X-Men: First Class

Matthew Vaughn – 2011 – USA

I wasn’t a big fan of previous incarnations of the X-Men franchise – (whether in comic, animated or live-action form), but I actually enjoyed this origins prequel substantially more than any recent superhero movies in general.  A major plus is not only the early 60s milieu in which it takes place but the solid performances of stars James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender, who are real actors, not just pretty-boy action heroes.  Another plus is the thoughtful, (almost Cronenbergian),  treatment of its basic premise of genetic evolution, which rises above the simplistic focus on racism metaphors in the earlier X-Men movies.  Also of interest is the relationship between the future ‘Professor X’ and ‘Magneto’ (McAvoy and Fassbender, respectively).  Both have their share of human foibles and are depicted in solid, earth-bound situations, not zipping about in a blur of CGI like 99% of most such movies.  Granted, everything else is fairly standard stuff, but the pro’s easily outweigh the con’s in my view.