Review: The Wolverine
This movie confirms one thing beyond any question of doubt- film critics and movie reviews cannot always be trusted. It really is asking too much of a person to see meaning in a piece of cinematic art in which the cast and crew have put their heart and soul and be called a critic at the same time. You are lauded for highlighting the mistakes and not for giving a movie a 5/5.
But what Hugh Jackman does in The Wolverine transcends film reviews. We finally get the immense pleasure of watching a movie about Logan- mutant, X-man and former war veteran who has forgotten that he was once The Wolverine. Living as a hermit in The Yukon, he is haunted by the ghost of Jean Grey, the woman he loved and had to kill. Famke Janessan reprises her role as Grey as the movie serves as a ‘quasi’ sequel the ‘X-men: The Last Stand’.
These dream sequences of Logan and Jean give real depth to the movie and lead Logan to question his immortality. He is soon sought by Yukio, a mysterious ninja who takes him to Tokyo in the name of ‘old debts’ that need to be repaid.
Director James Mangold takes a simplistic approach through the story and instead of shoehorning mutant after mutant, focuses on the journey of a broken man suffering from immortality and the chance he has to finally give it away.
This rather serious storyline doesn’t however detract from the action pieces which take the movie to another level altogether. The bullet train sequence in particular is breath-taking! The Wolverine is there in all his teeth-gnashing, snarl-infused and adamantium-clawed glory and the work put in by Jackman to train for this role is there for all to see as this is one of the most muscled avatars of Logan yet!
This movie is a breath of fresh air that stands alone and does so proudly! I watched this movie not only because I am a dedicated wolvie fan but because I believe that Hugh Jackman is a true comic-book nerd at heart and he knows what we want…and isn’t afraid to give us just that. That qualifies more than any review as a reason to watch The Wolverine.
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About the Author: Puneet Wagh
