X-Men Days of Future Past (2014) Review


Another year that proved to be ultra successful for Marvel was 2014. Not only were there surprise hits like Captain America: Winter Soldier and Guardians of the Galaxy, but Fox gave us X-Men Days of Future Past. Bryan Singer, the one who has done the X-Men the most justice, at last returns back to the director's chair to not only give us probably the best movie in the franchise but to make up the sins of the past. Also, the original cast members return, as well as the cast of X-Men First Class, so this was indeed a big deal.

The world is now a very grim, dystopian future where mutants and even humans are hunted by powerful machines named Sentinels who can adapt themselves to any mutant power. We see our old heroes like Charles Xavier, Magneto, Storm, Kitty Pride, Colossus, Iceman and of course Logan/Wolverine, along with some newcomers like Blink, Warpath, Bishop, and Sunspot. With the help of Kitty, Logan is sent back in time to prevent this world happening. It all began in 1973 when Raven/Mystique killed a scientist named Trask (Peter Dinklage) who has done brutal research on mutants and is the man behind the Sentinels. But that didn't stop the government from moving forward with his designs. Logan goes to the young Xavier who's in a state of depression, having his school closed and taking medication from Hank McCoy/Beast that allows him to walk but suppresses his powers. After convincing him he's from the future, Charles and Hank go with Logan to get Magneto, who's the other key to stop Raven/Mystique. Magneto is imprisoned in the Pentagon for allegedly assassinating JFK. The three go to another mutant for help, Peter Maximoff/Quicksilver (Evan Peters) who has the power of super speed. Magento is released, but upon hearing what is at stake, he goes on his own journey to stop this future from happening with drastic means.

There are very high stakes in this movie. While they were in X-Men The Last Stand, this I'll admit is done a lot better. Not only is it about changing the future, but it also is about Xavier finding the strength to help mutants and mankind again after he's lost a lot. Magneto did too for that, and it's great to see how they can identify with each other, despite their differences. There's even a superb scene where the young Xavier looks inside Logan's head and sees his older self who motivates him. Aside from those elements, the newest addition of Quicksilver is a total delight. He is an enjoyable smartass who steals every scene he is in, along with some things with his super speed. Much like the Nightcrawler scene in X2, there's a terrific sequence where Quicksilver foils some cops when they're breaking out Magento. We see from his perspective that things are frozen and he's just moving at a normal pace when really he's speeding. Despite his short screen time, he is most definitely the best Quicksilver. (Sorry, Joss.)

By and large, X-Men Days of Future Past gives us everything we could ask for: great action and great character development. And on top of that, it delivers a beautiful payoff which, in my opinion, is the best one by far in the franchise. Anyone who hated what happened in X-Men The Last Stand and X-Men Origins Wolverine would be more than pleased at the ending, Even I though I didn't hate the former, I was just as happy as everyone was at how it turned out in the end. Heck, I'm sure I'm not the only one who got misty-eyed at it. Bryan Singer, from all of us, we couldn't be more thankful to you.

RATING: STRONG APPROVAL

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