I’ve had Marvel fatigue for years now, but I’ve kept up with the theatrical releases and most of the shows. But I no longer feel obligated to watch every single show, and I rarely do a deep dive re-watch to prepare any longer (which is probably why I had no clue what the fuck was going on in The Marvels). But the preview for Deadpool & Wolverine amped me up, and since I like the X-Men and Deadpool universe quite a bit anyway, I decided to rewatch it all. And thanks (I think) to Evan Dossey at the Midwest Film Journal, I even revisited Daredevil and Elektra since I saw that he watched Elektra knowing she was showing up in the movie. (And now I need to rewatch the Fantastic Four movies from the early aughts and the Blade trilogy, I guess.) But I’m not ranking those movies; I’m only bringing them up as evidence of the stupid shit I will watch when I get on a movie kick.
This series of films exemplifies my relationship with comic book movies in general. The first X-Men movie came out when I was fifteen and ignited a fandom that lasts to this day. But those films went through some wild peaks and valleys, and that’s how I am at this moment with the genre. Some movies, like Deadpool & Wolverine, will have me feeling like a dorky teenager again, while others, like The New Mutants, will leave me thinking, “Why did they even bother with this one?”
Anyway, whenever I end up watching an entire series of films I have to create some content about it. So here are my completely subjective rankings of all the X-Men and Deadpool movies now that they seem to be truly done as Deadpool (and probably Wolverine) get sucked into the MCU for bit parts for the foreseeable future.
1. Logan
The R-rating aspect of this gets too much attention (from me as much as anyone) as an example of finally being able to see Wolverine brutally kill enemies. While that is awesome, and I immediately turn into an insufferable fanboy when I see those claws enter a goon’s face, the R-rating is mainly there because this is a dark, adult story. I’m all for a fun comic book movie, but when someone can turn one into cinematic art, it’s something truly special. Logan is number one with a bullet on this list, and it’s one of my favorite movies of all time.
2. X2
This one takes me back to that fun early era of superhero films when a sequel was cause for excitement instead of trepidation. Much like with Spider-Man, the first film was the lower stakes proving ground that allowed for a bigger, and better sequel. This is the most rewatchable movie in the series for me. And Brian Cox ruined Stryker for all other actors. No one has come close to him since.
3. X-Men
The first film was a big deal for me. I was used to goofier comic book movies at this point (I was, and still am, a fan of Batman Forever), so when this more serious and moody film came out and showed that these things could be elevated, it made me a lifelong fan. And what a relief when Hugh Jackman immediately proved to be the perfect choice for Wolverine.
4. Deadpool & Wolverine
Definitely some recency bias going on here. Click here for my full thoughts on this one. It’s this high on the list because it did the impossible and made me excited about the MCU again. But in all likelihood, if I revisit this list in a year or two it will likely drop at least one spot.
5. X-Men: Days of Future Past
The Last Stand and the Wolverine spin-offs were disappointing, and First Class gave me a little hope. But this was the movie that brought me back on board. I’m a sucker for future dystopias, so I just enjoyed the premise. And as a fan of both the old and new casts, it was such a relief that they found a way to bring them together in such a satisfying way.
6. X-Men: First Class
This could have gone wrong in so many ways, so it’s a minor miracle that’s not a trainwreck, much less one of the best films in the series. As with the original film, casting played a big part. Fassbender will always be the standout for me, but nearly everyone made their character their own. There’s a little 1960s goofiness here and there, but overall it’s an emotionally resonant film (mainly because of Erik’s storyline) with the added bonus of taking place during a period of history I have a particular interest in.
7. Deadpool
It feels a little weird to include the Deadpool films in any list because the fourth-wall breaking stuff makes them feel like their own thing. But the X-Men play a large part in each film, even if they never devote the whole team to a film. I really enjoy all three, and this one is actually the best movie of the three (even if I enjoy the third film a lot more), but a good proper X-Men movie will always be above these movies…unless Wolverine is a main character.
8. Deadpool 2
I like this one more than most, I think, but I do think they rushed it. I got so excited for Deadpool & Wolverine partly because it’s been six years since the last movie. I think if this had come out even just one year later than it did it might be remembered a bit more fondly. Rewatching them this time close together, it honestly gets a little difficult to differentiate them, which is why they are back to back on this list.
9. X-Men: The Last Stand
Ninth is probably higher than this would be on most lists, but I still enjoy this as the end of a trilogy. It’s certainly the lesser of the three, and there’s nothing here even remotely as memorable as anything in the first two films. But I had grown to love these characters so much at this point that I still liked it. But yeah, upon a rewatch, this is the point that I started to check out a bit while watching.
10. The Wolverine
I watched both the theatrical and extended cut of this, and I think it suffered because of it. This more serious take on a solo Wolverine story is definitely better than the first attempt, but it’s still a bit of a slog. It’s just not a lot of fun to see Logan moping around, wanting to die and without his powers. But this was Mangold crawling before he could run with Logan, so at least there’s that.
11. X-Men Origins: Wolverine
If you accept how fucking stupid this movie is, it’s possible to have a little fun with it, but I can just never forgive those CG claws in the bathroom scene. I’ll never understand how they managed to make them that awful for his FOURTH portrayal of the character. Just keep doing what they had been doing! Perhaps more than any film on this list, this thing collapses under the tiniest bit of scrutiny. But it’s never boring; it’s just really fucking stupid.
12. X-Men: Apocalypse
Origins might be trash, but I’ll still revisit it from time to time. Apocalypse (and the next two movies), on the other hand, just bores me. I wish it was worse, actually, because then I might remember it. The villain just isn’t compelling to me, either. The good thing about most of these movies is that the bad guy has a good reason, at least in their opinion, for what they are doing: Trask thinks he’s protecting humanity, Magneto thinks he’s protecting mutants, etc. Apocalypse is one of those bland villains that just exists to destroy the world because they look evil and that’s what you do when you have a face like that.
13. Dark Phoenix
This was supposed to be some kind of redemption for The Last Stand storyline, and it somehow made fans even angrier. As someone who has never read the comic version of the Dark Phoenix storyline, I wasn't all that upset with how it was handled in The Last Stand, so I didn't need to see it re-done. And apparently no one else dod, either.
14. The New Mutants
This isn't really a bad movie, I was just completely tired of this series by the time I got to this. I just kept wondering who it was made for, because it just seemed miserable inside and out. The abuse of children has been a topic for this series from the get-go, what with Charles's school being used to basically recruit soldiers, and the government's much harsher treatment of mutant children. But it's always been one aspect of the story, not the focus. I just don't want to be this bummed out while watching an X-Men movie. So maybe it's unfair, but I'm putting it at the bottom because I had no fun watching it and never want to see it again.
No comments:
Post a Comment