20th Century Fox released the newest film in Marvel’s X-Men franchise, X-Men: Apocalypse, on Oct. 4. While skewered by famous critics, I felt they were too harsh. The movie was a fun blockbuster that built a good backstory and reintroduced us to some of our favorite characters.
In this sequel to X-Men: Days of Future Past, we see the beginnings of our favorite mutants who come together to fight a new threat. Apocalypse is the world’s oldest mutant, once worshiped as a god, who awakens in the 1980s to a world led by humans. Wanting to cleanse the world of mankind, he recruits several powerful mutants to help him complete the job. The X-Men come together for the first time as soldiers instead of students. Can they rid the world of this dangerous mutant before it’s too late?
This is an entertaining film bursting with stunning special effects. The plot is somewhat predictable, but what superhero movie isn’t? The new actors do their roles justice and bring us a better understanding of characters we’ve loved for years. It’s nice to see women given a mighty role in a superhero film. Jennifer Lawrence and Sophie Turner head up the team for good while the bad guys also have two women of power. The movie moves from one heart-pounding scene to another with special effects pulling a lot of the weight.
Overall, I’d rate this movie a 3.5. Since we don’t have half-stars here, I’ll give it a 4. While not an intellectual art film, the movie is enjoyable with its typical Marvel plot. Bring some action and adventure to your next date or family movie night with this epic blockbuster.