X-Men 20 Years Later

Like many fans, I was super excited when the first X-Men movie was announced in 1998 or 1999. You could say I have a soft spot for X-Men and probably always will because some of the first comic books I ever read were X-Men comics. I collected the comics for years and later I religiously watched the 90s X-Men animated series on Saturday mornings.

However, the mere thought of a live-action X-Men film was just a dream come true. Especially after disasters like “Batman & Robin” and “Steel” nearly killed the comic book movie genre. And because I had been burned before by bad comic book adaptations, I was very nervous as “X-Men” neared its summer 2000 release. As the 20th Century Fox logo appeared on the big screen on opening day, I whispered to myself “Please be good, oh please be good.”

“X-Men” surprised me right from the start, because instead of opening the film with a big action sequence or by introducing the main heroes, director Bryan Singer and screenwriter David Hayter made the bold choice to open with the origin story for the villain Magneto (Ian McKellen) in the concentration camp where his family died. By showing this, the filmmakers made the audience understand where Magneto’s motivations were coming from and why he was serious about fighting force with force.

The scene then shifts to a teenage girl named Marie (Anna Paquin) whose first kiss nearly kills her boyfriend. It’s a scary scene, but an important one as well because it showed non-comic book readers how not every mutant is bad and how sometimes they don’t even know they have powers. Meanwhile, in Washington, Senator Kelly (Bruce Davidson) wants a “Mutant Registration Act”, while Professor Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart) believes that super-powered mutants can peacefully co-exist with humans. Again, this is an important scene because it brings forward the idea that humans are afraid of mutants and want to put an end to them.

We then return to Marie who has run away from home and is now calling herself Rogue. At a Canadian dive bar, she meets a man named Logan (Hugh Jackman), also known as “Wolverine.” After she sneaks into Logan’s truck they are attacked by Sabretooth (Tyler Mane), one of Magneto’s acolytes. Luckily, two of Xavier’s teachers – Cyclops (James Marsden) and Storm (Halle Berry) save them and take them to Xavier’s mansion and school for mutants in Westchester County, New York. And just like that all the key players and plotlines were introduced.

When a confused Logan wakes up in the mansion and Professor X offers him breakfast, I knew “X-Men” was going to be a fun ride. I kept looking in the background trying to see if I could spot any other X-Men characters. The girl walking through the door had to be Kitty Pryde and the girl in class with the big earings had to be Jubilee. And even though I saw the movie four times on the big screen I’m sure I missed some more cameos.

Then seeing Cyclops, Storm and Jean Grey using their powers was the icing on the cake. “X-Men” may have been a superhero movie, but it was the first superhero movie that I could remember caring about character development as much as it cared for the action scenes. Bryan Singer and his team took the source material seriously and only tweaked what they felt couldn’t be pulled off in live-action, like the costumes. The team’s all-leather look is the biggest departure from the comics. It looks a little dated twenty years later, but for 2000 I think it was the right move.

I suppose there are other departures like Rogue is a teenager and her bond with Wolverine is taken from his relationship in the comics with Kitty Pryde and Jubilee. Another change from the comics was Rebecca Romijn as Mystique. For one thing, there’s no costume at all (not that I was complaining). Two, Mystique is a much more interesting character in the movie than she ever was in the comics. She was an okay villain, but I usually found her appearances kind of cheesy. But from the movie on, she became a multi-layered character in both formats.

Then there was the other “comic-book” elements the movie had to get right, including Mystique’s transformations, the look of Wolverine’s claws, Cyclops’ optic blasts, etc. The filmmakers also had to get the sounds right, if the “Snikt” sounded off, fans like me would have been livid. But I have to say they got all those little things right. Even Wolverine’s hair looked good, though it was probably smaller in live-action than it was in the comic books.

The main reason “X-Men” clicked was because of the talented cast. Twenty years after the fact, casting Hugh Jackman as Wolverine was a perfect choice. He nailed the tone and the comic timing of the character. I still crack up when he calls Cyclops a “dick” near the end of the film. But it’s easy to forget that we nearly missed out on Jackman’s Wolverine. Dougray Scott was originally set to play the part, but he had some scheduling issues with “Mission: Impossible 2,” so the “X-Men” producers took a chance on an unknown Australian actor who went on to become a superstar.

As much as I enjoy “X-Men,” I would be lying if I said the movie was perfect. My main problem with this movie (and those that followed) is Halle Berry as Storm. I like Berry’s work in other movies like “Executive Decision” and “Bullworth,” but she didn’t do it for me as Storm. Look, if you’re going to give Storm an accent, that’s fine. But stick with it for the entirety of the series. Over the next two movies, Berry’s accent changes and finally disappears. And who can forget one of the wors lines ever uttered in the film: You know what happens when a toad gets struck by lightning? The same thing that happens to everything else.”

“X-Men” is low-scale compared to the comic books movies of today. What the film may lack in action sequences it makes up by making the characters more interesting and the stakes more personal. In the final act of the film, the X-Men are trying to stop Magneto’s mutation machine, but I always felt like their main reason for being there was to rescue Rogue. Furthermore, this film set the stage for what was to come a few years later in ” X2: X-Men United.” But it did so without the film being an obvious pitch for a sequel.

“X-Men” was groundbreaking for its time, and it helped revive the comic book movie genre. Maybe some of the sequels are better movies, but I’m always going to have a soft spot for the original. Without “X-Men” we may not have the Marvel Cinematic Universe or the DCEU or the slew of comic-related tv shows we have today. Even if it’s not a perfect movie, I think fans like me should be thankful “X-Men” happened at all.

 

Trailer Park: The Front Runner

 

Hell of a cast, so I’ll definitely will be checking this out when it comes out. However, I feel very old, because I remember all of this.

The Greatest Showman Review

Possible spoilers ahead!

“The Greatest Showman” takes a look at the life of P.T. Barnum (Hugh Jackman), the founder of what would eventually become known as the famous Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. In the film, P.T. Barnum is a man struggling to make ends meet as he raises his two daughters with wife Charity (Michelle Williams).

Desperate to provide for his daughters, and to fulfill promises he made long ago to his wife, Barnum swindles a bank into giving him a massive loan, which he uses to buy a museum full of wax figures. But after failing to sell enough tickets to his attraction, Barnum shifts his focus to live acts that are unlike anything seen at the time.

His new show featuring oddities proves to be a smashing success, but the general public and the press are unimpressed with Barnum’s so-called “freak show.” Looking to legitimize and appeal to a wider audience, Barnum hires playwright Phillip Carlyle (Zac Efron) as a promotions man and ideas man. Together, they bring to America Swedish opera singer Jenny Lind (Rebecca Ferguson) to be the show’s new headliner.

But as Barnum becomes more and more successful, and his shows begin earning rave reviews, he begins to risk losing what’s most important to him: his wife Charity, and their two daughters, Caroline and Helen.

“The Greatest Showman” is a showcase for Hugh Jackman and his non mutant powers. In this movie Jackman gets to display his tremendous singing and dancing talents, and the joy you see on his face carries the entire film. From the opening number, to his last, Jackman never lets up. He makes Barnum a likable guy we can root for.

Hugh Jackman is wonderful in everything he does, whether his fighting Magneto or singing about dreams. Whatever he does next, I’ll be there on opening day. Unless of course he makes “Swordfish 2,” in which case I may pass.

Anyways, for better or worse, “The Greatest Showman” is Jackman’s show. While that’s mostly a good thing, it means the screenplay shortchanged just about everyone else in the supporting cast. Barnum is the only character with character development and a complete arc. The relationship with his family is barely developed except for an early scene after Barnum loses his job.

Same goes for Phillip Carlyle (Zac Efron), who gets a few lines of background, but his story never really goes anywhere. Efron was fine in the role, even if his voice failed to reach a few high notes. But I felt his arc could have used a polish.

For instance, Carlyle falls in love with Zendaya’s Anne Wheeler, but even this isn’t explored too much other than they are attracted to each other. But the two do have one killer performance together.

As for the rest of the cast, I have to give it up to Michelle Williams. This was the first time watching her when I didn’t think to myself, “That’s the girl from Dawson’s Creek.” She was terrific in “The Greatest Showman,” both in the dramatic parts and during the musical moments. I also felt Williams had good chemistry with Hugh Jackman, and they made a believable couple.

Also of note, was Rebecca Ferguson as Jenny Lind. Despite the fact that Ferguson doesn’t do her own singing, she still pulls off one of the best musical numbers in the film. There’s no doubt that Ferguson commands the screen whenever she’s on, and for my money, she has the best eye expressions of anyone in movies.

When I saw “The Greatest Showman” over the weekend, the theatre was packed with kids. Oh no, I thought. These kids are gonna talk throughout the movie, but to my surprise, they stayed quiet. All of them were fascinated by what they saw on the screen. And although I have some script issues with the film, I can not deny that I still enjoyed the heck out of this movie.

This was a labor of love for Hugh Jackman, and it shows on-screen. The music is terrific, the songs are catchy, and if you’re not emotionally involved by the end, then you’re not human. At the end of the day, I would say “The Greatest Showman” is a fun and entertaining musical, and one worth seeing on the big screen.

“The Greatest Showman” final score: B

 

Movie Review: Logan

Spoilers ahead!

By 2029, mutants are an endangered species. There hasn’t been a new mutant born for many years. Those who are left, live in hiding. One of them is Logan (Hugh Jackman), who now goes by his birth name James Howlett and is working as a limousine driver in Texas.
The years haven’t been kind to old Wolvy, and his healing factor doesn’t work as fast as it used to.

Logan lives just across the Mexico border, and because old habits die-hard, he’s keeping a secret: He’s hiding Professor Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart), who is now in his nineties and has been classified by the government as a “weapon of mass destruction.” This is fue to Charles’ diminishing mental state having made him unable to control his powers.

Logan is hoping to buy a boat so he and Charles can live on the sea without causing any harm to those around them. Everything changes the day Logan is approached by a mysterious woman offering him $50,000 to transport a young girl named Laura (Dafne Keen) to the U.S./Canadian border.

As unknown government forces begin closing in on Laura, Logan, and Professor X. It then becomes clear to Logan, the he still has one more fight ahead of him.

“Logan” is the third solo Wolverine movie, and the second directed by James Mangold. This film is quite simply, one of the best comic book movies ever made.

“Logan” is a character-driven story, a drama rather an a full on action movie. Don’t get me wrong: there is plenty of violence in this movie. James Mangold delivers the Wolverine berserker rage you’ve been dying to see for 17 years. Two minutes into “Logan” and you know this is not like the other X-Men movies.

This is the most realistic X-Men movie by far, and in my opinion, the best X-Men movie so far. “Logan” is one film that even non-comic readers will enjoy. Heck, you’ll enjoy this movie even if you haven’t seen the other X-Men movies.

Hugh Jackman is finally given the chance to flex his acting muscle in an X-Men film, and the actor rises to the occasion. He captured the physical and emotional wear that this character has accumulated over his life. Some of my favorite moments were when Logan realizes he needs glasses to read, when he takes care of Charles, and when he tries to teach X-23 right from wrong.

Speaking of X-23, Dafne Keen, makes Laura/X-23 a memorable character despite the fact she’s mostly a silent character. But she’s able to do plenty of acting with her eyes, and with her mannerisms. Where Keen really excels is in the action scenes. Holy cow, she was awesome in those sequences.

But the show stealer was Patrick Stewart as Charles Xavier. This is easily his best performance as professor X, one that allowed Stewart to be funny, vulnerable and heartbreaking. For me one of the best scenes in the movie is the dinner scene at the farm-house. It was such a simple scene, and yet, it seemed like Patrick Stewart and Hugh Jackman were just two old friends sharing memories over a home cooked meal.

For the most part I loved everything about “Logan.” However, I do have one complaint about the movie: X-24 was a pointless villain. I get that the movie needed someone for Logan to go against, but the filmmakers could have created another Lady Deathstrike, or another mutant from the X-universe. They could even have brought back Sabretooth. For me going with X-24 seemed like a lazy move.

Regardless of my one complaint, “Logan” is one hell of a film. This is the Wolverine movie that fans have been begging for, and it has everything you could hope for. “Logan” is also the perfect send off for Hugh Jackman and Patrick Stewart. Never in a million years did I think an X-Men movie would bring me to tears, but I have to admit “Logan” did just that.

“Logan” final score: A

Better late than never review: Eddie the Eagle

Possible spoilers ahead!

Eddie Edwards (Taron Egerton) was just a child when he became obsessed with becoming an olympic athlete. There was one itsy little problem however: Eddie lacks any natural athletic abilities.

Despite this, Eddie is determined to achieve his dream of competing as an Olympian for Great Britain, so he trains harder and with more enthusiasm than his rivals. To the surprise of everyone (even his parents), Eddie’s determination pays off: the Olympic hopeful becomes an accomplished downhill skier. However, British Olympic officials don’t believe Eddie fits the mold of a British Olympian, and they dismiss him from the ski team.

Instead of allowing his Olympic dream to end, Eddie begins training as a ski jumper – in the hopes of competing in the 1988 Games as the sole British jumper. Thanks to outdated qualification guidelines that had not been updated in about 50 years, and no other British athletes to compete against, Eddie sets out to meet the minimum requirements to become an Olympian.

Along the way, Eddie befriends a former ski jump champion, Bronson Peary (Hugh Jackman), who challenges the aspiring athlete to set an even higher goal: don’t just make it to the Olympics, wait for 1992, and do your best. Young Eddie Edwards however, has other plans.

Based on a true story, “Eddie the Eagle” is a light-hearted and thoroughly inspiring underdog tale, and a damn good movie too! The performances from Hugh Jackman and Taron Egerton are spot on, and there’s great coach/athlete chemistry between them. The movie has plenty of tension, excitement and humor.

Director Dexter Fletcher uses plenty of familiar biopic plot devices in this dramedy. He’s not changing the biography film genre here, but with a sport we haven’t seen in movies much (if at all), plus a charming everyman hero, and a clever retro score from Gary Barlow, “Eddie the Eagle” soars higher than many similar films.

Taron Egerton portrays Eddie Edwards.

Taron Egerton’s performance ensures that Eddie is a charming (and peculiar) hero. His story makes you want to root for him, even if you know he doesn’t stand a chance at an Olympic medal. One of the things I liked about “Eddie the Eagle” is that not once does the movie portray Eddie as an awkward outcast that has no business in ski jumping. The filmmakers treat Eddie like a real person, and give his story plenty of respect.

Hugh Jackman is a scene-stealer as Eddie’s American coach, Bronson Peary. By the way, this was an entirely made-up character by the filmmakers, but Bronson does have his own emotional arc to navigate. And just like with Eddie, you care about what happens to him.

I was very impressed by this movie, and it is one of the better sports movies I’ve seen in a while. With this type of movie I guess a lot of liberties have to be taken in order to capture the spirit of Eddie’s story. But after the movie was over, I was a little disappointed to learn that “Eddie the Eagle” is more fictional than expected.

But in the end, whatever changes were made worked. You still get the central point of the film: a tale about overcoming adversity, facing fears, setting big goals, and inspiring others.

“Eddie the Eagle” is a celebration of the sport of ski jumping, and one of sportsmanship. This film should give audiences a greater understanding and appreciation of ski jumpers, and what it means to be an Olympian.

“Eddie the Eagle” final score: 8.5

TNU Box Office Update

Nearly everyone expected “Pan” would open behind “The Martian” this weekend. But I don’t anyone expected “Pan” would flop as hard as it did.

Terrible movie, but it makes one heck of a pancake.

The Peter Pan origin story directed by Joe Wright had a ton of stuff to overcome well before its opening weekend. The bad press started months ago when actress Rooney Mara was cast as Tiger Lily, who is historically Native American.

There were also many people wondering why in the world wasn’t Hugh Jackman playing Captain Hook. And you had to know te studio had its own questions when it moved the $150 million production from a posh  summer release date, to October.

Going into the weekend, tracking reports had the film opening in the low $20 million range. but even those predictions proved too high. Playing in 3,515 theaters, “Pan” could only muster an estimated $15.5 million. That was well behind the $37 million “The Martian” took in.

Joe Wright’s career at the moment.

And even though the film scored a “B+” CinemaScore, you can go ahead and “Pan” to the list of 2015 flops including: “Jupiter Ascending,” “Tomorrowland” and everyone’s favorite dump fire, “Fantastic Four.”

Perhaps Uncle Hugh should fast track the next Wolverine movie?

Further down the chart we find.Robert Zemeckis’ “The Walk.” Expanding into 2,509 theaters this weekend, this drama appears to be a film that just can’t find an audience. Maybe it’s because people aren’t ready for a film featuring the Twin Towers (which is understandable). Or maybe it’s because audiences have lost trust in director Robert Zemeckis.

Either way, with an estimated $3.6 million, “The Walk” barely made it to seventh place. And with the likes of Steven Spielberg’s “Bridge of Spies,” Guillermo del Toro’s “Crimson Peak” about to open, “The Walk” will continue to drop from here.

I just can’t take it. I mean, nobody will ever know who it was who saved an entire city.

Movie Review: Chappie

Possible spoilers ahead!

“Chappie” follows the story of robotics engineer Deon Wilson (Dev Patel) who creates a fleet of police robots controlled by advanced artificial intelligence programing. Thanks to the police bots, the crime rate in Johannesburg plummets, and human officer casualties are almost zero. But not all criminals are ready to leave the South African city.

During a raid on a criminal compound, scout #22 (one of the cop robots) is critically damaged in battle. Normally, the robot would be destroyed, but Deon needs him for an experiment. In his spare time, Deon has developed a sentient artificial intelligence, and now scout #22 has a second chance at life as Chappie (voiced by Sharlto Copley).

Unfortunately, Deon’s unauthorized project results in dangerous ramifications after Chappie is stolen by a group of thugs hoping to use the bot in a money heist. But the three idiot criminals are faced with a dilemma when they realize Chappie has the mind of a child. Deon is the only one who knows the robot has endless potential.

Surrounded by adults on both sides of the law, Chappie must now decide for himself the kind of man he wants to become. But he better decide quickly, because Hugh Jackman is coming for him.

This is one of those movies you’ll either love or hate, but at least it will have you talking. The effects are amazing and the action is up there with director’s Neill Blomkamp “District 9.” Come to think of it, this is Blomkamp’s best flick since “District 9.”

And for all those people and critics who are comparing “Chappie” to 1980’s movies “Robocop” and “Short Circuit”? You’re missing the point of “Chappie.”

This movie is both funny and sometimes poignant. The relationship between Yolandi Visser and Chappie is easily the most moving aspect of the film. And the way she treats Chappie, is essential of us as the viewer buying into the character of Chappie.

I will admit this movie features some characters that you’ll love one moment, and hate them the next. But you need to look at the bigger picture, and realize every character serves a purpose in Chappie’s arc. And it was kind of nice seeing Hugh Jackman playing the bad guy for a change, and a conflicted one at that.

I’ve tried writing this review since I saw the movie last weekend, but I just couldn’t figure out how to do it without spoiling the main parts of the movie. However, there is one thing I don’t have a problem telling you: “Chappie” is my favorite movie this year.

“Chappie” final score: 10

TNU Box Office Preview: A Weekend at Dev Patel’s

The first full weekend of March is finally here and with it come three (very different) new movies. Although my birthday weekend brings a little something for everyone, this weekend is likely to be another slow one at the box office.

Playing at 3,201 locations, “Chappie” is the third feature from South African director Neill Blomkamp, who hit it big with his 2009 debut “District 9.” That movie went on to earn $115.6 million domestically and another $95 million overseas.. “District 9” was also a hit with critics, and even scored an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture.

Blomkamp’s second movie was 2013’s “Elysium,” but we don’t have to talk about that.”Chappie” stars Sharlto Copley, Dev Patel, and Hugh Jackman, and is hopefully more like “District 9.”

So far critics have not been kind to “Chappie.” As of Friday morning, the movie has 33 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. Meanwhile, Fandango is reporting that “Chappie” sales are in line with last year’s “RoboCop,” which opened to $21.7 million. The good news for “Chappie” is that it stars Hugh Jackman, who all but guarantees the movie will open at number one. But for some reason, I just don’t see “Chappie” making over $22 million.

Nearly three years after the “Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” became a surprise hit, the sequel checks in to 1,573 locations this weekend. “The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” has already gotten off to a solid start overseas, opening to $5.8 million in the U.K. and $3.2 million in Australia.

The first movie opened in limited release back in May 2012. On its first weekend in wide release, the film earned $6.4 million . The movie was helped by strong word-of-mouth and ultimately ended its run with $46.4 million, which makes it one of Fox Searchlight’s highest-grossing movies ever.

“The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” brings back Dev Patel and most of the original movie’s cast, and adds Richard Gere to the mix. With a solid fan base, a decent marketing campaign, and a fairly wide release, it wouldn’t be surprising if this sequel made a at least $10 million this weekend.

Opening at 2,777 theaters, “Unfinished Business” is sure to be the next flop in Vince Vaughn’s fledgling career. Between 2005 and 2009, Vince Vaughn was box office gold, with four of his comedies earning $100-million-plus at the domestic box office. That trend changed in recent years however, with “The Dilemma,” “The Watch,” “The Internship” and “Delivery Man” all wound up grossing between $30 and $50 million.

And by the way: “Unfinished Business” is now at six percent on Rotten Tomatoes. Yes, I said SIX percent. With that in mind, I doubt “Unfinished Business” will earn anything over $7 million this weekend.

“Unfinished Business” also stars Tom Wilkinson, Dave Franco, Sienna Miller, and June Diane Raphael. And if you’ve noticed, much of the movie’s marketing campaign has focused on Dave Franco’s character.

I know some people are probably wondering who Dave Franco is. Well, remember “21 Jump Street” and “Now You See Me?” Franco was the other guy.

 

Movie Review: X-Men: Days of Future Past

Possible spoilers ahead!

As “X-Men: Days of Future Past” begins, mutants and humans are in the middle of a long running war. Years earlier, humans launched the Sentinel program to hunt down and exterminate every mutant on the planet. As the war nears an end, Professor X and Magneto gather the surviving X-Men together for a last-ditch effort to stop the Sentinel war: But the only way to stop the war, is by altering the past so that it never happened in the first place.

Their plan requires Kitty Pryde sending Wolverine’s consciousness back into his 1973 body, in order to stop an assassination. But can history be altered, or is destiny forever set in stone?

I say yes, history can be altered, because “X-Men: Days of Future Past” not only reignited my faith in the X-Men film series, it’s also now my favorite entry in the series.

Days of Future Past is the most ambitious film in the series, and in a strange way, it’s also a soft-reboot. This movie has one of the largest cast ever assembled for a comic book movie, and somehow it all worked.

Fans of the original X-Men trilogy will immediately get the satisfaction of seeing Professor X (Patrick Stewart), Magneto (Ian McKellen), Wolverine (Hugh Jackman), Shawn Ashmore (Iceman), Storm (Halle Berry) and Kitty Pryde (Ellen Page) back together again. The classic team fight the Sentinels alongside some new heroes.Well, new to the movies at least. If you’ve read any comics in the past two decades you’ll be very pleased.

Blink and Bishop I thought looked great, and their power use were amazing. I only wish they’d gotten more onscreen time. Oh well, maybe in a future film?

As usual in X-Men movies, Wolverine is front and center. That makes sense as he became the foundation for the entire franchise. And Hugh Jackman is great as always. But what I liked about “X-Men: Days of Future Past” is that it’s as much a Mystique movie as it is Wolverine’s.

Jennifer Lawrence is the central character to the plot. where she goes, the movie goes. She’s even got a few action scenes all to herself which was fun to watch. Three years after taking over role, Jennifer Lawrence had made it her own.

The biggest surprise in the film was Quicksilver (Evan Peters). After set pictures were released, and then that awful Hardee’s/Carl Jrs. commercial aired, I thought quicksilver would be a disaster. However, he was one of the best parts of the movie. He was funny, his power looked great, and his invasion of the Pentagon was fantastic. And the line about his mom knowing a guy who manipulated metal was a nice easter egg.

I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I hope we see more of this Quicksilver in the next film.

As much as I loved this movie, there were one or two things that irked me: Young Xavier’s need to take a drug that removes his powers but gives him the ability to walk, was an interesting plot, but it was barely developed. Also, the rest of the First Class characters were apparently killed (by Trask I believe) but we only find this out in about two lines of dialogue.

And my biggest problem with the flick? There is ZERO explanation to how Kitty Pryde is able to send people to the past. Was this some kind of second mutation? We don’t know, because nobody stops to ask how Kitty is able to do this.

Those issues aside, “X-Men: Days of Future Past” is one hell of a ride. And the best part is that it fixed some of the mistakes made in the past. Yes, I’m looking at you “X-Men: The Last Stand.” It’ even opens up new possibilities ofr more films. Speaking of which…

If you don’t read comics you won’t know what the post credit scene is about. A lot of people in the theatre seemed confused. So if you see a comic fan sitting near you, ask them what the heck was going on. They can explain things, just like I had to explain to some people.

In the end, “X-Men: Days of Future Past” is worth seeing in theatres, it’s a lot of fun, and the best X-Men flick I’ve seen to date.

“X-Men: Days of Future Past” final score: 9.5

You don’t want the third claw

Director James Mangold, revealed some interesting news on Twitter. In response to a fan’s question about a possible sequel to last year’s “The Wolverine,” Mangold said that Wolverine 3 will begin filming after 2016’s “X-Men: Apocalypse.”

James Mangold did a good job on “The Wolverine,” but I wouldn’t call the movie an all time great. The movie had some interesting ideas, but the ending kinda ruined it for me. Even so, I don’t have a problem with Mangold doing another Wolvy flick. The real issue will be Hugh Jackman.

Hugh Jackman has portrayed Wolverine or Logan for 14 years, appearing in the first three X-Men films. After that Jackman starred in two solo films, “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” in 2009 and “The Wolverine” in 2013. He even had a cameo in “X=Men: First Class” in 2011. And of course Jackman is starring in this summer’s “X-Men: Days of Future Past.”

Right now, Hugh Jackman is 45 years old. By the time “X-Men: Apocalypse” is released, he’ll be almost 47. And when Wolverine 3 hits theatres, he’ll be nearing 50. At some point Fox will have to think about recasting the role. Heck, even Hugh Jackman knows its coming at some point. In a recent interview he said:

“I’m sure they had the discussion. They didn’t mention it to me, obviously! [Laughs] Look, that’s inevitable, man. Anyone who thinks they’re indispensable in this business is fooling themselves. But I feel unbelievably blessed to have this part. I never thought in a million years I’d get to play him seven times. Every day I walk on the set with the claws and the hair, I thank my lucky stars. I don’t take any of it for granted. To think that in a second version we’d have this cast and this director, and you guys don’t know the script, but I would say probably the best script of all of them, is pretty amazing. I think that’s why I’m still here. I’m sure by the way, that it won’t always be my decision to always be here. At some point, someone will close the door on me… [Laughs].”

Well, whenever that day comes, the next guy to play Wolverine will have some big shoes to fill.