X-Men: Days of Future Past

Bryan Singer returns to the X-Men franchise in full throttle with X-Men: Days of Future Past. In 1973, the murder of an anti-mutant Senator Trask (Peter Dinklage) by the shape-shifter Mystique (Jennifer Lawrence) sets in motion the anti-mutant idealism that brought the sentinels into existence, causing the apocalyptic war between humans and mutants. Modern-day Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart) and Magneto (Ian McKellan) send the claw-wielding Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) back to 1973 to find their younger counterparts (James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender) end the war before it ever begins.

Other than some major continuity errors, this movie was practically flawless as far as X-Men movies go. Hugh Jackman and James McAvoy had excellent chemistry, like a franchise veteran teaming up with the rookie. Michael Fassbender brings a Loki-like suaveness to Magneto, making the character even more interesting as a villain.

I was intrigued with the decision to center the story around Mystique, as she was a fairly bland character in the original trilogy. Her backstory shown in X-Men: First Class and Days of Future Past, combined with the adequate performance by Jennifer Lawrence, gives the audience reason to care when she's on screen other than the fact that she's walking around naked all the time.

Time travel movies seem to have endless possibilities for plot holes, but this is pretty solid so long as you suspend some disbelief here and there. The only issues in the movie come from the other movies of the franchise. Here are the main four issues I noticed:

SPOILERS IN THE FOLLOWING PARAGRAPH

1. How the fuck is Charles Xavier alive?

Apparently a post-credits scene in X3: The Last Stand revealed Xavier sitting in a hospital bed, not completely disintegrated by Jean Grey. Is this ever explained? Not at all. And this is the one question everyone hoped would be answered.

2. Wolverine shouldn't have Adamantium claws in the future.

At the end of last year's The Wolverine, Logan's Adamantium claws were removed by the silver samurai. He still had the metallic skeleton and his regular bone claws, but this just stuck out to me. It's not the biggest of deals, because we don't see a lot of the future in Days of Future Past. 

3. How does Kitty Pryde send people back in time?

I mean, she sends Wolverine's consciousness back because no one else's can take that kind of stretch of the mind, or something like that. As cohesive as this movie is, this aspect of Kitty's powers came out of nowhere.

4. Didn't the mission basically fail?

Raven didn't kill Trask, sure. But did Magneto planting a baseball stadium around the White House not terrifying enough to immediately approve the sentinel program, not to mention what happened in Paris. The public was exposed to what these mutants were capable of, which should have been enough to scare them into security.

SPOILERS END HERE

Some quick final thoughts: Peter Dinklage is awesome, William Stryker didn't really have to be in the movie (but it was cool to see). We didn't get to see much of the dystopian future, granted there wasn't much to see. The movie was able to be funny without distracting from the high-stakes plot. The original cast is kind of just there, and their importance relies on previous films. It's good to see some depth added to characters other than Wolverine.

This might be my favorite X-Men movie now. I didn't care for Singer's first two installments or X3, or Origins: Wolverine. It's a franchise I'm interested in watching grow bigger and better, but until First Class, it wasn't really up to snuff. Even if you're not an X-Men fan, I'd recommend you watch First Class and then Days of Future Past, and you might become one.

X-Men: A

Average: A-

American Hustle

David O. Russell, coming off of his success of The Fighter and Silver Linings Playbook, combines the leading casts of his Oscar winning films to create American Hustle. Irving Rosenfield (Christian Bale) and Sydney Prosser (Amy Adams) are con artists and lovers on the side. The two are recruited  to help catch corrupt politicians and mob bosses after getting caught themselves by FBI Agent Richie DiMaso (Bradley Cooper).

Everyone in this movie brought their A-game. Christian Bale is unrecognizable, and Amy Adams is mesmerizing. Cooper's character is a tad eccentric, but he nails the performance even better than in Silver Linings Playbook.

Jennifer Lawrence plays Rosalyn Rosenfield, Irving's unpredictable wife. While there is an unusual amount of focus on such a small character, she definitely shows the audience that her Oscar win for Silver Linings was not a fluke. I was a skeptic of her talent until I saw this strong performance.

Jeremy Renner has played characters in the past that were all fairly similar. This one completely throws his formula out the window. He owns the role of Carmine Polito, showing his range as an actor. The former mayor of Camden, New Jersey may have some redemption through this film, not just Renner's performance.

Louis C.K. plays Stoddard Thorsen, DiMaso's superior in the FBI. C.K. doesn't seem to have a large range of acting, but he works well in what he does have. He and Cooper play off each other well, especially with DiMaso's aggressive behavior during most of their scenes. I'm just sorry that we'll never hear the end of the ice fishing story.

The film really immerses the audience in the feel of the late 1970s. The clothes, the hair, the rotary phones, and the way people communicate verbally all project a natural experience of the time period. I'll expect a nomination for Best Costume Design among others. Speaking of which, Christian Bale looked extremely dedicated to the role by gaining weight, and his elaborate hairstyle was exquisite.

The relationships between the characters are so complex, but put together so well on screen. You can understand every character's thought process as he or she makes decisions. Most of them allow emotions to influence their decisions, and you can see what event in the movie triggers these emotional reactions.

Russell wrote this film remarkably well. As complex as the plot becomes, it remains easy enough for the audience to follow it. The best part is, you're never entirely sure if characters are being legitimate, but the plan has to move along no matter what. Whether it's facial expressions on each character as something goes wrong, or simply explaining a plan, the acting, combined with the script, makes a comprehensible and entertaining movie.

Apparently this film is nominated for "Best Comedy" at the Golden Globes. While it has its moments in terms of hilarity, it's much more dramatic and crime centered than it is funny.Though the internet will not find itself in a shortage of funny Jennifer Lawrence GIFs anytime soon.

I have no doubt in my mind David O. Russell will be nominated for Screenwriting and Directing at the Oscars, and that at least 2 of these actors will be nominated for Acting awards. I once described Captain Phillips to be this year's Zero Dark Thirty. Well American Hustle  is this year's Argo, and I think that this has Best Picture potential.

Rating: A+