Of all the superhero movies coming out this summer, X-Men: First Class was lower on my list of the ones to see. I’m not really sure why that was, maybe it’s because I didn’t think it was going to be as fun and wouldn’t live up to the expectations of the first two films. Or maybe it’s because I knew Wolverine wouldn’t be in it (probably the latter). Well good thing I saw it because X-Men: First Class is probably going to be the best superhero movie of the year.
As a big fan of director Matthew Vaughn’s work (Kick-Ass, Layer Cake), I knew instantly that X-Men would be a different type of film, whether it was one I was truly interested in seeing is another matter altogether. With Vaughn at the helm I knew details were going to be an extremely important part of the filmmaking process. From maintaining the appeal of the original X-Men comics which were based in the 1960s, to making sure the balance of action and storyline matched that of the era, it was a challenge that he could definitely live up to. Remember what he did with Kick-Ass?
X-Men: First Class is an origin story of how the original mutants grew up in society and then joined forces in order to stop a few rogue mutants led by the sinister Sebastian Shaw (Kevin Bacon). The evil group was comprised of the sexy Emma Frost (January Jones), Riptide (Alex Gonzalez), and the satyr looking Azazel (Jason Flemyng). The film opens with Charles Xavier, with the older version played wonderfully by James McAvoy, meeting Mystique (Jennifer Lawrence) for the first time and we follow them as they grow up in England. The parallel story is that of Erik Lehnsherr, aka Magneto, as he loses his parents to the Nazis and Shaw and spends his life on a revenge fueled mission to find Shaw. Erik is played masterfully by Michael Fassbender and is one of the highlights of the film. His relationship with Xavier is a joy to watch and the chemistry between the two was fantastic.
With a runtime of about 132 minutes, X:Men First Class will have you begging for more. The action scenes were very impressive, especially when Magneto tries to take on Shaw for the first time. The effects that involved magneto lifting an anchor and trying to destroy a yacht were excellent; it was one of my favorite scenes. While the effects were pretty much flawless until the submarine fell from the sky (see trailer), X-Men was able to tell such a captivating story because it incorporated the action and effects into the story rather than basing the film’s story around the action, which is what most superhero films 
tend to do (they try to distract you with flashy fights). It is this achievement where I give Matthew Vaughn, the cast, and crew huge props for a job well done.
Additionally, what made this film even better was the mighty score that perfectly matched the tone of the film. If you ever get a chance to take a step back from what’s actually happening on screen, listen to the score and you’ll realize how well it matches the movie, it’s quite impressive.
Now for a few other fun/random tidbits of info. There is one hysterical cameo in the film that I didn’t expect at all. After thinking about it, I have decided that it is the best cameo since Bill Murray’s in Zombieland which, if you’ve seen, you know how good it is – sorry for those who haven’t. Also, you don’t need to stay for the credits, there is no extra scene at the end of the film so don’t bother staying. As for my favorite character, it had to be Hank McCoy (Nicholas Hoult), aka Beast, only for the fact that I waited a long time to see his transformation and when it does happen, you get to see him fight Azazel in a great hand to hand combat battle. Azazel is the red version and father of Nightcrawler.
Overall, X-Men: First Class is a high quality action drama. It has all the characteristics of a good movie that covers the emotional spectrum. While the acting may have been a little flat from some of the actors/actresses, for the most part everyone delivered the goods, most notably Kevin Bacon, James McAvoy, and Michel Fassbender. There weren’t really any bad performances. If you plan on seeing one superhero film this summer I would, hands down, make it X-Men: First Class, it’ll have you begging for more the second those credits roll.
Rating: A spectacular achievement in the superhero genre (9/10)
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