Movie Review: X-Men: First Class

Among the barrage of superhero films being released this summer, X-Men: First Class was easily the one I was most excited for. X-Men is pretty much the only comic I read on a consistent basis as a kid, and I have enjoyed all the films so far. I am happy to report that X-Men: First Class is a near-perfect origin story of the X-Men, and is among the best superhero films ever made.

The main story line relates the early friendship between mutants Charles "Professor X" Xavier (James McAvoy) and Erik “Magneto” Lensherr (Michael Fassbender), who bond over their common goal to unite mutants and present themselves as a benefit to humanity and not a threat. They end up teaming up with FBI agents Moira McTaggert (Rose Byrne) and the Man In Black (Oliver Platt) to assemble a team to take out a band of evil mutants, known as the Hellfire Club, led by the villainous Sebastian Shaw (Kevin Bacon), a mission that Erik takes particular interest in because Shaw was responsible for the death of his mother when he was a child. The team they put together consistins of Raven aka "Mystique" (Jennifer Lawerence), Banshee (Caleb Landry Jones), Havok (Lucas Till), and Dr.Hank McCoy aka "Beast" (Nicholas Hoult) to help save the world from Shaw and his cronies and hopefully make the world see mutants in a positive light.

X-Men: First Class is an exceptional comic book film, which expertly tells the story of the beginnings of the X-Men. The script is quite strong, with a great blend of action, story, and even some comedy, anchored by two excellent lead performances from McAvoy and Fassbender. They were two perfect choices for this film, and they brought so much depth to their characters, you couldn't help but believe they were indeed the best of friends, despite the fact that you know it was doomed to failure. I would go as far to say that McAvoy and Fassbender outperformed Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen, who portrayed the same character in the first three films. The supporting cast also does a fine job, and Kevin Bacon actually made a damn good villain. He was actually the only casting choice I was skeptical with and he proved me dead wrong. He did a fantastic job, albeit in a very cartoony way.

Matthew Vaughn deserves a ton of credit for how good X-Men: First Class turned out. His direction was completely brilliant. As he proved with last year's Kick-Ass, he is complete natural at directing comic-book films. His style is a perfect fit for these types of movies and I really hope he does even more in the future. At this rate, he may soon approach a Christopher Nolan-level of genius when it comes to comic-book adaptions.

X-Men First Class is, hands down, the best superhero film since The Dark Knight. It's brilliantly acted, scripted, and directed. This film captures the origins of X-Men to a the letter. I hope they make another installment soon, because I am really intrigued by this story arc and I would love to see it continue. I know it's a little early to say, but I can just about guarantee X-Men: First Class will be the best superhero film of 2011, and likely the best one until The Dark Knight Rises next summer.

4.5/5 Stars