NERRRRRRRRD!!! vol. 34

X-MEN: FIRST CLASS - 8.5 (hovering around 9)/10

wow.

question; where was this X-MEN movie 10 fucking years ago????

there was nothing in the trailers, promo materials, or television spots that even hinted at this being anything more than a glorified pilot for a sitcom. i've never taken more pleasure in eating my own words. its awesomness came out of nowhere, and it's nice to have been so very very wrong about where this franchise was headed. it's like ordering Dominos Pizza and getting a classic NY pie delivered to you by three beautiful women.

as commendable as Bryan Singer's X-Films were, Matthew Vaughn revealed their flaws through his own work; the main being Singer's unwillingness to embrace the more colorful aspects of the X-Men Mythos. that example was followed through the dreadful Last Stand and Origins: Wolverine, where the seemingly innumerable characters that popped up every five seconds were clad in non-descript denim 'n leather ensembles that, while taking things a bit more "seriously", ultimately had the effect of forgetfulness, as characters no longer stood out from one another. that isn't the case with First Class. here the classic blue and yellow suits are put to use, and yes, they look better than black leather onesies. Vaughn seems to also have some working knowledge of many different eras of the books, and moreso than any previous film makers in the franchise, brings them to life with taste, tact, and joy.



oh and mild SPOILERS; you will see hands down tail up the BEST Wolverine moment yet to be put to film. hopefully we'll see more of this Logan and less of the love-lorn romance novel cover boy in the future. and the final moment of the film is destined to become a classic of comic book cinema iconography. and thank fucking christ we were delivered from the awful fake Emma Frost of the Wolverine movie and given something closer to the beauty of the comic book counterpart. I don't think much of January Jones as an actress, but i kinda liked her aloof performance of Emma Frost. in many ways, it's better than if she overdid the vampiness or the iciness... cause you don't really know how she feels. I dig that she seems so bored with everyone around her... that she can even bother to be mad or intrigued by what's happening. does it have something to do with the fact that probably every mind she reads says "god damn i wanna make that pussy hurt"? probably... but i digress.

after careful deliberation, i've come to the conclusion that this is the perfect X-MEN film. It's smart, colorful, character driven, occasionally fap-worthy , peppered with relevant cameos, and makes you want more while feeling like a full meal. it also boasted a much stronger script that confronted the civil rights allegory of the series without being glowering and self-important about it.

and this is one of the best themes ever... so perfect. epic, mechanical, and makes the world seem inferior.

now don't fuck this up... again.