aNewDomain
— Due to its drama, character development and gritty action sequences, James Mangold’s Logan puts most other Marvel movies to shame.
Logan is the tenth installment in the X-Men series of films, but you won’t find much of Marvel’s trademark third-act city-pounding CGI-heavy pyrotechnics or sarcastic snark here.
Instead, Logan brings you a serious portrayal of what happens in the year 2029 when an aging Wolverine (Hugh Jackman and his now-elderly charge, Robert Xavier (Patrick Stewart), are visited by Laura, a mysterious young mutant (Dafne Keen).
By 2029, you see, mutants have for the most part been railroaded into extinction.
The movie traces the interwined adventures of Logan, Xavier (Professor X) and the young mutant. Their relationships with one another deepen during that road trip and their struggles against the bad guys intent on recapturing the young one.
As the story arc plays out we are treated to some affecting and emotionally engaging character development.
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Jackman and Stewart are great as always. But Dafne King is the one who really shines in her portrayal of young mutant who quite literally flips back and forth between girlhood and a terrifyingly weaponized killing machine.
The action sequences are superbly choreographed with some of the best integrated live-action and CGI sequences I’ve seen. They even best the more traditional wire-work-enabled fights in older Chinese swordplay action films.
But the characters are the thing here. If you can tolerate the phenomenal level of violence you can and should expect from these Marvel action dramas, I recommend this flick. You’ll be richly rewarded for the effort.
For aNewDomain, I’m Dennis D. McDonald.
Cover montage: movieplayer.it, All Rights Reserved.
An earlier version of this story ran on Dennis D. McDonald’s DDMCD blog. Read it here.
