X-men: First Class

[Superpan]

This movie has me confused on one count....alright, so is this movie set in the 1960's or when?  Because I notice Alex Summers is in this movie, and if he's a teenager while Professor X and Magneto are in their 20s, that would make him at least 20-40 years older than his older brother Scott (Cyclops). Explanation?

[Rob N]

I'm off to see the first showing at 11:40am with high expectations. I will report back on the film!

[chrisw91]

Awesome, I can't wait to read your report. Im dying to see this film.

[Rob N]

I believe this to be a most excellent addition to the series. If you are a comic book fan I think any of these movies must be taken with a grain of salt as characters and the situations of their lives are so often altered to better suit the needs of the movie. There were many incidences of this movie. However, looking aside from that and taking the movie as a stand alone entity then I have to say it was most excellent. The focus was definitely on Xavier & Magneto and their characters and personalities were fleshed out rather well. The other characters were a bit less fleshed out, but as they were not the focus of the story I don't feel hurt the overall movie much. Most of the actors were at least decent while the main stars playing Xavier and Magneto were definitely a cut above the rest. Some of the younger mutants were sad excuses for actors such as the cute but otherwise talentless girl who played young Mystique. The story did a great job involving history which I was entertained with (as a history buff). Also there were several slight asides to the previous films which I found entertaining, and some set up for how we found the characters set up during the first film.

I'm intentionally trying to avoid being to specific on anything to avoid spoiling any story for those who haven't seen it.

Overall: As a fan of Comics, previous X-Men films (1st 2 more than the 3rd), and a comic film fan in general I'd say it is definitely in my top 10 favorite comic movies of all time, and that it is worth the price of a theater visit.

[Ed]

It was awesome :D Some of the acting felt a little bit cardboardy at times, but overall I was riveted :)

[Riot.EXE]

This movie was damned good, but you can leave when the credits start up...there's nothin' during or after them.  Also, it seems to retcon X-Men 3 and Origins: Wolverine, out of the movie continuity.

Funny thing about Mystique in this one; her storyarc, if you think about it, is kind of an unintentional metaphor for embracing nudism. (And no...Jennifer Lawrence, the actress that plays her, is NOT Talentless.)

[Rob N]

Good warning about the lack of anything after the credits...that was most suprising and dissapointing.

[Wolfboy]

Haven't seen it yet but to quote The Pointer Sisters: "I'm so excited and I just can't hide it...."
By which I mean I really want to see this movie!

[Daft]

Excellent movie!

[chrisw91]

I've heard a lot about this movie, all of it is possitive. I have to see it 

[Daft]

Funny thing about Mystique in this one; her storyarc, if you think about it, is kind of an unintentional metaphor for embracing nudism. (And no...Jennifer Lawrence, the actress that plays her, is NOT Talentless

I totally agree. Her whole scene with Erik in the bedroom, in which he finally makes her accpet herself as she really is, and not be ashamed of her looks, is spectacular.

And by doing this, he also convinces her to walk around nude. 

[Daft]

[Fitz1980]

Because I notice Alex Summers is in this movie, and if he's a teenager while Professor X and Magneto are in their 20s, that would make him at least 20-40 years older than his older brother Scott (Cyclops). Explanation?

It is possible.  My own father had a sister who was 16 when Dad was born.  Being 20 years older than your sibling is not common but does happen sometimes.  If a woman has her first kid at 16 she could have another one when she's 40.  Many women are perfectly fertile at age 40.

Also the movie did somewhat change the continuity from the other films; which isn't too surprising.  Comic books are known for constantly re-writing their own backstories & continuity.

******SPOILERS AHEAD******

In the prologue to "X-Men 3" and a cameo in "Wolverine" Prof X is shown as a middle aged man who's not crippled (and played by Patrick Stewart who's been made to look younger through CGI) but in this film he gets crippled while still in his 20s and sporting a full head of hair.

From a nudist perspective there is a bit of a connection to the previous films.  In the comics Mystique wears a long white dress but in the previous films she prefers to go nude when she's in her natural blue state.  It was decided while working on the first movie that Mystique would be nude because wearing actual clothing would be a liability for a shape shifter.  She'd have a harder time quickly mimicking a soldier during a break in or an escape if she's wearing a real white does.  For much of this movie she mimics the appearance of a blond white girl and Erik asks her "if you're using half of your concentration to look normal than you're only half paying attention what whatever else you're doing.  I'm just pointing out something that could save your life."  A bit later she returns to her blue scale covered form and walks around the mansion nude.  Charles is shocked and asks "where are your clothes?" and she just says something to the effect of "I'm just being me and not hiding who I am."

I was a bit let down by the ending, I felt that the one they had could have better fit the continuity of the other X-men films. Admittedly I had totally forgotten that Prof. X was not disabled in the prologue to X-Men 3. My own opinion of how the ending could have worked would have involved most of the stuff that we got, with a few changes. I liked Charles and Erik's fight on the beach and Erik accidentally deflecting the bullet that crippled Charles. But in the ending that we got Erik suddenly turns from a mostly sympathetic guy with a bit of an edge into a supervillain almost at once. I'd have liked to see a reconciliation between Charles and Erik.

Erik was fairly justified in killing Shaw, against Charles' wishes; the guy did murder Erik's mother in front of him. You can even understand him wanting to turn the missiles back on the military guys who fired them; "I've been at the mercy of men who were just following orders before." Crippling Charles was an accident during the fight. I'd have liked it to end with Charles begging his friend to give the idea that humans and mutants can peacefully coexist another chance and Erik (racked with guilt over having accidentally crippled his best friend) reluctantly agreeing but perhaps saying that he still believes that Charles is hopelessly naive but will try to play it his way.

I just think that the character would be more interesting that way. The producers are hoping for a new trilogy with this film and I think that it would be more interesting to watch Erik slowly become evil, rather than just end the film with BAM - he's a supervllain!!!!!!!!

[MiloMinderbinder]

This movie has me confused on one count....alright, so is this movie set in the 1960's or when?  Because I notice Alex Summers is in this movie, and if he's a teenager while Professor X and Magneto are in their 20s, that would make him at least 20-40 years older than his older brother Scott (Cyclops). Explanation?

I was curious about that too, but Marvel made an official statement recently that their movies exist in their own universe, separate from the universe that the comics take place. So the movies are not canon to the comics and vice versa.

Marvel Cinematic Universe explained on wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marvel_Cinematic_Universe

[Daft]

Is it possible both threads of X-Men: First Class to be merged?