I would like to say some things about this movie having watched over the last weekend. I was very critical of the film when it first came out. You can read that post here. I still stand by a couple of those statements in my initial reaction to the film but now realize I was being overly critical of others. I think my expectations for the film were higher than I was willing to admit. I have loved the X-Men since I was a little kid and can’t help but anticipate any incarnation in film. I am getting more and more excited for the next X-Men movie with every bit of releasing news because it is shaping up to have all the potential of what X-Men 3 should have been. Given that excitement I decided to revisit this film and watch it with fresh eyes.
After watching the movie again I am willing to admit I was wrong about many things. I don’t agree after second viewing that Michael Fsssbender was overacting. He was incredible in the part in fact and I think he is a great actor. I also disagree with the statement that the film wasn’t engaging or interesting. It is an interesting movie and I did find myself really tuned in when the climax was approaching. I also think that while January Jones may not have been very good in the film that it really doesn’t matter if she was or not. She manages to look really hot in the outfits they have her dressed in and does anything else really matter? I stand by the statement that Jennifer Lawrence was miscast and not good in the film. I know it’s blasphemous to say so now with her having just won the Academy Award but I just don’t like her. This movie is probably the biggest reason why I don’t. I don’t like what she is wearing in this movie and I don’t like the pouty chipmunk expression on her face in most of the film. I also don’t really like that Mystique and Xavier grew up together in the film. I think the film would have been better served to have Cyclops and Iceman on the team instead of Havok and Banshee, but I guess they were looking for continuity with the other films and in that case Iceman wouldn’t have worked. I do and did like Kevin Bacon in the film despite what I said in my previous post. I am a fan of Kevin Bacon and it was nice to see him in a significant role again. Lastly, I still stand by what I said about James McAvoy. I think he sucks and I thought he was horrible in the part. Michael Fassbender makes a great young Magneto in the shadow of the great Sir Ian McKellan, but McAvoy doesn’t do this next to Patrick Stewart. As I said in the first review he seems to think Professor X had some kind of button on his temple that activated his power. It makes the ridiculous actor look even stupider playing the part.
With all that being said I would like to apologize for my initial reaction. This wasn’t a perfect movie but it was good and I found myself enjoying it the second time around. I will probably buy it one day eventually, when I see it marked down to an overly reasonable price. I like to be the kind of person that willingly admits when I am wrong so here you have it. I was not right about this one and I think it is worth your time.