The Wolverine

"A lot of people have tried to kill me... and I'm still here." - Logan

release year: 2013
genre: action
viewing setting: home Bluray 8/5/17 and 7/17/16 and 7/26/15 and 3/28/15 and 7/8/14 and 12/3/13 and theater, 7/29/13

synopsis: Logan is drawn to Japan, where he becomes involved with three generations of a powerful family, Yakuza, ninja, and evil mutants.

impressions: This was good, but not the masterpiece I was hoping for. And I can't even tell you why without spoiling anything. Suffice it to say that taking away things that make Wolverine special (i.e. cool) isn't always a winning idea. You can take them away and make him fight like hell to get them back, but just don't take them away permanently. There was plenty of action (guns, arrows, swords, hand-to-hand) and some good plot twists. There was also a lot of Japanese culture and philosophy, which was neat. I was just really unhappy with the ending. Note to Marvel/X-Men fans: there's a post-credits scene worth watching, that sets up the next X-Men movie.

body count: dozens

something this movie has that no other movie has: A running fight on top of a bullet train.

acting: Hugh Jackman is in great form (and shape) here, as he searches for meaning in life after losing the woman he loves. Rila Fukushima is Yukio, the extremely watchable kick-ass female ally. Tao Okamoto is Mariko, who is protected by and then falls for Logan. Svetlana Khodchenkova is Viper, an evil mutant who's just nasty. Will Yun Lee is a lethal archer. Famke Janssen is Jean Grey, who's dead but speaks to Logan inside his dreams here.

final word: Well-done character-building action-adventure for Wolverine.

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