It's no secret that I'm a fan of the X-Men films. Not so much The Last Stand and Origins: Wolverine as I am the original, X2 and X-Men: First Class. A lot of people have been crapping on the upcoming solo film, The Wolverine. I understand the disappointment. Sure, we can't entirely judge by what you hear but with what we have been hearing, there is nothing that we should be worried about. If you're going to complain about that he isn't going to wear his goofy comicbook outfit (which works in comics only) I suggest you leave this article. Still here? Okay, here is how to appraoch, The Wolverine.
Treat it as the next, X-Men: First Class
Remember when we were dissing on X-Men: First Class when they started showing stills and trailers for it because it didn't look all that great? Then we saw it and realized how excellent the film is. It's still up there (at least for me anyways) for one of the all time great superhero flicks. Just, take the "First Class" approach. The disappointment of Origins has cause us to be cautious towards, The Wolverine. Just, try to be a little bit excited but don't count it out. The last time we disregarded an X-Men flick, we got the best one. The Wolverine has massive potential to be among the best, I think this one is going to suprise many of us.
The "Dark Knight" of the X-Men films
Not just the "Dark Knight" of the X-Men films but just the Marvel films in general. I say this in the sense of it being very gritty and dark in tone. But, even more due to the intensity that James Mangold has told us about that he feels has been missing from the Wolverine character. We probably aren't going to get the costume most of you have been wanting. But, we are getting a very character driven, intense take on the most popular Wolverine storyline ever created.
It has some of the right players on the team
Here is what I am talking about. James Mangold, the director that 20th Century Fox has so gladly decided to give us has also given us some award winning films. The two that come to mind are the following: Walk the Line and 3:10 to Yuma. Marco Bletrami is also an academy award winning film composer. He has composed films like: the Scream franchise, 3:10 to Yuma, Blade 2, Hellboy, I,Robot, Live Free or Die Hard, A Good Day to Die Hard and Underworld: Evolution. Just to name a few. Christopher McQuarrie, Mark Bomback (Unstoppable, Live Free or Die Hard) and Scott Frank (Minority Report). To top it all off, you have Hugh Jackman returning as the title character. Some complain about him in the role. I don't see how. He is a VERY good actor and clearly has a passion for the character. You can't get better in that particular situation. If you weren't sold, just think of what I just listed to help ease you.
It's a unique superhero film
Here is what I mean by it's a unique superhero flick. When have we seen in a second film of a superhero franchise (in this case, the Wolverine film franchise, solo) have we had the hero being stripped of completely everything and left with nothing. That's the case with, The Wolverine. He is stripped of everything. More alone than he has ever been. More of a chip on his shoulder. He is left in a place where no superhero movie has put their protagonist before. Most second films put their hero in a predicament where they are dealing with the consequences of taking on the mantle of being a superhero. Third films put their protagonists back against the wall. The Wolverine is doing neither. It's unlike other superhero films which is why the excitement should be more high up for this film.
Obviously, I have faith in this film. Should you? I think so but, that's for you to decide. This is just how you should approach the film. Comment below with your thoughts.