Hugh Jackmans last take as The Wolverine is an emotional one. By far Logan is the most emotional yet action packed X Men which all die-hard fans wanted to see. Though his character is visibly older, facial hair grown out and flecked with grey, Jackman’s charisma and bulk are both strappingly undiminished. This is shown through several sequences as he has taken down a few goons in a gunfight and trying to heal, evidently, the process of the healing factor is slowing down which is part of the narrative.
Hugh Jackman establishes Logan as a film for mature audiences with gut wrenching violence which lays to the commitment of the visceral yet detailed creative VFX of blood and gore as is shown in the opening 10 minutes of the film. This sets the tone of the type of film which director James Mangold was trying to achieve.
Logan is set in the year 2029 where we are introduced to a world where no mutants have been on the surface for the last 15 years. Logan (Hugh Jackman), going under his birth name James Howlett, tries to keep a low profile as a limo driver in Texas. This is to make sure no one tries to hunt him, Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart or Caliban (Stephen Merchant). Charles is shown to be very ill and being taken by care by both Logan and Caliban with the mere supplies of medicine they can replenish from stores and hospitals.
Logan (Hugh Jackman) wants to put enough money together to be able to get away with Charles (Patrick Stewart) and live the rest of their days near the ocean and find a safe haven but his plans get drifted as he is met with Laura/X23 (Dafne Keen), a young girl with powers similar to himself. He is then forced to go on the run from the military forces lead by Donald Pierce (Boyd Holbrook), Logan (Hugh Jackman) naturally discovers his final purpose in his life and that is looking after the young girl and reluctantly helping her getting to ‘Eden’, a safe haven for mutants which is refuses to believe that are alive.
Although the violence is very brutal, director James Mangold does not stand down to show that is not pandering off the true nature of what Logan is supposed to be like. If anything, the film eventually reveals a character that is a rebuke to that characterization of Wolverine. That character which has never been mentioned in neither the trailers nor interviews. That is Weapon X-24, an enhanced doppelganger of Logan (Hugh Jackman) that is controlled by the military to take out X-23. There are many action packed sequences between X-24 and Logan, one that is going to memorable.
The X-men takes a dark turn of becoming a myth, a bunch of fossils and what remain now are two mutants trying to survive in a dog vs dog world. It’s a hopeless outlook but is established through the brilliant performances from both Hugh Jackman and Patrick Stewart.
Although Jackman has done an outstanding job with a beloved superhero since he first started playing the role in 2000, Logan feels like the first time where he gets to dig deep into the role.
Although Hugh Jackman has done a brilliant job in bring the role to cinema in 2000, Logan is the first time where he digs deep into the role, uncensored and not cut back on the PG rating.
In my opinion, if there was an older actress to take the role of X-23, it would not have the same effect as opposed to casting (Dafne Keen). This is the essential ingredient to the narrative that positioned Logan (Hugh Jackman) as a father role for X-23. This is to take care of a younger version of himself so she can grow with him and eventually have a bond with each other.
Although the action is substantial, Logan is the film which gives Hugh Jackman a send-off that he deserves. It’s established from his role as the Wolverine from the last 17 years that he cares about the character role and its emotions and wanted to give his best performance to date to give the goodbye audiences want to give to the Wolverine.
Logan is a unique film. It’s not a game-changer for the X-Men franchise or the superhero genre as a whole. It could really only be done with Jackman signing off and with Mangold being given the authority to really cut loose and present a clear, uncompromised vision. The result is a movie that does have a few faults (like most X-Men movies, it’s a little too long), but overall Logan provides a fond farewell to Jackman and the character he defined for a generation.
Logan is a unique film. Although it took a step forward with the success with R-rated Deadpool in 2016, it brought a new game to the X-men universe however, it may be the last time we may see it. James Mangold being given the authority to really cut loose and present a clear, uncompromised vision. Never the less, Logan provided the best way for Hugh Jackman to leave the character as he has defined the generation of the comic book character. Be prepared for the tears for the performance by Hugh Jackman, Dafne Keen and Patrick Stewart as they did an amazing job to finalise the end of an era.
10/10