Logan

Logan

Released: March 2017

Starring: Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart, Stephen Merchant, Dafne Keen

Director: James Mangold

A fitting final chapter to Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine story.

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In the near future mutants have become almost extinct. Logan’s powers are fading, and he has dropped his Wolverine mantle to care for a deteriorating Professor X. All that changes though with the emergence of a new mutant.

Righty ho, let’s clear some stuff up quickly. Logan is not a traditional superhero film. But then, Wolverine is not a traditional superhero; he’s more akin to an anti-hero, a man who ultimately doesn’t mean ill, but who isn’t necessarily prone to bouts of self-sacrifice. So don’t go in expecting something similar to the other X-Men films. This has story, substance, and emotion.

I am a massive Wolverine fan. From to the comics, to the TV series and beyond, he has always been one of my all time favourite characters; frankly what’s not to love about a 5’3” hairy ball of rage and claws? I have the Death of Wolverine series framed. One of my cats is even named after him [Logan that is, apparently Wolverine isn’t a “good cat name [pfft]]. I love each and every story about this character (X-Men Origins: Wolverine none withstanding of course) and I was deeply excited to see how themes from the Old Man Logan story would translate to the big screen. And X-23; how I’ve waited to see her on the silver screen!

Set in 2029, there has been some sort of extinction-like event for mutantkind, with Wolverine (Jackman), Professor X (Stewart) and Caliban (Merchant) amongst the final few. They have taken residence on an abandoned industrial site, hiding from the horrors of their respective pasts. Their barren and derelict home is the perfect setting for this difficult and delicate relationship, perfectly reflecting the overall landscape for the mutants: uncomfortable, unwanted, falling apart, and alone.

Logan has shaken his Wolverine mantle, now working as a driver, earning money for medicine to help a deteriorating Professor X. He too has lost his X-Men title- now he is simply Charles- but his has been stripped cruelly from him by a degenerative brain illness, rather than shirked for a ‘normal life’. With Charles only occasionally lucid, and infrequently in control of his powers, he has become incredibly dangerous and is now locked inside an overturned water tower for everyone’s safety. The early scenes between Logan and Charles are some of the greatest in the Marvel cinematic franchise, with some of the most honest and realistic depictions of living as a loved ones’ carer ever put to screen.


From the outset, it is obvious that this isn’t your average superhero film, not by any stretch. This is set in a very real world and deals with some very real themes. It builds slowly, but is not ponderous; it is emotive and genuine; much like the Johnny Cash songs which punctuate the film and its trailers. Wolverine is shown in a whole new way, not a violent animal, nor an embattled warrior, but a son, struggling to care for his frail father. Caliban (who Logan has drafted in to help care for Charles) has become something of a marital partner for Logan, who is trying to hold himself together with a full-time job, caring for Charles, and his own failing health.

The delicate balance is thrown out of kilter though, with the arrival of a new mutant, Laura (Keen), and those who are looking for her. Well, looking might not be quite the right word, given that they’re doing it with angry guns. Hunting is probably more accurate.

But the tables are quickly turned as a cornered Laura proves that she might not just be a new mutant, but one with a lot in common with Wolverine, as the hunters turn into the hunted.

Just like that, everything changes for our rag-tag group; there’s no time left to save for a new life, they must abandon their current existence and take to the road. Time to head for a safe haven, one on the other side of the country.


This would be a dull film indeed though if their journey was a quiet one, so expect there to be some twists, turns, and bumps in the road. Turns aren’t necessarily a bad thing though, offering chances for building our characters, Logan from struggling son to a fresh father, Charles to an adoring grandfather, and Laura, from a wild animal, to simply a young girl. Even when the actions sequences feel sparse, there is always enough going on to build the plot and keep you drawn in.

Logan is unlike any previous Marvel film, and there will probably never be anything like it again. Tonally it is worlds apart from the comparatively light-hearted X-Men films, and it is much closer to Wolverine’s comics than anything seen before; it is dark, gritty and gruesome. After the huge success of 2016’s Deadpool proved that you can be brash, brutal and big in the box office, there was much more freedom for explicit content here. There is a lot of bloody violence, and gratuitous swearing, with more f-bombs dropped than if Samuel L. Jackson stubbed his little toe. As the final chapter of Wolverine’s story (or at least Hugh Jackman’s 17-year tenure in the role), the gloves were off, and the claws were out.

The opening chapter builds the genuine emotion that, after so many years together, we have been long overdue. As with Logan’s off-screen stories though, there is a genuine sense of impending sorrow; that every moment of joy could be quickly shattered by something utterly gut-wrenching. From the very moment the status-quo is rattled by Laura’s arrival, it feels as though we are teetering on the edge of exploding, only needing a spark to ignite everything. Duly we are obliged, and what follows is an action-packed finale, full of blood and claws, but still heavily laced with feeling.

As what will likely be the final Wolverine film (at least for a little while), Logan is a labour of love which has not only stood up to the test but passed it with flying colours. Pushing the timeline into the future allowed the opportunity for unexplained tragedies to befall our other X-Men, leaving our motley crew in their initial predicament. The ravages of time have finally been allowed to take their toll, adding real peril, with a genuine sense that perhaps not even Logan will be able to heal his way out of the danger he is in.

There are some wonderful throwbacks to Wolverine’s previous outings, a samurai sword hung on the wall here, a nod to the Weapon X programme there. X-23, aka Laura is written and played perfectly; full of wild fury, harking back to Wolverine’s (chronologically) early outings, but her vulnerability resembles X-Men’s (2000) Rogue, requiring guidance and nurturing, before realising her own potential. Logan even allows itself to touch the fourth wall (without damaging it, let alone breaking it), as his past adventures have become serialised into their own comics and he has his own on-screen set of adoring fans. As we sit through this final episode, we are all the young boy with the Wolverine toy, in awe of what we just saw. If you’re not up to speed with the other films, there are some parts which may be lost on you, but for Marvel fans this is, simply put, a must see.
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🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 5 Stars

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I loved

I never thought I’d live to see Patrick Stewart drop the f-bomb. I have now!

Logan is the most human and emotive of all the Marvel films so far. It is, one of the best family dramas that I’ve seen for a long time, or expect I shall see for a while.

This is a beautiful way for Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine story to close. The love and passion from everyone involved is clear throughout.

Pet Peeve

There are one or two moments which I felt should have had a bit more time dedicated to them. Logan packs a huge amount in and, without turning this into a Dr. Zhivago length epic, a few cuts would have to be expected. But a couple of extra minutes in some choice places would have added plenty of extra bang for their buck, without extending the film too far.

The real star of the show: Logan