X-men Movies: Worst to Best

As the release of  X-men: Days of Future Past is upon us, I thought I would take a look back what the franchise has brought us so far; so here they are: worst to best. 

X-men Origins: Wolverine
  

X-men Origins: Wolverine is a train wreck on every level: plot, performances, casting, effects... it's just terrible.  It tries to somehow condense Wolverine's backstory (which is pretty convoluted in the comics) into a coherent plot that somehow ties into the rest of the franchise.  The result is a mess. Note: Ryan Reynolds was a perfect choice for Deadpool---- too bad they sewed his mouth shut by the time he actually became the character.  The "merc with a mouth" thing doesn't work when he has no mouth. Supposedly he will get a chance to talk in the spin-off which is currently in development hell.

The Wolverine

Not as bad as its predecessor, but still pretty bad.  The first act is actually pretty good, the second act is boring, and the third  act an overblown mess.  If it had just remained faithful to the Claremont/Miller Wolverine series it was based on, it would have been much better.  I really wish Aaronofsky had remained involved.  I'm interested in seeing what he would have done.

X-Men: The Last Stand

This one really isn't as bad as a lot of people have made it out to be; the plot is serviceable and the real problem lies in the script: cringe-worthy dialogue and some annoying plot discrepancies.  It has its moments: Kelsey Grammar as Beast was a good if underdeveloped choice, Magneto revealing his holocaust tattoo as explanation of why he doesn't bear a mutant one, and I loved the "I'm the Juggernaut, Bitch!" bit--- and, when I found out this was based on an internet gag, that made it even better. I also don't have a problem with the way they handled Dark Phoenix; explaining the whole cosmic entity thing could be a bit much for the average movie goer.

X-Men

I recently re-watched this and it is much better than I remember it being.  The first two-thirds of the film in particular are rich in character development and a lot of nice, small moments that are true to the characters comic book origins.  My biggest problem has always been with the movie's central 'MacGuffin' as it were: Magneto's 'Mutant Making' machine.  It was always a bit too 'Dr. Evil' for me.  Also, the costumes, not only did they not look that great, but they restricted the movements of the actors so much that, in the film's climax, you'll notice that, for a team of superheroes, these guys sure do spend a lot of time walking briskly.

X2: X-Men United

Considered by many to be the best in the franchise (and, at the time of its release, it was) it improved upon the original exponentially with a stronger plot and greater character development.  Also, it avoided those damn costumes until the very end.  There were plenty of Easter eggs and cameos for hardcore fans; I'm a bit disappointed that they made Nightcrawler such a sad sack, he was always such a fun, swashbuckling character in the comics, although the inclusion of his faith was a nice touch.

X-men: First Class

A dark horse contender no doubt; it was a movie I had very little hope for but it has since become my favorite in the series.   No doubt seen by many as the last gasp of the franchise, it had a more modest budget, however, the result is a stronger plot and better characterization. Sure, people may have complained about some finer plot points not matching up with the others in the series, but that wasn't really a problem for me as I saw it more as a reboot; well, that and the fact that, as a comic book fan, if  you try to reconcile every plot inconsistency you encounter, your head will explode.  Oh yeah, and it didn't feature Wolverine (except for one brilliant cameo). So what?  A true X-fan knows there is more to the team than Wolverine.  McAvoy and Fassbender are brilliant as Charles Xavier and a pre-Magneto Erik Lensherr.  Whereas the other films in the series seemed to have started with a big action set piece and then built around it, First Class has a plot that seems to evolve more organically.  Best of all, the climax manages to not only be action packed but emotionally satisfying as Magneto accepts his nature and that the differences between he and Charles Xavier can never be reconciled.  My hope is that Days of Future Past doesn't lose the emotional resonance in the shuffle of a complex plot, bigger budget, and 3D effects.

Note: The film's weakest point in my opinion was January Jones' wooden performance as Emma Frost; if you wanted to cast a Mad Men actress in the role, put Christina Hendricks in a blonde wig--- The White Queen isn't Betty Draper; she's Joan Holloway!