The Wolverine

Warning: This review will contain spoilers, so if you don't want to know certain details about the movie, you may want to read anyway, because if you're like me, I like to get teased a bit. ;)

Premise: The events in this movie take place after X-men 3, so you see a Wolverine suffering the aftereffects of what took place at the final showdown. He's a man on the edge and reliving nightmares every day. He's approached by a young woman who says that an old friend of his, someone who owes their life to Wolverine wants to say his final “goodbye” and requests Logan's presence. Logan goes, because he's honorable like that. The man warns Logan that his granddaughter is in danger and that triggers that soldier/protector vibe inside Logan, rekindling his desire to slice and dice. He'll do whatever it takes to save Mariko (I think that was her name) from whatever threat is out there.

Review: Wolverine is probably my favorite X-Man, I have a few, but he's my top guy. I love his attitude, his swagger, his sexy muscles and his abilities. I was pretty excited to see they were going to give a Wolverine movie another go. Origins wasn't horrible, I enjoyed it, but it could have been so much better. Now, was The Wolverine, the “Wolverine movie fans have been waiting for”, as the TV trailers claim? Well, for me, it wasn't. It was better than the X-men movies and it was better than Origins, but it wasn't the ultimate Wolverine movie. In comparison, it paled horribly to other spring/summer blockbusters like Iron Man 3, Man of Steel and Pacific Rim.

Here's why:

1. The guilt-ridden, self-loathing bad dreams Logan had over the death of Jean G. Far too many instances of this going on in the film.
2. There were scenes where they could have added more fight sequences, more action. I can count on one hand the amount of times Logan used his claws to Julienne salad someone. That's not nearly enough slicing and dicing to satisfy this Wolverine fan, I'll tell you that!
3. The story line dragged a bit.
4. I also got the vibe that Logan didn't like being a mutant and that's not the Logan I know and love. I guess there was too much angst going on in the movie for my taste regarding my favorite kick-ass X-man.

That fight sequences that were in the movie were well done and I enjoyed seeing Logan do his thing. His signature attitude was there for the most part, especially when having a certain “conversation” with a fellow whose answers had to please Logan, or else.

Overall, it didn't leave me with a feeling of euphoria when the credits started to roll. I wasn't charged in my seat as I watched the action scenes like I was when I was watching Man of Steel and Pacific Rim. The humor was on the mild side, I expected a bit more because Wolverine is one sarcastic dude. I did enjoy it, and I'd most likely will buy the Blu-ray when it hits the stores.

Grade: (B-) I'm going to have to assign you some extra credit courses so that you can catch up with the rest of your peers. (If it weren't for Hugh owning the role and flashing me plenty of skin, this would have been a C+ movie. )