"X-Men Origins: Wolverine" tells the story of Wolverine's epically violent and romantic past, his complex relationship with Victor Creed, and the ominous Weapon X program. Along the way, Wolverine encounters many mutants, both familiar and new, including surprise appearances by several legends of the X-Men universe.

I am a firm believer that sometimes its better to leave things shrouded in mystery and the unknown then to have to reveal every single aspect of a back story or a character’s origins. That being said the latest installment of the X-Men franchise now a standalone movie starring the ever popular Wolverine was actually a pretty good movie. It had everything its predecessors had with a good story, lots of action and strong characters that was both entertaining and fun. The best part was likely the action as they seemed to try and up the ante on all three previous X-Men movies as the film was intense at times and had great battle sequences between the different mutants the film introduced.

X-Men which began the whole comic book movie regeneration in 2000 still has lots of stories that can be told outside of the Xavier’s school for the gifted and the actual X-Men team. I have to admit that I am not that big of a fan of Wolverine who has always been one of the most popular mutants in the X-men universe. And I always liked him more shadowed in mystery than actually knowing his origins as well but there is no denying that the character is likable for many reasons. From his snarky attitude to his mutant powers that allow for him to have hundreds of years of history he clearly is the perfect character to begin the whole spin off of the X-men universe.

I remember reading the actual Wolverine origins comic years and years ago and while my memory is a little fuzzy after all these years to its exact details the movie does borrow quite a bit from the comic arc. I actually thought they did a great job of tying the first three movies in with the current spin off and if you were to watch Origins before watching the first X-men film of 2000 they fit together almost like a puzzle. I wondered how they would tie all the loose ends up at the end but they also did a fantastic job of that as well not forgetting the first three films but yet still being their own unique entity. The story of Logan once a sickly child who through years of wars and a life that may be growing too long has a tragic quality to it that adds depth to a character that up until this point was just wisecracks and the occasional bad ass persona. I ended up liking how they put the story together and I ended up actually liking the character of wolverine a lot more now than before the film.

Hugh Jackman is still the perfect actor for Logan as he is quite a good actor that can bring that depth to the character all the while who is impressive enough physically that he can open a can of whoop ass when he needs to. The character is what made him famous and probably will be the character he is always remembered for. The movie like its first three predecessors also introduces a fresh batch of mutants and their powers. My favorite was Gambit played by Taylor Kitsch as he was also always my favorite from the comics along with Colossus. While he is only in the film for a short time when he does finally show up he brings the house down as his powers and the wit of his character make a perfect combination to Jackman’s gruff Logan. The actor I was surprised to see in the film was Ryan Reynolds who plays Wade Wilson and adds a ton of levity and humor to the film in his short time on screen. I am sure some of the purists and those who love Wolverine will be able to find lots of faults with the film but I enjoyed the film immensely and it was everything I would have expected from the X-men universe.

Grade: B+