the performances are great, especially Fassbender, Dinklage, and Jackman, who is a Godsend as Wolverine. The ultimate selling point here is the action, which while a bit overly violent for its rating, is stellar, especially with some truly unique use of bullet-time slow motion. This helps us overlook the silly and unnecessary over-explanation and exposition spewing. With strong direction, impressive visuals, and taut enthusiasm, X-Men:DOFP is the best X-Men yet.