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X-Men: First Class (2011)

5 Stars

1 votes

4.5 Stars

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3.5 Stars

5 votes

3 Stars

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2.5 Stars

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1.5 Stars

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1 Star

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.5 Stars

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TransMonk Jun 13 2011 08:50 AM

I went to see this one on Saturday. I typically enjoy the X Men movies, although each one that they make seems to get worse and worse. I admired the first couple of films for their ability to combine a good action movie with a good deal of the social metaphors contained in the comic books. I thought this movie was better than the Wolverine prequel, but was still not on par with the original trilogy. Set in 1962, this movie did a great job with costumes and sets that made it a very believable period piece. The special effects were good and the action kept the excitement going through the whole film. The acting was hit and miss. James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender as Charles Xavier and Magneto were awesome in my opinion. They did a great job of playing younger versions of the characters already established in the original films. Kevin Bacon also did a fine job as the main antagonist in the film. I thought all of the female actors in this movie fell flat. January Jones was pretty awful (but if you’ve read any review of this film, you already know that). Jennifer Lawrence as Mystique was passable considering that her character seemed poorly written in the screenplay. Rose Byrne bordered on annoying in her role as a human CIA agent. The other young mutants were OK…it will be interesting to see how they develop in sequels. I guess my biggest problem with this movie was the plot. Prequels are hard to do…the writers have to go backward from something that is already established. I thought they did fine with Professor X and Magneto. But it’s hard for me to swallow that Mystique was so close to Xavier for so long when there is no indication of that in the original trilogy. Many of the X Men from the original trilogy are either referenced or have cameos in First Class, so it is not as if the writers were ignoring other relationships. I’ll put some spoilers below where this movie either confused me or insulted my intelligence. Even with the plot holes, I enjoyed this one. The X Men always provide an exciting 2 hours of fun. This was the first time in about a year that I have visited a movie theater. I don’t read the comics, so I’m sure some will enjoy this one more or less depending on their opinion of the comics. But I give it 3.5 out of 5 stars. SPOILERS/HEAD SCRATCHERS: Why doesn’t boy-aged Erik kill Shaw when he freaks out after his mother is shot? He obviously has the ability because he killed everyone else in the room. Why was Havoc in jail when we first meet him? Why isn’t there any reference to him being related to Scott? I suppose these could be cleared up in sequels. How does Hank know how to fly a plane? Why can’t Magneto find the submarine near the end of the film? Can’t he detect metal? Instead Banshee has to be converted into human sonar. I thought Hank designed the X Men suits to be bulletproof…how does Xavier get shot? What happened to Xavier’s parents? Again, I suppose the sequels may clear that up. If the CIA knows about Xavier’s powers, and they want to find him, why wouldn’t they just go to where he lives (where they academy is)? Xavier wipes agent MacTaggert’s memory, but that shouldn’t stop them from knowing about where he is. The Hugh Jackman cameo was the best part of the movie, IMO.

Benjamin Grimm Jun 13 2011 08:58 AM Re: X-Men: First Class (2011)

I also gave it 3.5. I liked it a lot, although your first Head-Scratcher occurred to me too, and was nagging at me throughout the entire movie. They should have come up with some explanation for that. I think it was the second-best of the X-Men movies. (I should point out that I didn't see Wolverine.) I liked First Class more than the first and third movies of the original trilogy. X-Men 2 remains my favorite X-Men movie.

Vic Sage Jun 13 2011 10:18 AM Re: X-Men: First Class (2011) Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Jun 14 2011 10:44 AM

i liked it, 3.5 too. It has that 60s Cold War Bondian adventure feeling. I think Fassbinder would make a great Bond, by the way. I liked Jennifer Lawrence a LOT, but i agree that her relationship with Charles doesn't adequately set up their subsequent relationship in the original trilogy. And that's what you want from a good prequel... to feel like it feeds naturally into what you already know. This didn't do that well enough in alot of areas. From a comic book perspective, they wasted the Hellfire club and Sebastion Shaw, and Bacon as a nazi mad scientist? feh. still, there was a lot of good stuff, too. entertaining, overall. I'd rank them: X2 = **** X-MEN = ***1/2 X-MEN: 1ST CLASS = ***1/2 X-MEN (1992 Animated tv series) = *** WOLVERINE AND THE X-MEN (2008 animtated tv series) = *** X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE = **1/2 X-MEN: EVOLUTION (2000 animated tv series) = ** X-MEN 3: LAST STAND = ** GENERATION X = *

Edgy MD Jun 14 2011 07:58 AM Re: X-Men: First Class (2011)

Prequels are the way the game is going. Studios get to extend the brand with no obligation to re-assemble the cast, or necessity to amplify the action to incoherence.

Nymr83 Jun 18 2012 09:32 AM Re: X-Men: First Class (2011)

I was avoiding this thread until I saw. The movie, which I finally watched last night. I can't see the bottom part of transmonk's post on my blackberry (is it a chart?) I gave it 3.5 stars bc I liked the movie but there was a whole lot I didn't like: -Marvel seems way too focused lately on Magneto as the holocaust survivor anti-hero, where'd our VILLAIN go? Was he ever a "nazi hunter" in the comic books? I don't remember itm. -forgetting the comic book, Mystique's character was wildly inconsistent even with the other movies. -these weren't the original xmen!! Why would you have Alex Summers and where was his older brother? I don't even know who the girl with the wings or the guy Shaw killed at the CIA headquarters were. -I would have rather seen (albeit a longer movie) a young cyclops/jean/beast/iceman/angel (even though the movies had already established bobby as a much younger charcter than the others), Xavier's rift with Magneto could have come earlier and allowed Magneto to act as a third wheel out for personal revenge on Shaw without caring how the missile crisis turned out while X and the team tried to stop it. -casting for Banshee was terrible -they stole the villain's secret submarine straight from a bond movie -Emma Frost and Beast were nice inclusions, and its nice that they managed to throw Moira Mctaggert in there to show her relationship with Xavier, but was she a CIA agent? I thought she was a scientist. -the historical setting of the cuban missile crisis was excellent and they did it well, this helped the movie's grade a lot more than the charcters (other than Xavier, Magneto, and Beast who I thought were very well cast and played)

TransMonk Jun 18 2012 10:55 AM Re: X-Men: First Class (2011)

Sorry...you have to highlight the bottom of my post in order to see...the text is the same color as the background.

Nymr83 Jun 18 2012 12:45 PM Re: X-Men: First Class (2011)

Ah yes! Why doesn’t boy-aged Erik kill Shaw when he freaks out after his mother is shot? He obviously has the ability because he killed everyone else in the room. Given what we see of Shaw's powers, Erik may NOT have the ability at that point in time... BUT Erik wouldn't have known that so your point stands. Big plot hole. Why was Havoc in jail when we first meet him? Why isn’t there any reference to him being related to Scott? I suppose these could be cleared up in sequels. I guess you just need to see what the sequel says, but at least in the comics Alex/Scott were orphaned and seperated at a young age. How does Hank know how to fly a plane? I'm unclear if that's in the comic, but Beast was a not-infrequent pilot of the Blackbird in the 1990's X-men cartoon (far superior to wolverine and the x-men btw for anyone who likes cartoons) Why can’t Magneto find the submarine near the end of the film? Can’t he detect metal? Instead Banshee has to be converted into human sonar. This seems inconsistent with his knowledge that the swiss banker had metal fillings that he could manipulate. I thought Hank designed the X Men suits to be bulletproof…how does Xavier get shot? Aren't plot holes fun? I hadn't even thought of that one. The best I can offer is that this particular bullet didn't come straight from the gun but was deflected by Magneto, perhaps at a higher velocity than originally fired and too fast for 1960's equivalent of kevlar to stop it What happened to Xavier’s parents? Again, I suppose the sequels may clear that up. In the comics, his father is a deceased nuclear scientist his mother marries Juggernaut's father but she soon dies (natural causes I think?) If the CIA knows about Xavier’s powers, and they want to find him, why wouldn’t they just go to where he lives (where they academy is)? Xavier wipes agent MacTaggert’s memory, but that shouldn’t stop them from knowing about where he is. I'm guessing if anyone ever came looking he'd give them the equivalent of "these aren't the droids you're looking for" The Hugh Jackman cameo was the best part of the movie, IMO. A very funny moment.