X-Men: First Class Reviews

Overall this wasn't a bad movie. I personally believe it was mistitled. THis movie was more X-Men Origins: Professor X & Magneto mixed into on movie. As an avid comic collector I'm personally insulted that they even called this movie X-Men 1st Class when there was only 2 members of that group in the movie Professor X & Beast. But as fas as the movie itself goes it was good. Best Movie of the Summer? I would have to say no to that. I can name at least 2 movies I found 10 x better this movie. And it's definately not the best X-Men movie either. If you're not a die hard X-Men fan like myself, then you'll probably love this movie and give it praise. If you remotely know anything about the Marvel universe and the X-Men you'll most likely have mixed feelings about this movie like I did.

After the studio set a release date for the third film in the franchise, X-Men: The Last Stand, without any director or screenwriter in place, they finally hired Matthew Vaughn who wisely got the hell out of dodge. When the screenplay details were finally revealed, X-Men: The Last Stand reeked of studio interference, and after the film premiered the stories came confirming that, yes indeed, the studio demanded certain characters, storylines, deaths be included. And by the time X-Men Origins: Wolverine came about it, with its director who came from an arthouse background and had never made a big budget film before, the very trailer left the bitter aftertaste of studio tinkering, reshoots, cuts and forced in storylines and characters. So, you’ll forgive me if I went into X-Men First Class with the greatest amounts of dread and misgivings. X-Men: First Class mercifully atones for the studio’s two previous missteps in the X-Men franchise. It’s better than Thor, but still fails to reach the heights of X2: X-Men United or Iron Man.

Continuity has always been a major problem with the film translations of the X-Men. We had three different Kitty Prydes, two different Jubilees, two Pyros, and those are just the casting continuity errors. In X-Men we were clearly told that Cyclops, Jean Grey and Storm were among the first students under Xaiver, and that Magneto helped Xaiver build Cerebro. So when I heard that Cyclops, Jean Grey and Storm weren’t going to be in this film, I might have face-palmed. Instead we’re given a team of B and C-list characters. For the most part, this actually works in the films favor. Havok, Banshee and Darwin have translated beautifully, even if Havok and Banshee barely resemble their comic book counterparts. Mystique’s revision to essentially be the movie-verse’s variation on Juggernaut is only mildly successful. Chalk that one up to Jennifer Lawrence’s only so-so performance. Whereas Rebecca Romijn left an inedible impression with a few words and a weighty presence, a combination of modelesque fighter and venomous reptile, Lawrence is mopey more than anything else. The choice of Angel, better known as Tempest in the comics, in the film is a giant “What the fuck?” And Zoe Kravitz does little but pout and dance around in the role. Angel II was a dumb character in the comics, and she never translates. Sure, it’s great to show a character who proves that not all mutations are as cool as telepathy, weather control, or energy beams from your eyes, but there’s better characters to choose from if that was the intention.

To my surprise since he’s so hilariously miscast, Nicolas Hoult’s performance as a young Beast is a true highlight. The character is perfectly written, and Hoult’s great performance only adds to the tragedy when his experiment turns him into a giant blue fuzzy fighting machine. The makeup choice of the more feline-looking Beast turns out to be much better than the Kelsey Grammar version of the character. I miss the big blue monkey look, but this version translated beautifully. And once he finally becomes blue and furry, Hoult’s pretty-boy good looks don’t distract from the fact that Beast has always been a short, stocky, brick wall of a person, even before he changed into a furry, blue monkey.

But the X-Men cannot ban together and learn to comingle in a vacuum. They need a villain, or a group of villains, to fight against. And we’re given a very loose interpretation of the Hellfire Club. Still led by Sebastian Shaw, played by Kevin Bacon as an old school Bond villain whose a combination of pure malice and camp, with a second-in-command Emma Frost, written correctively but January Jones turns in easily the worst performance in the film, they plot to start the war that played in the original trilogy by making the Cuban Missile Crisis happen. Azazel and Riptide being shoe-horned in originally gave me some gripes since they’re either fairly new additions or just plain stupid characters. Azazel turned out pretty cool after being given a spooky and intimidating scene in which he single handedly takes out a group of CIA officials. Riptide doesn’t do much, and could have easily been written as any other character and we all would have been better off.

But the true heart of the film, and the thing that elevates it from mediocre sub-Connery-era Bond-wannabe to revisionist comic book entertainment, is the central relationship between Xaiver and Magneto as played by James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender. Without these two in the lead roles, X-Men: First Class would not have worked let alone been as enthralling and engaging as it turned out to be. While the revisionist origin story of Magneto did slightly make my comic book nerd have an eye-twitch fit, it does eventually pay off and makes logical sense within the film. (It could have been more interesting and true to character if they had used Mr. Sinister as the main villain with his group of mutates, but here’s hoping he’ll pop up in a sequel.) In fact, the first half truly belongs to Fassbender and McAvoy as they lay out the decisions and workings of their characters that eventually led to the original trilogy.

Fassbender’s Magneto grows up to be a Nazi hunter, looking for one in particular who has haunted his nightmares and waking life. These early sections play out like he’s auditioning to take over the Bond franchise whenever Daniel Craig decides to retire the title. His performance oscillates wildly between a wild animal fighting for freedom and a raw exposed nerve. While McAvoy’s Xaiver is in swinging 60s London, going for his doctorate in human mutations, living with his adopted sister Mystique and hitting on anything in a skirt that crosses his eyeline. But there’s also a stillness and grounded presence about him. It isn’t hard to see how he will eventually become the fatherly Xaiver. And when they finally do start to form a friendship, it harkens back to the best moments from the comics. Often, literally, feeling like passages and scenes from the comics have been translated verbatim even if they actually haven’t.

X-Men: First Class is a very entertaining prequel in the franchise and finally sets it back on track, but poor character choices, fast-and-loose continuity shifts from the established films, a few bad performances and wasted opportunities keep it from being a truly great comic book film. But practically every major summer movie has been lackluster this year, and in a year that sees four comic book films fighting for prominence, just being good and entertaining isn’t going to cut it anymore. The Dark Knight proved that audiences wanted smartly written, fully developed comic movies and would eat them up. Not every movie has to be that dark, but it would be nice if more comic book movies were left in the hands of competent writers and directors and the studios took a more hands-off approach. So far, X-Men: First Class is the best of bunch. But let’s see what Captain America and Green Lantern have to offer.

When Charles Xaiver meets a shapes shifting girl named Raven Darkholme in his kitchen at age 12 they realize that genetic mutation may be happening and the world should embrace it. At the same time Erik Lensherr is being ruthlessly tortured in a Nazi concentration camp. As they grow older Charles goes off to explore the idea of genetic mutations while Erik vows to exact revenge on the man who killed his mother. The year is now 1962, and the Russians and the Americans are on the brink of war, and Sebastian Shaw captures this as an opportunity to try and kill the human race and let the world be run by those who are deemed different by humanity. Xavier with the help of Lensherr and the CIA put together a team of “Mutants” to help stop the threat of war.

The X-Men universe has always been such a diversified world, with many different mutants coming from many different backgrounds all of whom have their own exceptional gift. When the original X-Men was released back in 2000 we were treated to a blockbuster delight of the original players we had grown up with including Wolverine, Cyclops, Jean Grey and Storm. A long with them you had the Brotherhood consisting of Magneto, Toad, Sabretooth and Mystique. When they had a string of mildly successful sequels and a Wolverine spinoff, it was essentially a matter of time before they made another. When the concept of X-Men first class was released, going back to pre first film dates it was a bit of an iffy idea because everyone believed it would be a direct lead in to a series that grew increasingly worse as it went.

However, the final product that is X-Men:First Class has the potential to become either a direct lead in or another series all together, and I would much prefer it to become its own series. The main reason it would work much better as a new series is because it would be cool to the same mutants re-used while adding more as they go. Instead if they lead into the old series they have major plot holes to overcome, like the brotherhood and the first class already have been formed with different members. What X-Men first class does rather well, which the previous films failed to do was establish the connection between Charles Xavier and Erik Lensherr before the events of the first film.

MacAvoy and Fassbender had chemistry that the multi talented Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen never seemed to have. They acted like brothers, a bond that was unique and fragile but a bond none the less. Their performances capture much more emotion then those of Stewart and McKellen which is a tough thing to do. Where McKellen and Stewart drew the crowd and gave good performances, X-Men first class drew the crowd because it was an honest and true adaptation featuring many talented young stars. Nicholas Hoult provided a well rounded depiction of Hank McCoy/Beast, a very true and real transformation took place through out the film and it worked rather well. Jennifer Lawrence replaced the beautiful Rebbeca Romijn-Stamos as Mystique and proved that Mystique is a beautiful character in her natural and human forms. Kevin Bacon as Sebastian Shaw was such a fun character to watch take form on the screen. Bacon fit in with such and ease that his villainous Shaw was grand and portrayed the way villains should be. January Jones was exquisite as Emma Frost, who had the least affect on the films overall plot, but to see her in diamond form was just another piece of eye candy in a solid flick.

Perhaps the one thing that really brought the film down was the slightly cheesy cameo from Hugh Jackman as Wolverine, rather unnecessary and did not make any slight difference to the plotline. In fact it brought back memories of the horrid conclusion to the original trilogy and the spinoff that destroyed many of the cool characters found in the comic books. With this film, Marvel had a chance to begin what could be a lengthy but well developed X-Men series, and cameos likes the one here bring down hope slightly down that they can maintain quality films without just cashing in for money.

Second thing that really got me down was the ending; it brought us back to what we had already established about the X-Men universe. Xavier was going to teach, and Magneto was going to call himself Magneto, we really did not need cheesy lines to tell us this was going to happen. As X-Men fans, it was safe to assume this was going to naturally happen. With the old X-Men films as mentioned, there was the standard core of the well known X-Men.With this series quality and well developed characters may be the driving factor instead of what is the obvious choice. It would be cooler to see Mutants we haven’t seen before then to see a terrible rehashing of the same old mutants from the other movies.

Marvel has a tendency to follow up with terrible sequels, Including Iron Man 2 and Fantastic 4: Rise of Silver Surfer. Heres to hoping that we are about to see a brand new take on the X-Men universe as well as some of the lesser known characters and storylines from such a diverse world. X-Men: First Class proves that telling the story from beginning to end is the only way to tell a story. Capture everything that happens a long the way and it will be one magnificent story.

"Tomorrow, mankind will know that mutants exist. They will fear us, and that fear will turn to hatred."

Smartly rebooting the X-Men series after two substandard instalments (X-Men: The Last Stand and X-Men Origins: Wolverine), Matthew Vaughn's X-Men: First Class proves there is still mileage left in the blockbuster brand; not only living up to high expectations but also exceeding them with confidence. A discontinuity prequel which remains true to the already-established series mythology while at the same time revitalising the franchise with new ideas and fresh blood, the X-Men series is finally in the hands of filmmakers truly able to handle the mix of big action, genuine intelligence and drama the series demands, not to mention First Class is grounded in the socio-political allegory for civil rights, conformity and social misfits that made X-Men more than your average comic in the first place. Rather than a generic action film, this is a character-focused story, though the material never plods thanks to stylish technique, proficient pacing, and engaging dialogue. In a solid summer season (with Thor exceeding expectations in particular), First Class has arrived to declare itself the new king of summer 2011.

We first meet Charles Xavier (McAvoy) and Erik Lehnsherr (Fassbender) as kids during WWII; Charles grew up privileged in Westchester and took in fellow mutant girl Raven, a.k.a. Mystique (Lawrence), while Erik suffered in a Nazi concentration camp at the hands of Sebastian Shaw (Bacon). As adults in the early 1960s, Charles is a powerful telepath and swinging bachelor who attends Oxford specialising in genetic mutation, and Erik has matured into a killing machine looking to exact vengeance on Shaw. At this time, though, Shaw has gathered a powerful group of mutants and is determined to wreak nuclear havoc on a global scale. With Shaw and his mutant team organising a master plan to initiate World War III off the shores of Cuba, C.I.A. agent Moira MacTaggert (Byrne) recruits Charles who in turn begins assembling a team of mutants in the hope of stopping Shaw. In the midst of this, a tentative friendship is struck up between Charles and the frustrated Erik which is threatened by Erik's recklessness and unpredictability.

Bryan Singer claimed producer and story credits for First Class, and his influence reverberates all throughout the production. Fortunately, this film was in sturdy hands with Matthew Vaughn (Kick-Ass, Layer Cake) and his trio of co-writers, who made First Class respectfully reverent to its predecessors while also doing enough to prevent it from feeling like a retread. Interestingly, the film kicks off with a recreation of the opening of the original X-Men film from 2000, as child Erik finds his powers while trying to save his mother in a Nazi camp. It may seem redundant to remake an 11-year-old scene, yet the occurrence is an essential part of Erik's traumatic origin story which is further explored throughout the film. By allowing this prequel the room to develop characters and thus breathe and percolate, First Class is a more real and personal story, making it far more thoughtful than typical superhero actioners. The film also dips its toes in other genres, with the globe-trotting narrative and villainous machinations reminiscent of a classic James Bond film, while team recruitment scenes possess the hip energy of a crime caper like the Ocean's Eleven remake. First Class' only narrative flaw is that it rushes a few details and tries to cram all the essentials into a single 130-minute picture.

Director Vaughn was originally scheduled to helm X-Men 3 but dropped out at the last minute due to lack of creative control. He ultimately cut his teeth in the superhero genre with last year's Kick-Ass, but First Class is far removed from Kick-Ass in both style and tone. Luckily, as heady and grave as First Class is at times, it's also fun, with a vibrant colour palette allowing the picture to actually look like an X-Men movie. Photographed by veteran John Mathieson, the film additionally possesses an authentic edge rather than feeling like a dull trudge through studio sets. The action sequences are big and inventive, with a handful of oddball character zipping around the place using their various powers in combat, but it all feels real and immediate on top of being fun. By the time the impressive climax in Cuba arrives, the excitement and thrills feel well-earned after focusing on dramatic growth. The digital effects are solid for the most part but occasionally a little rocky, probably due to the rushed post-production schedule. Henry Jackson's accompanying score is generically engaging and suitable, though it may've benefitted from a more John Barry-esque zing to fit the setting, and it lacks a proper distinctive hero theme.

Another strength of X-Men: First Class is the almost faultless cast. The boundlessly charismatic, solid James McAvoy plays a Charles Xavier that's utterly foreign to us. A walking, drinking, womaniser with a full head of hair, McAvoy's interpretation is less staid and noble, and more human. In fact, his take on the soon-to-be Professor X is so refreshing that, as the finale approaches and familiar characteristics begin to surface, it's somewhat disappointing. Michael Fassbender is equally excellent as Erik/Magneto, who grows up to be a globe-trotting, multilingual Nazi hunter with a splash of James Bond and a touch of Hannibal Lector. Fassbender afforded a badass edge to the role and has an indomitably strong presence. More than that, Fassbender's portrayal keeps Magneto in the gray zone between good and evil where he belongs. McAvoy and Fassbender do not look much like their elderly counterparts from earlier X-Men films (Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellan, respectively), but the stars do effectively capture both their souls and the tricky bond they share. Meanwhile, as Sebastian Shaw, Kevin Bacon obviously had an absolute ball; hamming it up and chewing the scenery accordingly. The supporting performances are almost all terrific, with each one individualising themselves even if their roles are comparatively compact. Nicholas Hoult (About a Boy) is particularly good as Hank McCoy, whose transformation into Beast makes for an intriguing character arc. (It's also fascinating to see Hoult all grown up!) The only thing approaching a weak link is January Jones, who lacks range as Emma Frost.

X-Men: First Class works so well on multiple levels. As an origin story it's patient and respectful of its source material. As a summer blockbuster it contains a handful of outstanding action set-pieces complementing a tense plot that's politically relevant despite its '60s setting. And finally, as an X-Men movie it taps all the right geek chords (there is one surprise cameo in particular that's beautifully played and absolutely hilarious). Vaughn and his crew were able to keep First Class connected to the previous films while also launching it as its own series. The fact that blockbusters of this high calibre can still be produced within the Hollywood system (and not be in 3-D!) gives hope for the future of summer filmmaking.

9.2/10

According to the credits, it took four people to put together the screenplay for X-MEN: FIRST CLASS. With that tidbit in mind after having seen the film, here's the mental picture that I instantly get: those four people sitting at a table skimming over X-Men comic books, skipping through a scene or two of the three films that were released during the 2000s, and perhaps most important of all, putting check marks on a list of all the "requirements" that you need to make a standard-order superhero origin story. And that's the exact result we get here. X-MEN: FIRST CLASS is a serviceable summer movie, all right, but that's as far as it goes. There's no pizzazz here, no desire to push the envelope in any way, no motivation to show us anything other than familiar characters making use of the "cool" powers they've been blessed with, and no interest in at least giving a fresh spin to a story we've seen told several times.

For those who think that it's pointless for originality to be found in a film like this one due to the fact that it's an origin story, I suggest you go back one month and remember what Kenneth Branagh gave us with THOR: the film was an origin story, to be sure, but there was certainly no lack of fresh character development, strong acting and witty dialogue. It's too bad that the same can't be said for the latest entry into the X-MEN canon. If that were all, I may have still relented and given it a thumbs up and told you that "it's still an entertaining enough summer movie," but there's another aspect of it that irks me on a more personal level. The film is interested in celebrating what it means to be different, to be a geek, a dork, an outsider. But holy crap, does it try hard to jam its ideas about this issue hard into the audience members' heads and hearts. Have you ever had someone try so hard to convince you of something, and reiterate their arguments over and over to the point that you stop believing them? That's what happens here. The following lines are all scattered throughout the script of X-MEN: FIRST CLASS, and I have no doubt I may have even missed a few others:

"You're not alone!"
"You want society to accept you, but you can't even accept yourself!"
"We shouldn't be trying to fit in to society!"

The above lines have the effect of minimizing the film's celebration of being offbeat into a cliche rather than giving it the subtle dramatic effectiveness it deserved. Those lines are designed to be enjoyed by the mainstream audience of non-outsiders who will be watching the film and need points to be driven hard into their heads in order to understand them ("Oooh, I get it! They're weird and wanna be accepted!"). These lines aren't designed to emotionally connect with us offbeat people, because the falsity and the conventionality render that connection impossible. Somehow, I have a hard time believing that any of these four screenwriters was ever taunted by the popular kids in high school. As a card-carrying member of the "geeks and outsiders" club, I find the film to border on the offensive because of the horribly simplistic way in which it goes about dealing with this subject.

The film does get off to a good start, though. As an origin story, X-MEN: FIRST CLASS gives us a prologue in which we literally get to see the origins of both Charles Xavier (James McAvoy) and Erik Lehnsherr (Michael Fassbender), who will later, of course, be known as Professor X and Magneto, respectively. The film does do a terrific job at tying the story's fictional elements with historical events related to World War II in the prologue and then later with events connected to the Cuban Missile Crisis. The historical context is drawn organically and never feels forced or off-putting.

Charles and Erik certainly benefit from the powers that their mutant status have blessed them with, and it also helps that they have the help of Raven (Jennifer Lawrence), who has the ability to change shapes, but the complications of the plot lead them to need to start recruiting, which is why they set out to find other mutants around the world. After finding them, an "intense" training period begins. I say "intense" in quotation marks, though, because the training montage in X-MEN: FIRST CLASS is mediocre at best. We've seen plenty of training montages in other films, so to see one that is so workmanlike is nothing short of dispiriting.

But there's an even more serious issue with the whole aspect of the recruited mutants. The film tries to be as politically correct as possible by including two racial minorities in the group (one male and one female, of course), and to make matters worse, the screenwriters reveal their, um, true colors, when they have to decide which two of the recruits to get rid of, and it turns out that it's the two racial minorities (one dies, and the other turns over to the dark side). So, before we're even slightly close to the climax, our group of good guys is entirely composed of nice and appealing white folks. Once again, this film may try to make you think that it's a celebration of being offbeat and different, but it's nothing more than a vehicle to satisfy the cravings of mainstream audiences and to give them exactly what they're comfortable seeing and nothing that even slightly differs from that. Oh, and any argument of "But wait, that's how it happened in the comic books!" is not valid, because a filmmaker who does this type of movie has not only the freedom to decide which elements of the comic books to use and not use, but he/she also has the responsibility to pick and adapt the elements that will make the story as effective and interesting as possible.

All moral qualms aside, I'll admit that a more effective climax may have still saved the movie. But no such luck. The special effects in X-MEN: FIRST CLASS are so generic, its action sequences so lackluster, and its "final battle" scenes so lacking in high-octane excitement, that one honestly just watches it because it's a requirement to get through those scenes in order for the film to finally come to its satisfying close. The more severe sin that the film commits during its final moments is that it does a poor job of developing the moral conflict that the character of Erik experiences as he waffles with the decision over which side to choose. Sure, some may argue that "everyone already knows" the path that Magneto ultimately takes, but that's no excuse for a film's dramatic core not to exploit one of its most emotionally significant elements. Considering how good Michael Fassbender's performance is, this is a real shame. Fassbender is, without a doubt, the star of X-MEN: FIRST CLASS, perfectly capturing all dimensions of Erik's personality and effortlessly displaying that line "between anger and serenity" that the film's plot requires of him. Give him a better film or even a masterful one (as was the case with INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS), and he would've shone greatly.

The rest of the cast is largely disappointing. James McAvoy can do great things when asked to play vulnerable and emotionally feeble characters. I think it has something to do with the fact that there's a hint of nervousness in his voice when he talks and with the fact that he has a general look of fragility. That produced great results when he played the subordinate in THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND and when he played the apprentice in WANTED, but when asked to take on a leadership role as is the case in X-MEN: FIRST CLASS, there's an inevitable feeling that he's miscast. This reeks of "let's cast this guy because he's a known name and good-looking" and it's really too bad. Jennifer Lawrence is severely hampered by the script's limitations, especially because the forced plot element of supposedly cherishing "being different" centers mostly around her character, and she's asked to deliver a couple of eyebrow-raising lines. There's little to say about the supporting players. In the role of Alex Summers, Lucas Till does a lot of standing around trying to look as Captain America-like as possible, while Kevin Bacon plays the same snarky villain that he has already played in oodles of films (he does it effectively enough, but it's one of those things where you can't help but feel like he's just revisiting a persona that he's already played before).

X-MEN: FIRST CLASS is the type of cinematic effort for which the cast and crew got nice paychecks, and its makers will likely be satisfied with the box office returns; any sense of passion or of an interest in making something better than average or of working harder than necessary to make something special is completely out of consideration here. I said that THOR had set the bar high for the rest of the summer movies, because the film had such a great combination of action, character development and good sense of humor, but wow, the least that the people behind X-MEN: FIRST CLASS could've done is go the extra mile and give us at least a solid new beginning to this franchise. Instead, they just checked off all the requirements on the "superhero origin story" list, took their money, and moved on. I didn't want to use the same quip that many other critics have used ("First class? More like coach"), but it's entirely applicable. The film's excellent interlacing of true historical events with the plot, combined with the strength of Fassbender's performance, keep me from giving it a lower grade, but never does this come across as a work of first-class cinematic quality.

The idea of not the first prequel in the X-Men franchise but the second raised suspicions and X-Men: First Class was one of those films that was either going to be absolutely fantastic or a huge disappointment; like X-Men: The Last Stand and X-Men Origins: Wolverine. This second prequel, we go a tad bit further back in time: back to when Charles Xavier and Erik Lehnsherr were discovering their powers and the birth of mutation, and being a fan of the X-Men trilogy, there was bound to be something great about this one. However, despite the expectations for the film was mixed, it turned out to be an absolutely magnificent film and it really surprised me!


X-Men: First Class truly becomes one of the very few prequels that wasn't your typical Hollywood film that you would normally see nowadays. Even in some of the effects, especially on Hank McCoy/Beast, it really did look like it was set in the 1960s. To be able to achieve the reality of a prequel set in an older generation, especially when the originals were successful, is a very difficult task that only a genius is able to pull off. So, huge congratulations are in order to Matthew Vaughn, the screenwriters and the rest of the crew for making this. This hasn't only revived the X-Men franchise as a reboot. Those who found X-Men: The Last Stand and X-Men Origins: Wolverine bad films will probably think of X-Men: First Class as a reboot as well as a prequel (that's what I personally think as well).


Before Charles Xavier and Erik Lehnsherr took the names Professor X and Magneto, they were two young men discovering their powers for the first time. Before they were archenemies, they were closest of friends, working together, with other Mutants (some familiar, some new), to stop the greatest threat the world has ever known. In the process, a rift between them opened, which began the eternal war between Magneto's Brotherhood and Professor X's X-MEN.


The entire cast was totally different from the previous films in the series and this could become the dawning of a new era so to speak. The first impression of James McAvoy as Charles Xavier were that it truly seemed like one of the worst decisions at casting an actor to play a certain character. After seeing the kind of characters McAvoy has played in the past and seeing as they are all very different, it really did seem like he was going to kill the character. However, after watching the film, James McAvoy blew me away and truly delivers one of the most surprisingly sensational performances in a very long time! McAvoy as Xavier worked incredibly well as a whole, but where it worked the best was that McAvoy shows his tenderness and support towards other mutants. He fits the character almost perfectly, like Patrick Stewart did so even when McAvoy's appearance was underestimated to start off with, he proves that only he could have pulled off playing young Charles Xavier. As for the other protagonist (but antagonist in previous trilogy) in X-Men: First Class - Erik Lehnsherr who was previously portrayed by Sir Ian McKellen who gave a perfect performance as Lehnsherr. Michael Fassbender, who hasn't really received any Hollywood recognition at all despite appearing in Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds, proved that he, as well as McAvoy, couldn't have played a certain character younger after its previous portrayers gave fantastic performances as well! Watching McAvoy and Fassbender together on-screen was like seeing Stewart and McKellen all over again! The bond was so powerful and it became a very moving film to watch at times. Out of the two, Fassbender's performance is more of a breakthrough and if the Academy weren't so biased towards Hollywood blockbusters, I would say that Michael Fassbender's performance could be close to worthy of an Oscar nomination.


Nicholas Hoult, an underrated child actor who was in About A Boy portrays Hank McCoy who becomes Beast and he, like McAvoy and Fassbender, provide a very strong character that honours the actor's (Kelsey Grammer) previous performance. Jennifer Lawrence honours Rebecca Romijn's performance as Raven Darkholme/Mystique. Both January Jones and Zoë Kravitz as Angel Salvadore added a lot of spice into the film as well. As for the main antagonist of the film: Sebastian Shaw, Kevin Bacon portrayed him so brilliantly; perhaps as sensational as Michael Fassbender. Bacon perfectly expresses what villains really are about and how psychotic they really are. In fact, I'd describe Sebastian Shaw as a perfect character that one would call a ''slime ball''. The character development was so strong and the acting was just superb! As far as acting is concerned, the X-Men franchise wins over the Spider-Man franchise but not overall.


Matthew Vaughn already received strong critical acclaim after being the director and co-writer of Kick-Ass, but didn't receive very much credit for his previous directorial films Stardust or Layer Cake. Knowing Vaughn's style of filming and the films that he makes aren't really typical Hollywood films, deep down there were thoughts that Vaughn will make X-Men: First Class a reboot of the series as well as a prequel. In fact, I think he has rebooted MARVEL film adaptations (just like Kenneth Branagh did with Thor). It wasn't all about effects and action with X-Men: First Class, it was the character development and strong dialogue that made it a huge success. Vaughn was going to direct The Last Stand which would've been great. However, if he did that, he might not have directed First Class and it might not have been as awesome as it really is. Vaughn collaborates for a fourth time with Jane Goodman as screenwriter. Together, they were the screenwriters of Stardust, Kick-Ass, The Debt (which Vaughn didn't direct) and, of course, X-Men: First Class and they make a fantastic partnership, just like a lot of actors and directors do. Their script was very un-Hollywood and they bought something new to the screen again. Their next collaboration should be something to look forward to.


Overall, X-Men: First Class is an absolutely fantastic prequel that rightly deserves to be one of the best films of 2011 and one of MARVEL's best creations. In some ways, I think X-Men: First Class is a possible reboot as well as a prequel seeing as it could be the birth of something new. X-Men: First Class is exactly what Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace should have been. Will The Amazing Spider-Man be like this? It could be. Finally, ever since X-Men 2 in 2003, the X-Men franchise has been revived and this is the birth of something huge!

Terrifically fun reboot of a somewhat tired franchise, that wisely focuses on the two most interesting characters of the X Men universe - Professor X and Magneto.

The introduction of Erik as a child within a Nazi camp is harrowing but electrifying, the discovery of his powers ultimately tragic. It lends to such an understanding of Magneto in the later films that was only ever hinted at, and you can completely understand his character arc and his actions. Fassbender is phenomenal as the older Erik, he is both cold and calculating yet his scenes with Charles are moving revealing some warmth (in particular the one where Charles reads his memories). He is clearly an actor destined for great things.

McAvoy makes an interesting Charles. He is light and cocky and, to be frank, a little bit cheeky. Watching him change as he becomes aware of the mutant world around him and how he can help it is more subtle but equally important to understanding the later Professor X. His relationship with Mystique is extremely interesting, and as a non-comic book reader, completely unexpected, and Lawrence is solid in the role.

Bacon as Sebastian Shaw is a delightfully evil villain, so hell bent on destruction that he disposes of everyone in his path. It's played with a slight pantomime edge but it works and is never embarrassingly laughable.

Whilst watching Charles and Erik become firm friends then become enemies is the key joy of the film, it's a shame that the additional characters are so dull and lifeless. Considering that this movie could really have picked any minor mutant it wanted, it choses to add a rag tag bunch of mostly uninteresting youngsters with no personality and powers that are largely unispiring.
Add to this the real blandness of Shaw's henchmen (including January Jones who has little to work with personality-wise) the film becomes a bit unstable with noticeable troughs of interest when the main characters aren't on screen.

Having said that, it doesn't overly detract from what is essentially a great film and an exciting preview of X Men-related things to come. The final shot of Magneto in all his helmeted and caped splendour sends a shiver down your spine that leaves you aching for more.

Really fucking loved this, it's easily on par with X2 (and X2 is one of my all time favourite super-hero films). I think the film pales in comparison to X2 in overall structure (and nothing in the film matches the sheer energy of the Nightcrawler attack or the savageness of the Wolverine/Death Strike fight) but it towers over X2 in terms of characterisation and specific scenes. The cast are a joy to watch, the style of the thing is amazing, the script is surprisingly sharp (despite doing a prequel thing I hate and having to do the origin of a bunch of inane crap like the jet and the X-Mansion) and Vaughan's eye for incidental detail is brilliant. I just wish it felt more cohesive. There are so many great moments, but it often feels like you're watching a collection of FANTASTIC but loosely unrelated scenes.

I also loved the use of superpowers in this film, even little stuff like Magneto throwing the knife, and then pulling it back to stick into the guys hand again are made really great by the way Vaughan films things. He almost has a naturalistic take on the powers, sort of accepting their presence and filming them casually instead of making them specific money shots.

Fassbender is defintely the MVP, but I think Bacon does a lot with very little. His character is essentially beta-Magento (even his power matches Magneto in that it uses the tools of humanity against them), but he injects the character with life. He's almost delightful in his glee in his opening scene. Also love the score, really great piece of work, looking to see when it gets released on Amazon.

Edit: Oh, and I could watch an entire film of Magento and Xavier just recruiting people. That sequence was so much fun, it even made the end of it (which really should have made me groan) work.

Very well done X Men movie that keeps your attention throughout the movie, only losing you if you are not somewhat familiar with the Marvel Universe. Otherwise, there is much innuendo for the Superhero movie class that will keep you smirking through most of the movie. Highly enjoyable, and each person plays their part beautifully. Magento is the most compelling role and Fassbender shows how anger truly is how he operates. McAvoy's role seemed lighter than expected, but Bacon's role counteracted it with greatness and prowess done to perfection. And by the way, do not bother waiting until after the credits, unfortunately there is no scene after it, and Stan Lee does not appear in the movie, a first for him not to play in one of his Marvel adaptations.

A briliantly made and incredibly well crafted prequel to a franchise which is highly underated. A fantastic performance from Michael Fassenbender and a great script. Another fantastic film from Matthew Vaughn. Look out from a great little performance from Nicholas Hoult.Highly recomended.