So I went to the theatre by myself today, classy I know, but there was no way I was going to pass up on going to watch X-Men: First Class on opening night at a Silvercity VIP Theatre. I’d heard about these classy alcohol serving movie theatres but had never been to one before. I was pleasantly surprised at how cool it was seeing as it was only an extra $5. There were leather seats (sadly no recliners), reserved seating, a licensed lounge, in-seat food/beverage service, and a full restaurant menu – it was pretty sweet.

As for the movie, what can I say other than – it’s about damn time; finally a new X-Men film that didn’t shit the bed! This is not only one of the best films in the X-Men franchise but probably one of the best in the superhero genre. It had an intelligent plot, well developed characters, great pacing and nowhere during the film did I want to smash my head against the wall like during the last two films. It was a solid combination of action, sci-fi, drama and a hint of Bond. And to get it out of the way now, there is no reason to wait until after the credits like most marvel films, no extras sadly.

The film is a prequel to the previous X-Men movies and is set with the backdrop of the 1960’s during the Cold War although, its central focus is on the relationship between the young Charles Xavier/Professor X and Erik Lehnsherr/Magneto. James McAvoy as Professor X and Michael Fassbender as Magneto did an amazing job of bringing these two characters to life with some great on screen chemistry. Fassbender’s portrayal of Magneto was seriously bad ass; he was the anti-hero all the way and oddly (in a good way) the most relatable. I also have to mention Kevin Bacon as Sebastian Shaw, more films need Kevin Bacon to play villains – he was great.

The story for the film was written by Bryan Singer, one of my favorite directors and the director of the first two X-Men films. The film also had 4 screenwriters who wrote some amazing dialogue, although I would say there were a couple moments during the film when the writing almost went a little “campy” – of course now I’m just nit-picking – but I guess I should also mention there was one moment when I felt like JJ Abrams got behind the camera to add some excessive lens flare, and it wouldn’t have hurt if they spent a little more money on the CG, but again, small complaints.

Overall this was an incredible film, my favorite of the year so far. I really hope this re-invigorates the X-Men franchise and we start to see more great flicks in this universe. X-Men graphic novels are one of the only series that I collect (Ultimate X-Men that is) and I really love the story lines that writers are able to tell within the context of the X-Men characters trials and tribulations. Also I guess I’ll always have a soft spot for the X-Men as I used to watch the good ol’ Fox cartoon back in the 90’s. And with that here’s…

Today’s Pro Tip: Go to the closest movie theatre and see X-Men: First Class. If you like good movies, you’ll like this film, you don’t need to be a comic book nerd or have even seen the previous films to like this. Good film is good.

Shane Lamotte
www.LivingIllusion.com

PS I forgot to mention the best quote from the movie – “Go Fuck Yourself” – doesn’t work nearly as well without context – or at all – you’ll just have to watch it yourself to understand it’s sheer awesomeness. 🙂