Wolverrine: Ehhhh... 5/10

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

If I didn't know anything about the characters or the comic books prior to this then it might jump up to a 7 out of 10. Unfortunately, that is not the case. There were certainly good parts of this movie, but the bad parts more than overwhelm me a bit right after watching it. Just for kicks, we'll start with the good.

All of the things you expect from a major studio release are there. Good effects, good choreography, good cinematography and directing. None of these are great or exceptional, but they are all competent and certainly on par with anything else out right now. The casting is easily the strongest point in this movie, and earns it most of it's points. Liev Shrieber was especially fantastic as Sabretooth, and the dynamic between him and Wolverine was perfect.

Ryan Reynolds was perfectly cast as Deadpool, and the only problem with that is that he's only in the movie for five minutes or so. Seriously, no exaggeration. There in lies the biggest problem with the movie. None of the characters are there for long enough to really develop them, and that's because there are just too many characters. I understand that the X-Men universe has plenty of characters to choose from, and that can be overwhelming, but we don't need every character ever to appear in print making a cameo in this movie. I thought they would have learned from the debacle that was X3.

Besides the ones previously mentioned, Kestrel (John Wraith), Blob, Gambit, Cyclops, Emma Frost, Agent Zero, and Bolt all make appearances, and they are all on screen juuuust long enough to where it looks like they might get developed, but right at that moment they either leave or get killed. John Wraith was on screen just long enough to peak interest, and would have been great if he stayed around, but that is not the case. Gambit would also have been cool if he were around longer, but he is missing for most of the finale, and was introduced too late to really do anything. He also was not a vital character to the plot, and they could have solved the problem they used him to solve in a much better way. Emma Frost and Cyclops also didn't need to be in the movie at all. It was just unnecessary.

Ultimately this film felt like they just introduced mutants simply to have them on screen.

The plot was also a bit convoluted. I mean, was Wolverine's wife being a mutant and a traitor really necessary? Really? Also, adamantium bullets are one of the dumbest things I have ever heard.

The end really turned me off to the movie, since it kind of felt like the ending to Return of the King, though without the excuse of having 3 movies to wrap up. It was always a "but wait there's more!" Wolverine dispatches Sabretooth, and then OH LOOK he has to deal with Weapon XI (I refuse to call that thing Deadpool), and then OH LOOK Stryker has adamantium bullets. It just dragged on and on, and for a movie with so much action, that is a really bad sign.

The good news, though, is that Wade Wilson is one of the few characters that can recover from anything, so they can always bring him back to form for a solo movie. Here's hoping they don't screw that one up.