Logan (2017) ****/5: Very good portrayal of the Logan character but the film is clearly manipulative for various reasons and came too late for the series as a whole.

(image courtesy of superherohype.com)

It really is a pity that we had to wait this long to get such a good movie about Wolverine/Logan since his solo debut a couple years back. This film shows how great the entire series could have been but instead we’re just left with one solid entry in the series.  This is a really good superhero film because it’s a very good character study of the lead character. Some of the external elements surrounding Logan remind us of the comic book elements and they do take a bit away from the film but this film does have a certain finality to it. The final scene does hit home; this is the end of an era.  If you forget X-Men: Apocalypse this might be the end of the X-Men era that began in 2000. The film does point to a new generation of X-Men who might be taking over and Logan is simply passing on the baton. In some ways he can be likened to Moses who never got to see the promised the land after leading his people to freedom. In fact the Wolverine/Logan character has carried the franchise since the beginning. This is why the end does hit home.  The R-rating does help because we get a sense of the down trodden, gritty atmosphere and the character can finally let go of his pg-13 burden. If Deadpool was bloody it did have a lot of comic relief but Logan is the flipside with its very serious, brooding atmosphere + all the blood and severed limbs to show for it.

The film is about a dissolute Logan character that is barely getting by in the distant future , the year 2029. A large portion of mutants have all gone and there are only a very  few remaining such as Logan (High Jackman), the ever optimistic Professor X (Patrick Stewart) and Caliban (Stephen Merchant). It’s almost a post-apocalyptic X-Men world. All is not lost however because Logan is brought into contact with a mysterious girl, Laura (Dafne Keen), whose story reveals all sorts of secrets and has grave implications that will test the resolve of his character.

Positives

I have to be honest; I was never really a big fan of the X-men or the Wolverine series. I merely tolerated them. I understood the issues especially the one about mutants being outcasts but it never really sunk in. I guess I was really turned off by the third X-Men film. I was such a big fan of the animated series in the 90s that I thought the films were a letdown to some degree. I hated the first Wolverine film and I scoffed at the 2^nd film. I was also never convinced about Hugh Jackman playing Wolverine/Logan. This is the first film related to the X-Men franchise that really laid my doubts to rest. I was fully on board for this one. Hugh Jackman was really convincing this time. He showed why he really deserved the part of Logan. Maybe the R-rating helped to show what he’s really about by unleashing all his ferocity. A ferocity that has built up for decades but only shows up when he gets drunk and wasted or when he snarls at people like Caliban, telling them to leave him alone. All that changes when the girl is onboard and Logan reluctantly takes her under his wing. Logan must call on whatever strength he has left to challenge the sinister forces in the film. This film really got me involved in the world of the X-Men but like I said a film like this came too late for me when the series as a whole is taken into account. If the tone was set earlier then this could have been a major series instead of just a good solo effort within a series.

The film does have finality. I didn’t get the sense that there was some way that they could bring back Hugh Jackman  for another round and this is why the film is effective.  In this film the finality was so striking that I have to give some credit to the long running X-Men franchise and the Wolverine spin offs. Not all of the films in the series were good but the franchise still endured and it’s clear with this film that a new dawn maybe upon us sometime in the future. The younger generation will live on to continue the fight. This film really brought home why mutants are considered outcasts from humanity. I really felt it for the mutants. I’m really looking forward to the new generation of mutants. It never hit me on a gut level before and it is clear that there are still some major battles to be fought. The finality of the film was such that while I was watching the film I started to compare Logan to Moses leading his people to the promised land but unable to set foot there for various reasons. When you watch it or if you’ve watched it already you’ll get what I’m saying.

The supporting cast was superb, especially Patrick Stewart as Charles Xavier and Dafne Keen as Laura, as they try to shed some light into the darkness of Logan’s soul.

The action was brutal. At first I thought the slicing was just for convenience to make the film seem very brutal but it really does suit the character and his claws. This R-rating really gave Logan some license to go berserk. The movie has such good emotional moments that when the violence does come it feels justified. It’s not gore for gore sakes.

There are some good emotional moments and this all goes back to the finality of this film. This brings out the best in Jackman as an actor in the film’s key dramatic moments. Yeah you can feel his pain.

The film does work as a character study of Logan. I really got a sense of what makes this character tick on the inside. No I don’t mean his adamantium skeleton. Well all that used to interest some people was Logan’s adamantium skeleton, his healing ability and his macho style. Now there’s more going on to make it clear that this character does tick and it’s not just because of Jean Grey. It’s probably the best character study I have seen of a superhero in quite a while.

Negatives

The primary negative for me is that the film does seem to be too little too late for the Wolverine series. Why did they get it right only at the end of the line? I was not wholly convinced by the need for such a dramatic send off this time around. This makes the film seem very manipulative at times as if it’s reaching for something; reaching to be heartfelt. This series could easily have gone on for a while longer. So because Jackman played Logan for a long time we won’t be able to see another actor in the role just because this is Jackman’s farewell? The finality of the film suggests that this might be the end of Wolverine/Logan as we know it on film simply because Jackman won’t reprise his role. I wasn’t wholly convinced by it while watching the film.  The R-rating comes conveniently towards the end as well as  all of this drama. This doesn’t mean that it’s not a good standalone film but for the series it rings hollow. If this was a regular adventure and not a send off would the film be as affecting, even with the R-rating? Some people are even talking about this film being nominated for a best film Oscar. Hold on for a moment. The only serious nomination this film is likely to get is for Jackman’s performance.

The comic book elements are still there and although this is a good character study of Logan the villains are not as convincing. Without the character of Logan to anchor the film in a dramatic cesspool it would have lost a lot of its edge when considering the wider picture. Yes there is some tension in the film when considering the chase but the villains are not very effective. This is why I can’t rate this film as highly as The Dark Knight like so many people are trying to do.  Batman faced some great opposition in the form of the joker who pushed not only him but the city to a breaking point. The conflict was truly representative of something. The villains are almost faceless in Logan apart from the character Pierce (Boyd Holbrook) and there is some doctor rice (Richard E. Grant). It’s all a bit muddled what their intentions are and when their intentions are revealed it wasn’t a major revelation. Then the mysterious villain appears towards the end and he’s not that impressive. Spoiler alert!!! it all goes back to Logan fighting himself. This film is so Logan centric that he fights himself. Well it’s not really him but just like him in a lot of ways. Why all the mystery? It does add a bit to the suspense but it just goes to show that this film would be nothing without Logan. There is no real opposition here and it brings about good opposition when it comes to fighting but not in terms of pushing Logan. The girl is much more effective here when it comes to pushing him than any villain. The villain seemed to be there for mere comic book convenience or spectacle. Better that they just let the villains be representative of the system and Logan’s relationship with the girl would have been the primary focus. I would rather see what’s going on inside Logan’s head than see him fight a cloned version of himself. If that’s what they’re going for with the character study. I was really hoping for it to be a Sabretooth kind of villain.

The film strengths are also its weaknesses. It’s good that they have a character study on Logan but they focus too much on trying to portray his downfall and not giving the other situation or the bigger picture the chance to be developed properly. The young girl and her story are also important but we really focus a lot on Logan’s bitter and crestfallen character. Just imagine if he was a more upbeat and lively character. We wouldn’t be so distracted. But this is the end as they say. His bitterness is more like a certain weariness of the franchise in general. Hence why it only comes out in the end. There are no more real battles to be fought and so a broken Logan is more representative of the end of it all and not in a good way. No more gas in the creative tank and so when it’s all stripped bare then there’s not much else left to be said. All that remains is the bitterness and the depression. It’s reflective of a more destructive template than a genuine creative one.  The introduction of the Laura was so crucial here. For me it’s the film’s one saving grace and yes I know that was the intention but what does that say about the character of Logan.