With campy dialogue, thin motivation and mostly unimpressive acting, X-Men: First Class will not win any Oscars at this year’s awards. But, then again, that surely was not Matthew Vaughn’s aspiration when he signed up to direct this latest X-Men film. Surely his intent was to bring X-Men fans a fast, fun, action-packed movie filled with incredible superpowers and a backstory that would lend depth to the characters we encountered in the first X-Men film. And, in that regard, the film delivers.
Though Matthew Vaughn has only directed three other films, all of his directorial outings have been met with critical success. His fantastic Layer Cake did not do well in the box office, but was universally praised by reviewers, and his second film, Stardust, was both a critical and commercial success. Matthew Vaughn comes off his last film, Kick-Ass, red hot, and continues his success with X-Men: First Class. The film does what it promises; it gives us big effects, high-octane action, and the explanation of the relationship between Charles Xavier (James McAvoy) and Erik Lehnsherr (better known as Magneto, played by Michael Fassbender), as well as the origins of Raven (Mystique, played by Jennifer Lawrence) and Hank McCoy (Beast, played by Berkshire native Nicholas Hoult). The relationship between Magneto and Professor Xavier is particularly captivating (and is the main crux of the film), and will do much to explain the events of the original X-Men film to those who have not read the X-Men comics.
Though it is clear that First Class is not intended to be anything more than a summer thrill, the film, and Vaughn’s direction in particular, is in need of sharpening. Though there are some nice moments between characters (the scene where Professor X helps Magneto turn the radio dish, as well as the chilling scene between the young Magneto and the evil Sebastian Shaw come to mind), the connections are at best fleeting, and at worst laughable. When Mystique and Beast reveal their mutual desire to be normal the air is so heavily saccharine that it is hard to stifle laughter (and many in the theater did not). When Magneto finds Mystique lying in his bed naked, the viewer is left scratching his head. When did they develop this sexual tension? When, indeed, had they even talked in the movie?
What is frustrating is that mistakes like these could have easily been avoided with a talented director and writer like Vaughn. McAvoy and Fassbender do a decent job in their respective roles, but it is hard to imagine Vaughn—who had such clever and fast-paced dialogue in Layer Cake, and who elevated Stardust from a potential candy-coated mess to a genuinely touching film—missing so many opportunities to create a connection between his characters, and failing to make their motivations intelligible. Though one would not expect a summer blockbuster like X-Men: First Class to reach new emotional heights, it leaves a sour taste in the mouth that Vaughn’s usual skill is mostly wasted here.
It is hard to fault the film too much, though; we are introduced to a slew of new and exciting mutants, including Havok, who can shoot huge pulses of energy that cut and incinerate targets into pieces; Darwin, who can grow gills and shield himself with armadillo-like armor; and the main villain, Shaw, who can absorb any energy (including nuclear energy) and unleash it with deadly force. The film never slows its pace during its two-hour runtime, and the Oxford crowd will get a special treat, as the film spends a good deal of time on campus. It is a bit worrisome for Vaughn and his cast, though, that after the film most of the audience was talking about Hugh Jackman’s cameo as Wolverine rather than the film itself.
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